Argyle: The Art of Sparkling
Being in the holiday spirit we wanted to present a pretty cool Pacific Northwest wine project. Argyle winery has gained a national reputation for some of the best sparkling wines in the country. With their price point and complexity of their bottlings, their sparkling wines are typically some of the highest rated sparkling wines that I try each year. This new vintage, their 2013 Argyle Brut (WWB, 91), was no exception. To commemorate this great vintage, Argyle has created a new sparkling wine project called ‘The Art of Sparkling’ which is a student artist tribute. This is a special limited-edition set of Vintage Brut with three art labels designed by Argyle scholarship recipients, artists Ann-Marie Christin Engleberth, Subin Yang and Lindsay Walker.
As you can see, the bottle presentation is quite stunning. Argyle had the three PNCA students learn about Argyle’s winemaking process and then each student designed unique labels for the sparkling wine based on their behind the scenes involvement. Don Tuski, the new president of PNCA, mentioned that the Argyle partnership helps the students better understand the business aspect of their future jobs.
Student Ann-Marie Christin Engleberth fashioned her label design based on Argyle’s history as a former hazelnut farm and the two rabbits that stay in the garden just outside he tasting room. Engleberth moved to the U.S. from Germany at age five and tends to focus her art on the countryside, as she was inspired by the German countryside at a young age.
Subin Yang crafted a bolder, blue colored label which reminded her of a summer night in the Dundee Hills. She was connected to the strong convergence of weather, vines, craftsmanship and the land that inspires Argyle sparkling Brut.
Finally, Lindsay Walker chose a bold black and yellow picture which connected her to the soil, sun and elevation of the Argyle vineyards that she set foot in, as her art is typically abstract. All three artists clearly did a beautiful job. Here is my review of the 2013 Argyle Brut Sparkling Wine:
2013 Argyle Brut Sparkling Wine- Made of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay, and weighing in at only 12.5% alcohol, the nuttiness of this wine shines through alongside a lovely mousse and strong minerality. Flavors of brioche, toasted macadamia nut, New York apple, lemon curd and vanilla glide along the mid-palate. This balanced Sparkling wine shows lovely poise from what was a generally warm growing season. Drink 2016-2024- 91