Louisa
Sawyer Lindquist
In the
late 1980’s, while working in a shop on Long Island, Louisa Sawyer
Lindquist learned to appreciate Spanish Albariño. She liked its dry
freshness, which made it suitable as an aperitif, as well as its persistence
and complexity, which made it satisfying with full meals. Her interest
in Spanish vines expanded when she discovered the great Rioja and
Duero reds made from Tempranillo. Ultimately Louisa found herself
working directly with the premier American importer of Spanish wines
at the time, Stephen Metzler’s Classical Wines of Spain.
Louisa
had spent the early 80’s working in the vineyards of Long Island.
Her background in viticulture served her when she moved to California
where she began working with wineries and in vineyards. Spain’s wine
country resembles California’s, yet she was surprised to find very
little Albariño or Tempranillo planted in the Golden State.
Louisa
shared her knowledge and enthusiasm for Spanish vines with the owner/winemaker
of Qupé Wine Cellars, Bob Lindquist. During their courtship they began
planting small blocks of the two grape varieties at the Ibarra-Young
Vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley on the Central Coast of California,
experimenting with clones and organic cultivation.
As the
plantings at Ibarra-Young matured and began to produce fruit, Louisa
went to Spain to work harvest at various esteemed bodegas. It was
during this time that the commonly voiced phrase of approval, es
la verdad, gave her brand its name.
Verdad
Rosé
In contrast
to many rosé wines that exist as a byproduct of red wine production,
the grapes used to make Verdad Rosé were grown and picked exclusively
for the purpose of making rosé. This means a fresh flavor profile,
relatively low alcohol and bright acidity.
This
wine is composed of 90% Grenache and 10% Mourvèdre. After de-stemming,
the grapes were left on their skins for 12-15 hours (to extract the
lovely natural pink color). The grapes were then pressed. The majority
of Grenache and Mourvèdre were co-fermented in a stainless steel tank
at a cool 54 degrees to enhance the aromatics. The balance of Grenache
was fermented in small neutral barrels. This rosé went through malo-lactic
fermentation.
This
medium-bodied, dry wine offers aromas of wild strawberries and berries.
It finishes fresh, long, and crisp.
900 cases
produced.
The information
on this page comes in a presentation-quality pdf file: here
Shelf
talkers in pdf: here
