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by Tom Hill
A
self-admitted wine geek, Tom lives in Northern New Mexico
and works as a computational physicist at Los Alamos National
Laboratory doing numerical neutron transport & large scale
code development. He has been tasting wines since 1971, participates
locally with a couple of large tasting groups in his area,
and is practically a fixture at most California wine festivals,
such as the Hospice du Rhône, Rhône Rangers, and
ZAP. Other interests: Tom is heavily into competitive sport
fencing (foil & epee), biking, cooking, basketball, skiing,
backpacking, mountain climbing.
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New Qupe Wines-
October 21, 2009 |
We tasted last night (6/30/10) some New Reds:
- We tasted tonight (10/21/09) mostly New Qupes Wines:
1. Qupe Marsanne SantaYnezVlly (81% Marsanne/19% Roussanne; 12.5%) 2008: Light yellow color; very attractive
floral/honeysuckle/Roussanne some appley/earthy attractive nose; tart bit steely/metallic appley/earthy/
Marsanne somewhat lean/earthy bit floral/honeyesuckle/Roussanne flavor; med.long lean/steely/appley/earthy
slight floral finish; nose speaks of Roussanne but flavor of Marsanne; needs some 2-10 yrs of age; very
nice for the $20.00
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2. Qupe Viognier Ibarra-YoungVnyd/SantaYnezVlly (13.5%) 2008: Light yellow color; low-key/restrained lovely
pear/Viog very light toasty/oak bit minerally/earthy nose; tart lovely/restrained floral/pear/peach/Viog
bit spicy/minerally flavor; med.long tart/bright pear/Viog/floral light toasty/oak some minerally finish;
definitely not a DollyParton Viog; elegant/restrained/bright/structured rendition of Calif Viog that
should age well for a number of yrs. $30.00
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3. Qupe BienNacidoCuvee SantaMariaVlly (50% Viognier/50% Chard; 13.5%; Dedicated to the memory
of Henry.F "Hank" Kievit, the "godfather" of Qupe, 2/16/21-6/16/07; www.Qupe.com) 2008: Light gold color;
very perfumed/fragrant peachy/floral ripe melony/Chard light toasty/oak slight earthy nose; soft rich/lush
ripe floral/pear/Viog/melony light toasty/oak lovely flavor; very long lush/floral/pear/peach/Viog some
melony/ripe/Chard finish w/ light pencilly/toasty oak; nose speaks mostly of Viog and the palate of
ripe Chard; a lovely drinkable white at a great price. $20.00
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4. Qupe Chard BienNacidoReserve/Block 11/SantaMariaVlly (13.5%) 2007: Light gold color; strong toasty/oak/
vanilla ripe/melony/Chard very perfumed/fragrant almost Roussanne-like/spicy slight earthy/dusty nose;
tart some toasty/oak/vanilla ripe/melony/Chard almost Roussanne-like/floral/perfumed flavor; very long
ripe/melony/strong Chard some toasty/oak finish; lots of ripe Chard fruit but good structure underneath.
$30.00/$20.00
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5. Qupe Roussanne BienNacidoHillsideEstate/SantaMariaVlly (EB; 12.5%) 2007: Med.gold color; rather fragrant/
floral/perfumed/pear slight earthy/Rhonish bit tight/closed nose; tart/structured light toasty/oak
restrained floral/pear/honeysuckle/Roussanne bit earthy/Rhonish/nutty some toasty/oak flavor; med.long
light appley/floral/honeysuckle bit Rhonish/nutty/earthy finish; pleasant Roussanne character but seems
rather tight & restrained at this point in time. $40.00
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6. Qupe Roussanne BienNacidoHillsideEstate/SantaMariaVlly (EB; 14.5%) 2006: Med.gold color; beautiful floral/
honeysuckle/perfumed/peach/pear light toasty/pungent/oak/tobaccoy complex very aromatic nose; soft very
lush/glycerined ripe/floral/honeysuckle/Roussane/perfumed very light toasty/tobaccoy/oak slight toasted
hazelnutty structured complex flavor; very long/lingering perfumed/floral/honeysuckle/Roussanne some
tobaccoy/oak slight nutty/hazelnutty/Rhonish structured finish; a beautiful structured aromatic/perfumed
slightly Rhonish Roussanne; one of the best Calif Roussannes I've had. $40.00
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7. Verdad Albarino CentralCoast (60% SawyerLindquistVnyd/EdnaVlly, 40% Ibarra-YoungVnyd/Santa
YnezVlly; 12.5%; 448 cs; www.VerdadWines.com) 2008: Pale yellow color; very strong floral/peach pit/
carnation/stone fruit bit citric some stoney/minerally nose; very tart but rich floral/carnations/peach
pit classic stoney/minerally/Albarino flavor; long citric/minerally/tart classic floral/Albarino/perfumed
talc rather rich finish; classic Albarino minerally character but a richness that you seldom get in
the Spanish versions; well-priced at $19.00
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8. Verdad Rose EdnaVlly (90% Grenache/10% Tempranillo; 12.0%; 1200 cs) NV: Light reddish/salmon/cranberry
color; lovely strawberry/alpine strawberries/cranberry/watermelon quite spicy nose; tart slight watery/
dilute bright watermelon/cranberry/strawberry slight earthy bright/vibrant flavor; very long light/bright
cranberry/watermelon/strawberry/juicy slight earthy finish; a pretty ParisHilton rose that's not going
to invoke profound discussions of the Higg's Boson and its impact on Western Civilization. Very fair
price at $15.00
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9. Qupe Grenache PurisimaMtnVnyd/SantaYnezVlly (13.9%) 2007: Light color; bright strawberry/Grenache/alpine
strawberries slight earthy/Rhonish fairly spicy pretty nose; tart very bright/vibrant/neon pink spicy/
Grenache/strawberry bit earthy light tannic flavor; long very bright Grenache/strawberry slight earthy
finish; a pretty light/vibrant Grenache. Pricey at $35.00
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10. Qupe LosOlivosCuvee SantaYnezVlly (58% Syrah/26% Mourvedre/16% Grenache; 13.5%;
dedicated to the memory of Charlotte Young, matriarch of Ibarra-YoungVnyd,
10/30/16-10/21/08) 2007: Med.color; lovely blackberry/Syrah very fragrant/perfumed spicy/cinnamon/
strawberry plummy/Mourv nose; soft balanced/elegant rather plummy/Mourv some blackberry/Syrah light
toasty/oak flavor; very long plummy/blackberry/Mourv very light toasty/oak balanced finish w/ modest
tannins; a lovely/balanced/understated blend who's bes is yet to come. Great price at $25.00.
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11. Verdad Tempranillo Ibarra-YoungVnyd/LosOlivos/SantaYnezVlly (13.5%; 15% Syrah/
BienNacidoVnyd, 10% grenache/PurisimaMtnVnyd/SantaYnezVlly; 528 cs) 2006: Med.dark color; lovely cherry/
black cherry/Temp light oak/vanilla spicy attractive nose; tart very spicy/cherry/black cherry/Temp
some earthy/rustic light vanilla/oak bit hard/tannic flavor; long some hard/tannic bright/cherry/spicy/
Temp slight vanilla/oak bit earthy/rustic finish; needs several yrs of age; a bright very spicy bit
rustic rather Spanish-styled Temp at a very good price. $19.00
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12. Ethan Sangiovese HeartstoneVnyd/PasoRobles (75 cs; 13.9%) 2006: Dark color; very peppery/cracked black
pepper/earthy some cherry/cherry cola/Sangio slight PR/jammy very interesting/complex nose; tart some
tannic/hard very strong Sangio/cherry/cherry cola bit jammy/Paso light oak very spicy/classic Sangio
flavors; long somewhat hard/tannic very spicy/bright/cherry/cherry cola/Sangio light vanilla/oak
finish; really lovely aromatics but still kinda hard/tannic on the palate; needs 2-6 yrs of age;
should be a good one; one of the better Calif Sangios I've had and much better than 90% of that
Tuscan stuff. Well priced at $32.00.
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13. Dragon'sHollow CabernetSauvignon EasternFoot of HeLan Mtn Appellation/China (12.5%;
www.DragonsHollow.com; Imported by BroadbentSelections/SanFrancisco) 2005: Med.dark color; very dusty/
earthy/gout de terroir underripe/green olive some Bdx-like nose from an underripe yr; some hard/tannic
very earthy/loamy/gout de terroir green olive underripe Cab flavor; med.short earthy/loamy/dusty/gout
de terroir rather hard/tannic finish; lacks Cab fruit; not too unlike a RedBdx from an underripe
year; far better than I expected at $7.00; Tom's mystery wine..nobody had a clue.
____________________________________________________________________________________
And a wee BloodyPulpit:
1. After the last Parker CentralCoast issue appeared, chiding BobLindquist on his wines, given the
winemaking skills at Qupe; I shook my head in puzzlement and wondered if Bob deserved to be taken
to the woodshed. Since the NM distributor doesn't do a whole lot w/ the Qupe wines other than the
CentralCoast Syrah, I had to order 2 cases direct from the tasting room to try w/ my group. Next week
will be the Syrah tableau.
My conclusion?? I'm gonna start following Parker out to the woodshed where he takes the winemakers
who don't meet his standards, like SteveEdmunds & BobLindquist....'cause these are the wines I really
like the most.
Bob's wines are more about balance/restraint/elegance; not about oak/power and gobs of hedonistic
fruit. They are not wines that grab you by the scruff of the neck and shake your head off. They are
wines that you can...gasp.imagine the concept.....enjoy and drink with food. Furthermore....these are
wines that, because of their balance, consistently age with amazing results. They may not be dramatic
statements of power and fruit in their youth; but my experience over more than a few yrs is that you'll
be surprised how friggin' good these wines have evolved down the road. Because the Qupe wines are not
about flash and fireworks, you have to keep drinking them year in & year out to understand that fact.
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2. Marsanne: I have, of course, followed the Qupe Marsanne from the very start. In the beginning, they
were 100% Marsanne, the first one made in Calif I recall. They were rather simple/plodding/ dullards
of a wine on release; displaying simple appley/earthy character that seems characteristic of
Marsanne, not too much diffeent from their Rhone brethern. However, it's only with age that these
Marsannes would come into their own; developing that nutty/toasted hazelnuts/slightly oxidized/honeyed
character that makes old Marsanne one of the World's great whites. I've had some of the Qupe Marsannes
at 12-15 yrs of age and they're absolutely amazing and complex. Bob is very good about showing some
of his old Marsannes, Viogniers and Rousannes at tasting venues like HdR. If you see a brownish looking
white on Bob's pouring table, by all means jump at the opportunity to try something unique.
Over the last 4-6 yrs, Bob's been blending some Roussanne into his Marsanne. It gives it a lot more
interest and fragrance on the nose. But the palate still speaks of Marsanne and I see no reason that these
newer, more youth-friendly, versions of his Marsanne won't age equally well. In fact, given Roussanne's
ability to age, perhaps they'll age even better. People are often hesitant to age many white wines...
they are told by the wine critics to drink 'em young. So here's a $20 btl of wine that you can stick away
for 10-15 yrs and I think you'll be amazed how good it is down the road. Or maybe you won't.
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3. Chardonnay: This was the first Qupe Chard I've tried in a fair number of yrs. In the past, I've found
the Qupe Chard to be on the very ripe side, lots of toasty/new/Fr.oak, sometimes a bit of EA/volatility,
rather soft on the palate. This Chard is greatly better than the ones I recall. Plenty of ripe Chard
fruit, but toned down on the oak and an underlying tart/structured brightness to it. Very nicely done
example of SBC Chard.
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4. Albarino: This is a variety that I really like because of it's strong floral aromatics but also the
underlying minerality. I find the Spanish versions show a lot of stoney character on the palate and
a sometimes severe austerity on the palate that occasionally hurts. This Verdad, made by Bob's wife,
Louisa, is one of the World's great Albarinos. It has classic Albarino character, but a richness on
the palate that you don't often get in the Spanish versions. For any Calif restaurant wine list that
focuses on local ingredients, this is one of the best examples around of a Albarino that's also very
reasonably priced.
This Verdad is of particular note in that it represents the first (to my knowledge) use of their
Estate grapes from their in the EdnaVlly. Having lived in the not-so chi-chi town of SantaMaria for
a number of yrs, the Lindquists bought property up in the EdnaVlly, on OrcuttRd across from JohnAlban's,
a number of yrs ago. I'd love to taste the two vnyd's Albarino's side-by-side before they're blended.
Not sure what all they have planted there beyond the Albarino, Grenache, and Tempranillo. Would guess
there's some Syrah in the ground in that Bob has shown a casual interest in that variety for a few yrs
now.
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5. Roussanne: Bob, along w/ JohnAlban, is also one of the pioneers of Roussanne in Calif. He has made
a number of Roussannes over the yrs from Alban grapes, in addition to his BienNacido ones. In '05,
he made his first Roussanne from the HillsideEstate block; making it as one of his top-end Rhone
varietals.
This '07, obviously harvested earlier then the previous two vintages, seemed on the tight/wiry/
restrained side, lack the power and aromaatics of the '06. Whether it will evolve into something as
good as the '06 is an open question. But the '06 Roussanne is one of the greatest Roussannes from
Calif I've had. Bob thinks the '05 s maybe the best, but not having them side-by-side; I cannot tell.
I did think the '05 was right up there with the '06, from my recollection.
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6. Grenache: This '07 Grenache was wholly in character with his previous efforts; a pretty vibrant/
scintillating rendition of Calif Grenache that I rather like, something like a Pinot alternative.
It seems to me to be a wine for the short-term as I've not tried tracking their aging. That being
said, PurisimaMtn grapes can make rather profound Grenaches, as exemplified by StephenBeckmen;
Grenache w/ some depth and structure. Those grapes probably are not cheap. So I'm a bit puzzled
why such grapes would be used to make a Grenache of this style when it could probably give something
a bit more profound, rather than just a pretty wine for easy drinking. Maybe it'll age into something
pretty special...don't know.
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7. LosOlivosCuvee: The LOC is Bob's nod to a Chateauneuf blend. This yrs version seemed to speak more
of Mourvedre than the ones from the past I recall. It's usually an understated/pretty little wine,
all about balance, upon release. However, it seems to have this uncanny knack to evolve into something
pretty special with age. Bob has served some at 10-15 yrs of age that have been pretty profound.
They don't have that earthy character, seldom (fortunately) any brett, or that garrigue character
you get in some CdP's with age. But they're usually just really lovely-drinking mature Clif reds.
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8. EthanSangio: Ethan is, of course, BobLindquist's son who, along w/ PaigeLindquist, runs the Qupe
tasting room in LosOlivos. I've never visited the Qupe tasting room, but I'm 100% certain that it
has a more pleasant ambience than the LosOlivos TastingRoom, run by the surly ChrisBenzinger, where
the Qupe wines used to be sold. That was always an experience to walk into the LOTR and have Chris
growl and glare at you. Ocassionally he could be rather pleasant, but I suspect it took some effort
on his part. This is where BobSenn got his start until he moved down Main to his own Los Olivos
Wine & Spirits Emporium. The difference betwixt those two places was night & day. Wonder what ever
happened to Chris.
Ethan makes a small amout of wine on his own, under his Ethan label, which is sold, along w/ the
Verdad, out of the Qupe tasting room. Though I've followed them from the very start, I've not been
very good on keeping on top of them. I plan to remedy that oversight. My sense is that Ethan makes
his Syrahs w/ a bit more flamboyance than the Qupe versions, yet w/ much the same restrained style.
Plus he does other varietals, like this Sangiovese.
Given Sangio's track record in Calif, I tried this wine w/ reigned-in expectations. Of this group
of wines, it was the big surprise; far/far better than I expected. For awhile, Ethan was living up
in Sebastapol and made one (or two) Sangios from Gabrelli/Mendo grapes. It was pleasant enough, but
spoke more of Mendo Zin than Sangio. This Paso Sangio spoke load & clear of Sangio, with that typical
tannic bite it usually has on the palate. Really lovely Sangio at a fair price. Alas...all sold out
now, Ethan reports.
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9. So...did BobLindquist deserved to be taken out to Parker's woodshed?? When I checked w/ RickMorrison
(Qupe Natl marketing guy), he'd not head about the latest Parker review, so sent him a summary.
Even though I've only followed the Qupe wines from the very start, I'd say that there is no let-down
in quality from what I've seen over the yrs from BobLindquist. Indeed, I think he may be making the
best wines he's ever made. When I visit him at tasting events, I marvel at the passion and enthusiasm
that he shows for his craft after all these yrs. Much that same passion that PaulDraper displays. It's
pretty inspiring I think, and rare in the wine biz.
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And the usual stuff from TheBloodyPulpit: |
1. Some of these wines were given to us to try, so don't know the price on all of them.
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2. VinoV: These wines are made by MichaelMeagher. He was formerly winemaker w/ AdamTolmach/OjaiVnyds before striking out on his own. He makes his wine at the OldCreekRanch, near OjaiVnyd, where he's also the winemaker. Michael & I go way back to his early days at Ojai.
I've tried his VinoV wines in the past, sorta on a hit or miss basis. So when Michael offered his current wines to try, plus the vertical of his WhiteHawk Syrah, I jumped at the chance. The Chard was a lovely/interesting Chard; one of the better ones I've had this year. The Pinot was
not nearly as thrilling. Of the Syrahs; the '04 seemed to have a slight funk to it and seemed a bit ragged at the edges; as if it was not evolving gracefully in the btl. Hard to tell where it will be going. The '05 was a good/solid classic SantaBarbara Syrah. But the '06 I thought was absolutely first-rate; as good as any from SantaBarbara, and probably the best I've from WhiteHawk. Terrific job I thought.
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3. SolomonHills Pinot: I've not had many SantaMaria Pinots from this side of the river that have really hit my sweet spot. Most seem to have a somewhat earthy/Burgundy character to them and lack the bright cherry/Pinot fruit you find in the BienNacido Pinots. Also owned by the Miller brothers. It is one of the coolest & westernmost vnyds in the SantaMariaVlly. The soil appears very sandy in character, in stark contrast to very stoney/gravelly BienNacido soils.
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4. ShakeRidgeVnyd: When I was researching HdR, I noted a new wnry, Yorba. This is NapaVlly wine made by KenBernards. The grapes are grown by highly-regarded viticulturist AnnKraemer in her ShakeRidge vnyd up in AmadorCnty. This vnyd is up in the Sierra foothills; east of SutterCreek and south of the ShenandoahVlly. Ann has a lot of interesting stuff planted there in a rather complicated vnyd. The wines did not strike me as typical AmadorCnty/ShenandoahVlly wines. They did not have that strong briary/blackberry/ripe component typical signature of ShenandoahVlly. They seemed much more akin to the wines from the Fiddletown area, just east of the ShenandoahVlly and slightly higher elevation. They did not show that earthy/mushroomy character you typically find in the ElDorado reds. They did not have a ton of lush/opulent fruit but showed more restraint and all very structured for aging. Stylistically, I found a lot of similarity in these wines, but still very much varietally correct. Definitely a wnry/vnyd to watch in the future. I was impressed by my first test drive of Ann's wines.
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5. OldBlackMagic: I didn't find much in this wine to excite me. It reminded me some of a middling Cotes du Rhone, not one of my favorite genres. However, like the Rocks&Gravel, Steve's wines have this way of rising up and biting you on the a$$ with some age. I would guess that this OBM is one of those wines. Sometimes you just gotta believe.
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6. NovySyrah: This was SteveCostigan's mystery wine. On release; it had big boysenberry fruit w/ strong herbal character typical of SLH. This wine has since developed a strong cracked black pepper character and in a very good place for drinking right now.
TomHill
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[Additional Wine Reviews from Tom Hill] |
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Updated 5.29.10
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