Sitting on a call with Upsidedown Winemaker Seth Kitzke, we talked about the upcoming vintages. Seth was unabashedly bullish on the 2022 whites. “You get the fleshy aspects like 2021 but then you also get this stony character that is different” he said. Tasting through the wines I adored the wines texture. That is a hallmark from Kitzke who trained at K Vintners before starting his own project with his wife. “But I think that ’21 reds have great texture” he said. I totally agreed from what I have tried from the vintage thus far.
Upsidedown Wine has produced really great wine since its inception. KItze has a great palate and has tried the great wines of the world. Always attached to the Northern Rhone, he makes rich wines that utilize limited new oak and evoke beautiful nuance. The new wines I tasted came from the 2021 and 2022 vintages. I really loved the 2022 Upsidedown Wine ‘Konnowac Vineyard’ Viognier (OB, 94) which has amazing texture and flavor range, already picking up nutty tones. The best wine I tasted was the 2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Sage’s Wine’ Red Wine (OB, 95) which is named after the Kizkes’ daughter and is a barrel select wine that has some beautiful aging potential. Learn more about these beautiful wines at upsidedownwine.com. Here are my reviews of the outstanding future releases by Upsidedown Wine.
2022 Upsidedown Wine ‘Konnowac and WeatherEye Vineyard’ Roussanne- The dense and outstanding 2021 2022 Upsidedown Wine ‘Konnowac and WeatherEye Vineyard’ Roussanne is already drinking beautifully at the one year mark. Macadamia nut and kiwi mark the nose alongside rich honeydew melon and shades of baking spice laced pastry crust on the nose. The palate is soft and refined with a seamless texture and glorious sense of length. This is going to really impress you. Drink 2023-2033- 94
2022 Upsidedown Wine ‘Konnowac Vineyard’ Viognier- The 2022 Upsidedown Wine ‘Konnowac Vineyard’ Viognier is a native barrel fermented wine that is showing beautifully right now. This has a touch of Marsanne and Roussanne added. Very soft and inviting on the mouth, this exudes class with its flavor complexity, displaying a ripe texture, and reveling in its poached pear, cantaloupe and starfruit flavors alongside hints of roasted pineapple and nutty accents on the palate. Drinking beautifully now, enjoy over the next eight years to come. Drink 2023-2031- 94
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Birds + Flowers + Things’ Syrah- This 2021 Syrah was sourced from the high elevation Equus Vineyard in the Yakima Valley. This comes off very fresh and fragrant on the nose with red rose petals, cigar box, garrigue and smoky tones on the nose. The palate is soft and refined with a gorgeous sense of texture. Finishing long, this is killer stuff for the price. Drink 2023-2030- 92
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Dead Poplar Vineyard Gold Drop’ Mourvedre- Sourced from the ‘Dead Poplar Vineyard’ this saw roughly 40% whole cluster fermentation and was aged in some new 300L oak barrels before bottling. Right away this shows off mulberry and purple rose petal aromatics that collide with white pepper and bacon fat tones. The palate is soft and refined, showing beautiful savory and salty notes alongside venison, bulls blood, iodine, citrus rind and shades of pomegranate seed on the palate. Complex and delicious, the flavor range imparted here is seriously good. Enjoy now and over the next eight plus years. Drink 2023-2031- 94
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Dead Poplar Vineyard Gold Drop’ Red Wine- The 2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Dead Poplar Vineyard Gold Drop’ Red Wine is mostly Mourvèdre (59%) with smaller parts Grenache and Syrah, with a dash of Roussanne. While obviously not Grenache dominant, you get this beautiful purity of red fruits from the Grenache alongside tobacco leaf, kumquat zest and shades of smoked pork shoulder. Savory and complex, with a luscious mouthfeel, enjoy now and over the next eight years to come. Drink 2023-2031- 94
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Sage’s Wine’ Red Wine- A GSM-inspired wine named after Seth and Audrey Kizke’s daughter who was born in 2021, the barrel-select and utterly gorgeous ‘Sage’s Wine’ has a splash of Viognier added in. Stored in roughly 60% new French oak, the wine comes off very elegant and well-balanced, as you can see each working part moving in unison together. Ripe red fruits and citrus rind accents connect well with smoked meats, and the salty/stony accents. Finishing long, this is drinking beautifully right now and will continue to impress for at least another ten years. Drink 2023-2033- 95
2021 Kitzke Sangiovese- This 100% Sangiovese wine comes from a site set on sandy loam, caliche, gravel and basalt soils. Stored in roughly al used oak, this shows off a smooth mouthfeel with layers of black tea, red currants and tobacco leaf with sage on the palate. Nicely textured, enjoy now and over the next ten years. Drink 2023-2033- 93
2021 Kitzke Cabernet Franc- This outstanding 2021 Cabernet Franc opens with beautiful sagebrush and wet stone alongside menthol and cassis notes on the nose. Very soft and polished with a smooth texture, this is beautiful wine that shows good stony and salty accents alongside the core of milk chocolate and wild blackberry. Drink 2023-2033- 93
2020 Kitzke Cabernet Sauvignon- A really good wine made in a tough vintage, the 2020 Kitzke Cabernet Sauvignon offers bitter chocolate and allspice dusted black currant on the palate with wet stone accents on the palate. Drink now. Drink 2023-2027- 90
2021 Kitzke Cabernet Sauvignon- The 2021 Kitzke Cabernet Sauvignon is very youthful and fresh at this point. Blackberries and black currants alongside dark chocolate shavings all mingle well on the palate. Drink 2023-2033- 92
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Equus’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The 2021 ‘Equus’ comes from a high elevation site that was formerly a horse farm. Stored in new oak, this comes off inky dark in the glass, this offers lovely garrigue notes on the nose alongside purple rose petals, mocha, tar and allspice. The palate is soft and refined with a great texture. Showing good length and weight, this is beautiful wine that is drinking beautifully right now. Drink 2023-2033- 94
2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Equus’ Reserve Red Wine- The really good 2021 Upsidedown Wine ‘Equus’ Reserve Red Wine is a gorgeous blend that is already drinking beautifully. On the nose this takes on layers of sagebrush, creosote, dark currants and dark chocolate shavings. The palate is plush and refined with a great sense of weight and length. Drink 2023-2033- 94