x
  • Country ranking ?

    377
  • Producer ranking ?

    27
  • Decanting time

    2h
  • When to drink

    2020-2035

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

Close

Wine Information

Sine Qua Non

Sine Qua Non is a small winery in the city of Ventura, two hours north of Los Angeles. The winery's name Sine Qua Non is Latin for "absolutely indispensible", or literally "without which not". It was founded in 1994 by Manfred and Elaine Krankl. The winery has risen to be one of the top Syrah producers in USA, and due to the tiny quantities of wine made and the recent 98-100 point scores by Parker, Sine Qua Non is now unquestionably regarded as a "California Cult" wine producer.
The proprietors, the husband-and-wife team of Manfred and Elaine Krankl, are both very involved in the creation of their wines. In the early 1990's Manfred Krankl became interested in backyard winemaking. He used the facilities at the Babcock Winery and produced a small, 200 case lot of Chardonnay with the assistance of winemaker Bryan Babcock. The first wine was named The Thief.
The Krankl's first serious commercial undertaking was a Syrah called Black and Blue, which was produced in 1992 at the Havens winery in Napa. It was followed by an assortment of oddly named wines – Queen of Spades, Red Handed, The Other Hand, The Bride, and more recently Twisted and Bent, Imposter McCoy and Veiled. All the wines have a distinctive, funky label, that are all reproductions of Manfred's artwork.
In 1997 the Krankls got their own winemaking facilities, and their goal now is to own a vineyard and grow grapes, as all their wines up untill now have been produced from purchased grapes. Almost all the grapes have come from the Santa Barbara region, except the Pinot Noir, which groe in Oregon's Willamette Valley.

The wine is made from predominantely Syrah with a dash of Grenache.

Close

Vintage 1996

Napa Valley 1996 / An unseasonably warm winter with substantial rainfall launched the 1996 growing season with an early bud break. A cool spring was followed by intermittent rain during the May bloom period, causing shatter in many vineyards and reducing the potential crop size. A relatively warm summer with several heat spells speeded veraison and ripening, while a cooling trend in September allowed grape flavors to catch up with sugars, bringing the fruit into excellent balance. Smaller clusters and a light crop resulted in deeply flavored grapes, with the overall harvest down by 20-30%.

Close

Latest Pro-tasting notes

<10 tasting notes

Tasting note

Be the first one to make a 20s tasting note!

Written Notes

”This was a very tuff year for us, we really felt we were pushed against the wall, hence the name of this wine”, Manfred says. It is a blend of 92 percent Syrah from Alban Vineyard, Bien Nacido Vineyard and Stolpman Vineyard, and eight percent Grenache from Stolpman Vineyard. After fermentation, as always with the indigenous yeast, the wine was racked into new French and (some) American oak barrels for malolactic fermentation and ageing for 19 months. Alcohol level is 14.5 percent. The production this year was 3 576 bottles. The color reveals a slight nuance of maturity, still it is quite dense and yet with a deep, almost purple core. The nose is equally intense, developed in a way that many wine tasters usually describe as Bordeaux like, but there is still a sufficient power and youthful intensity in the fruit, which is both dark and a bit primary sweetish. This leads to the conclusion that this vintage has more to offer in the coming years. Nuances of fennel and licorice adds some complexity. Tannins are vital but mature and almost silky, thanks to the quite rich and slightly sweet fruit flavors and lively acidity, the aftertaste lingers for a minute or so, contributing to finesse. This is an extremely elegant wine which initially felt almost grenache like in its seductive fruit flavors, but with aeration it develops into a greater finesse. Although a very good wine indeed, I don't believe it will evolve into something much more complex with further ageing.
  • 97p
Load more notes

Information

Origin

Ventura, California

Other wines from this producer

A Cappella Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir

Albino

Aperta

A Shot In The Dark

Atlantis 1 Fe2O3

Atlantis Fe2O3

B-20

Covert Fingers

Dangerous Birds

Dark Blossom Syrah

Deux Grenouilles

Dirt Vernacular Grenache

Entre Chien et Loup

E-raised

Female Grenache

Five Shooter

Grenache Distenta II

Grenache Le Chemin Vers l`Heresie

Grenache Pajarito Del Amor

Grenache Upside Down

Hollerin' M

Imposter McCoy

Inamorata Vin de Paille

Incognito

In Flagrante Syrah

In the Crosshairs Grenache

Into the Dark

Jusqu'à l'os Grenache

Just for the love of it

Kolibri

Left Field

Lightmotif

Male Syrah

Midnight Oil

Mr. K. Semillon Vin de Paille

Mr K The Noble Man

Non Red Handed

Omadhaun & Poltroon

Omega Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir

On The Lam

On Your Toes

OX Pinot Noir

Papa

Pictures Grenache

Pinot Noir Left Field Shea Vineyard

Poker Face

Queen of Spades

Rätsel 16 Syrah

Rattrapante

Rattrapante Eleven Confessions Estate Grenache

Raven Series Grenache

Raven Series Syrah

Shakti

Stockholm Syndrome

Straw Man Vin de Paille

Sublime Isolation

Suey Tba

Syrah Distenta II

Syrah Eleven Confessions Vineyard

Syrah Le Supplement

Syrah Patine

Syrah Piranha Waterdance

Syrah Stock

Syrah Trouver l`Arene

Tarantella

The Bribe

"The Duel" Estate Grenache

The Good Girl

The Marauder

The Other Hand

The Thrill of

Thrill of Stamp Collecting

"Trouver L'Arène"

Twisted & Bent

Ventriloquist

Whispering E

Wishpering

Incorrect Information
If you found some information that is wrong, let us know
Are you sure you want do delete this wine? All information will be lost.
Are you sure you want to recommend this wine?
Are you sure you want hide this written note ?
Are you sure you want show this written note ?
UPGRADE MEMBER PLAN
Upgrade your membership now, it's quick and easy. We use PayPal, the world's largest payment system, it accepts all credit cards. Once you've chosen your membership level, you'll go directly to PayPal. You can cancel your membership at any time.
Thank you for your support!
 

Pro Member

 

Winemerchant Member

 

Winery Member

 

User

 

HOW TO USE TASTINGBOOK?

We recommend you to share few minutes for watching the following video instructions of how to use the Tastingbook. This can provide you a comprehensive understanding of all the features you can find from this unique service platform.

This video will help you get started



Taste wines with the Tastingbook


Create Your wine cellar on 'My Wines'



Explore Your tasted wines library



Administrate Your wine world in Your Profile



Type a message ...
Register to Tastingbook
Sign up now, it's quick and easy.
We use PayPal, the world's largest payment system, it accepts all credit cards.
Once you've chosen your membership level, you'll go directly to PayPal, where you can sign up for a free 7-day trial period. You can cancel your membership at any time. We wish you a rewarding journey to the world of Fine Wines.

Free 7 days Member trial

 

Member

 

Pro Member

 

Winemerchant Member

 

Winery Member

 

User

  Register