Artiste normally only makes blended wines, but this one is 100% mourvedre. According to winemaker Bion Rice “it was too good to blend!”It is a great medium bodied red. A nose of light rose petal and red fruit with a surprising butterscotch finish. The finish of the wine is what intrigued me most, it isn’t sweet by any means, and the flavor of butterscotch is undetectable on the nose but bursts on the palate at the finish. I immediately fell in love with this wine after trying it and took home a bottle to Ohio from California. This Mourvedre was a limited release wine club wine, but I loved it so that they let me purchase a couple of bottles. The wine is 14.4% alcohol and was a 74 case production.
Mourvedre is on the right.
What makes Artiste stand out from the rest is their labeling process. Artists from around California submit artwork and Rice chooses his favorites to reproduce on the bottles. Reprints are then sent to wine club members and some are available for purchase at one of their two tasting rooms in Healdsburg and Santa Ynez, California
Hi,
I am glad you liked the Mourvedre. Actually, when I had the first barrel tasting with Bion Rice of Artiste Winery I felt it still needed a little punch or tune up and to my knowledge a few percent of a dark and strong Syrah (the valley here has excellent Syrahs) were added to make the really good and round taste. FYI, I am the label artist of this wine. The painting is titled “Metal Blades Blinking+, it is a mixed media painting on canvas, 48″ x 36″.
Enjoy the wine and the art!
Hi Jack,
Love the artwork on the bottle. I have some flowers in mine right now. I did very much enjoy the wine; I think mostly because it was so much different than anything I have tasted before.
You should come to ARTAMO GALLERY in Santa Barbara to see the real painting and more…