Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/590181
2 4 V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T | N o v - D e c 2 015 w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m produced, basically making it just for their tasting room and wine club. Of course, as soon as they did that, demand increased in other markets," said Lindquist. Another issue that created chal- lenges for Syrah, Lindquist noted, is that there was a period when consumers heard a lot about it, but didn't know what to expect when they bought a bottle. That range of styles, national and international, still creates some customer con- fusion – especially since Syrah is grown in more places now than ever before. "Syrah is one of the greatest red grapes," he said, "but should it taste like Côte Rotie or Yellow Tail? Barossa or Priorat? Paso Robles or Santa Barbara?" ON THE UPSWING Despite the market challenges, Qupé Syrah sales didn't really suffer. "We've always sold well because we've been in the market so long," Lindquist said. "We couldn't keep Syrah in stock in the late 1980s through the 1990s, but there was a lot less competition then. We also made less wine back then." Now, Lindquist said, thanks to improved economic conditions in the United States, Syrah is making a comeback. Another Rhône-driven Santa Barbara County winemaker, Steve Beckmen of Beckmen Vineyards, also believes Syrah sales are on the rise. "The Syrah market has steadily improved over the last few years in many places throughout the country, with California lead- ing the way, which has helped to improve sales," he said. "We have seen some improvement in other markets, like New York and Texas, with some still lagging behind in their acceptance of Syrah." Qupé's entry-level Central Coast Syrah is often sold for just under economic conditions and a spell of oversupply when many growers and large wine producers got into the game. "So many winemakers jumped on the Syrah bandwagon in the 1990s because they love it and it's relatively easy to grow," he said. "Wineries best known for other varietals started coming into the market with another Syrah; so yes, the market flooded and with a lot of Syrah that was expensive as well." Lindquist cited Ramey as an example. "Here is one of the great- est producers of Chardonnay and Cabernet in California that decided to start a Syrah program because Dave Ramey loves Syrah," he said. "The grapes came from outstand- ing vineyards, but they came into the market at the wrong time and (the winery) wanted $50-$60 a bot- tle. They had trouble selling it and so backed way off in the amount Liquid Nitrogen Dosing Systems System Features: Precise dosing over all line speeds Discrete dosing up to 2000 bottles per minute Quick Service Automatic Doser Head Defrost Key Benefits: Efficiently purges empty bottle of nearly all oxygen Maintains CO 2 and nitrogen quality in every pour Reduces TPO for longer shelf life Creates pressure for easier cork removal (750 mL) 800.371.3303 www.chartdosers.com Dosing The World One Drop At A Time ChartDosers HalfPg Beer_2015_VWM.indd 1 9/17/15 4:20 PM MARKET WATCH TIM TEICHGRAEBER