Dark ruby, appropriately opaque and staining for its age and pedigree.  Big typical Bien Nacido gamy initial airs out to a suffocating rich mixture of leather, tar and fruit and–in typical Qupé fashion–shockingly concentrated without a touch of flabbiness, oxidation or obliterating concentration.  The newest label from Qupé, not sure if the 25$ *Central Coast* is discontinued and hopefully the 40$ *Bien Nacido* is still around, but the rumor is: this is 75/25 BN/Slidehill.  I can see both sides of adding the Edna chunk in to the SMV and–being a purist–would prefer the Sawyer was left out, but hey:  I’m not the wine master.  In the mouth, rich and round, gobs of spice, a perfect BTG candidate but of such a shockingly young age little nuance evolves.  Lots of oak, massive vanilla and dense, ripe cherry.  It’s a pretty nice Syrah, all-in-all.  I feel it is priced a bit tall for a county-appellation, and it lacks any significant, sophisticated indications of advanced pedigree.  In other words:  The perfect BTG specimen.  If you see it, buy it, but without any further definition on the label, it really has no place in the cellar.
♦
2012 Qupé Syrah Santa Barbara  (14-7?)