2015 Qupé, A Modern White Blend, Central Coast, California, USA

Qupe

Bob Lindquist turned a one time hobby into a full-time job when armed with a small bank loan he established Qupe Vineyards at Santa Maria in Santa Barbara Country. Today he produces 20,000 cases a year with all the wines being made at the same winery as those of Au Bon Climat.
He produces 3 different bottlings of Syrah - Central Coast, Los Olivos (blended with 40% Mourvedre) and Bien Nacido. Lindquist specialises in Rhone-style wines but aslo produces superb Chardonnay. The Bien Nacido Cuvee is a deliciously rich and aromatic blend of two-thirds Chardonnay and one-third Viognier.


In 2015 Bob Lindquist received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhone Rangers organisation. Only the third to receive it, the other two being our other Californian friends – Randall Grahm (Bonny Doon) and Bob Haas (Tablas Creek).

Central Coast

Central Coast AVA is an all-encompassing appellation used for wines blended across several counties in the broader central coast viticultural region.

The associated counties (and their AVAs) are Alameda (Livermore Valley); Contra Costa; Monterey (Arroyo Seco, Carmel Valley, Chalone, San Lucas); San Benito (Cienega Valley, Lime Kiln Valley, Mount Harlan, Paicines); San Luis Obispo (Arroyo Grande, Edna Valley, Paso Robles, York Mountain); Santa Clara Valley (most of Santa Cruz Mountains, San Ysidro); and Santa Barbara (Santa Maria Valley, Santa Ynez Valley).

Other Varieties

There are over 200 different grape varieties used in modern wine making (from a total of over 1000). Most lesser known blends and varieties are traditional to specific parts of the world.