Arietta Napa Valley Wine Tasting Featuring wines from winemaker Andy Erickson with Special Guest Owner Fritz Hatton

Vito Corleone: I like to drink wine more than I used to.
Michael: It’s good for ya, Pop.
Vito Corleone: Anyway I’m drinkin’ more.
The Godfather

I have been drinking more than I used to since I opened the Wine Bar!  But that’s OK I’m training for the wine drinking Olympics!! 
We only have a few weeks left till the Wine Bar closes for the month of December and we get extra busy with holiday orders so I’m working on Wednesday night with our good friend Fritz Hatton in town. 
Fritz is probably better known as an auctioneer than a vintner but that’s why he has Andy Erickson making the wines.  Fritz has been making wine now for over 25 years in Napa and is sourcing fruit from some of the top vineyard sites after making friends with the owners of these properties while rubbing elbows with them at the Napa Valley auction for the last two decades.
We have been following these wines from day one so when Fritz called me to let me know that he would be in town in November, I was happy to open the Wine Bar on Wednesday night to taste the new releases from Arietta.
Join us as we welcome Fritz back to South Florida for an evening of great wines, stories and of course a special meal prepared by chef Toni Lampasone.  The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $250 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com

Arietta Wine Tasting with Special Guest Fritz Hatton
Wednesday, November 13th
7:30pm

2023 Arietta On the White Keys
2021 Arietta Quartet Napa
2021 Arietta Merlot Hudson Vineyard Napa
2020 Arietta Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
2017 Arietta Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
2019 Arietta H Block Hudson Vineyards Napa
2018 Arietta 'H Block Hudson Vineyards' Cabernet Franc - Merlot, Napa Valley
2016 Arietta 'H Block Hudson Vineyards' Cabernet Franc - Merlot Napa Valley

Menu
Selection of cheese and Charcuterie
Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras Served Over Bourbon Vegetable Consumee with Edamame, Tomato Concasse and Cheese Tortellini
Red Wine Pasta with Speck and Fresh Parmesan Reggiano
Sliced A5 Waygu Filet with Cabernet Sauvignon Reduction and Sweet Potato Au Gratin
Chocolate Creme Brulee

The price for this event which includes dinner is $250 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. **Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have an aversion to Foie Gras and I will eat yours and Toni will serve you a salad or something.  We are always happy to accommodate special requests if you have allergies or other issues with the menu.

About Arietta Winery:
Arietta, an ultra-premium Napa winery specializing in limited production Bordeaux-style blends, is owned by wine specialist and auctioneer Fritz Hatton and his wife Caren. One of America’s most celebrated winemakers, Andy Erickson, crafts the Arietta wines from carefully chosen blocks in the cooler climates of Napa Valley. The Arietta wine portfolio currently consists of four red wines—H Block Hudson, Variation One, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Quartet—and one white wine, On The White Keys.

The Hattons founded Arietta in 1996 in partnership with winemaker John Kongsgaard and his wife Maggy. The partnership was born of a shared passion for fine wine and classical music. The vinous inspiration for Arietta was an extraordinary 2.3 acre block of Cabernet Franc on the Hudson Ranch in Napa/Carneros. The fruit from this block of Cabernet Franc serves as the core of the Arietta Red Wine H Block Hudson Vineyards. The Arietta project grew with the selection of additional superb blocks of Merlot and Syrah on the Hudson Ranch, which made possible the addition of two wines to the Arietta portfolio: Arietta Red Wine Variation One, an innovative blend of Merlot and Syrah, and Arietta Merlot Hudson Vineyards, produced only in selected vintages.

Pursuing our principle of purchasing fruit only from the very finest vineyard blocks, Arietta in the 2003 vintage purchased a small quantity of Cabernet Sauvignon from Howell Mountain vineyards farmed by famed Napa grower David Abreu. This fruit afforded us the opportunity to release a small quantity of Arietta Cabernet Sauvignon in the 2003 through 2005 vintages, as well as the Arietta Claret 2004 and 2005. In 2006 Arietta leased a fabulously situated 1.6 acre block of clone 337 Cabernet Sauvignon in Coombsville, which became the new core of the Arietta Cabernet. The same year saw the introduction of Arietta Quartet, a blend four Bordeaux varietals. Since 2009 the core of the quartet has been a jewel of a three acre vineyard in Coombsville, painstakingly laid out and planted by famed viticulturist David Abreu in 2003.

Erickson crafted Arietta’s first ever white wine, Arietta “On The White Keys” 2005, from very rare hillside blocks of Sauvignon Blanc on Sonoma Mountain and two tiny old vine Semillon blocks in the Hyde Vineyards in Napa Carneros. Barrel fermented and aged for eight months in a combination of stainless steel, new oak, and French oak barrels, the Arietta White Keys, with its distinctive combination of vibrant flavors and a grand finish, was an instant success upon release in the fall of 2006.

Arietta's label features the manuscript of Beethoven's Arietta movement from his last Piano Sonata, Opus 111, written long after the composer had lost his hearing. Opus 111 is one of the most transporting and revolutionary pieces of music ever composed. Serene yet complex, rich yet ethereal, Beethoven’s Arietta provides an inspirational model for great winemaking.

Andy Erickson, Arietta's winemaker, is one of the most accomplished winemakers of his generation. After working at wineries in Napa and South America, he earned his Master's Degree in Viticulture and Enology from the University of California at Davis in 2000. Prior to joining Arietta in 2005, Erickson worked for Harlan Estate as assistant winemaker, and for Staglin as winemaker. Erickson's first project for Arietta was the development of its first ever white wine, Arietta "On The White Keys." Erickson assumed complete control of winemaking at Arietta with the 2006 vintage. Erickson also makes wine for, Dalla Valle, Ovid, Dancing Hares, and Favia.