SBWinemakers.com

2004 Ethan, grenache, Santa Ynez Valley, Vogelzang Vineyard, bottle number 0193 of 2400, Alc14.5%.
Available from Wine Country

Ethan makes one of my favourite sangioveses, the ‘01 hooked me on to some unusual use of the berries. I’m getting the impression that travel is in the blood of the Lindquists, what goes in to their wines is not found in the soil of Santa Barbara. This debunking of terroir in favour of something more beyond the perimeter is almost Huxleyan in influence.

What grabbed me in Ethan’s grenache other than the above observation, is the fact that you get more of the Spanish root of the wine than the French, pinot like sensation. This is no big arsed taco wine either, this is olives and cheese on the verandah behind an enclosed pelargonium garden. She’s cute too, sharp eyebrows, the works. Guitar in the far distance. Adobe walls dissolved by the rain. Throw in the odd peacock roaming the grounds and you have set the scene.

This is an obviously inspired wine, I have yet to explore his syrah and get some possibly seljukian sense of movement and space.

Is this one of Jeff Newton’s plants? If so, then this wine is even more difficult to get a hold of, or pin down.

Remember, this is top of the barrel stuff, at least in numerical terms it gives the appearance of ripeness. The alcohol level is essentially irrelevant at this flavour point. An hour of breathing is helpful, but I took a sip on opening as could see what I was waiting for immediately. Balanced with an acid more often found in white than red, clean, uncloying, fresh.

2001 Qupe, Santa Maria Valley, Bien Nacido Hillside Estate syrah. Alc13.5%.

Tasted a lot of syrah over the years, but this one is a memory giver. Funny how this one tastes almost “old school” and so soon. This delicious bottle of juice sends me back into the Wine Emporium. I can almost see Bob’s line-up for the day: Alban syrah, Vandale sangiovese, Whitcraft pinot, Fiddlehead pinot, Piedra Creek zinfandel, Jaffurs rousanne, new comers like Flying Goat, Point Conception and Silver sitting in boxes have now become some personal favourites.
None of the big jammy bloat fests here. Dry, yet malleable tanins skirt the lips and gums when the bottle is first opened. An hour later, the palate cleansing freshness is almost like a big bad pinot. I detect a little of the “b” word with relish (or is it the French oak I’m picking up? methinks Francois Freres - is that the pinot exoskeleton?), because now I want more. Parker’s people may like the raspberry/cranberry combination and hope for some chocolate to reassure them they have spent their money wisely. Yes you have but not in the way you think. I suggest a graduation to at least a level of Johnson, purely because numbers don’t do it justice.

Santa Barbara Winemakers