Chumeia produces fine wines for easy drinking

Wines & Vines, Jan, 2006 by Larry Walker

Chumeia Vineyards, a fast-growing winery in the Paso Robles region, has taken a bold approach, offering wines from several different Central Coast vineyards and even one wine from the San Joaquin Valley. Chumeia (pronounced koo-may-a) was founded in 1999 by partners Mark Nesbitt and John Simpson, who is a grapegrower and investor in the winery. It was hardly an impulse decision.

Nesbitt's son Lee, who is the winemaker, had worked for several years at J. Lohr and Meridian Vineyards. Both the Simpson family and the Nesbitt family had been active in agriculture for more than 20 years, including ranching, dairy cattle and sheep. The Simpson family had also been major grapegrowers.

Lee Nesbitt said, "We've been through it all--long hours, unpredictable weather. This is not a hobby for us. We're in it to make the best wine possible."

Lee and his wife, Kristen Nesbitt, first became interested in the wine business at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. "During our first quarters at Poly, we became interested in a grape enterprise project on campus. This project involved a small vineyard that was completely managed and operated by students including plantings, sprays, harvesting and marketing," Kristin said. "From this project Lee received an internship at J. Lohr vineyards. He returned for several years to learn all that he could. From there, both Lee and I started working at Meridian Vineyards, where I managed the special event program and Lee learned all that he could from Chuck Ortman and Signe Zoller," Kristen continued. (Ortman was the founder of Meridian and Zoller was the winemaker at the time.)

The decision to source grapes from all over the Central Coast was based on Lee's experience at Meridian, according to Kristen, who is Chumeia's marketing manager. "For several years, Lee experienced fruit from Santa Barbara to Napa and Sonoma. Thus, there were several vineyards that stood out from the rest. So, when Lee and I set out to start Chumeia Vineyards, we contacted the growers and owners and asked for an opportunity to make wine with their fruit," she said via e-mail.

Chumeia makes Pinot Noir from Monterey and Edna Valley, Zinfandel from Paso Robles, Cabernet from Paso, and Syrah from Paso. They also make a Viognier from the San Joaquin Valley. Lee Nesbitt feels that the San Joaquin fruit is the real "jewel in his crown."

"The grapes from John Simpson's vineyard in San Joaquin Valley are amazing," he said. "It looks like it's on the floor of the Napa Valley, but it's capable of producing 3 to 4 tons an acre. In the San Joaquin Valley, that's unheard of. We've discovered something there."

He believes that if growers and vintners work together, San Joaquin could produce outstanding wine. "The price-to-quality ratios can really help out the bottom line," he said.

However, he also feels that all of the vineyards Chumeia works with have something special to offer in the way of soil texture and soil structure. "The character of a wine is set in the vineyard, the personality is set in the winery," he said.

Twenty acres of estate vineyards have also been planted in Paso Robles, including 5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon. Chumeia's first Estate Cabernet will be released in 2006. Future plantings will include Petite Sirah and Zinfandel.

Lee Nesbitt said his favorite wine to work with is Cabernet Sauvignon. "The Syrah and Viognier are more of a love/hate relationship," he said. He added that his program for the Viognier has changed completely from 100% barrel fermentation to 100% stainless steel fermentation. "I like the fruit expression much more now," he said. The Viognier never undergoes malolactic fermentation.

Kristen Nesbitt said the Syrah was a real find. "Lee had been waiting for the right Syrah. Finally, a local grower, Ralph Sawdy, happened to come by the winery one harvest asking Lee to look at his vineyard and see if he would be interested in his fruit. After Lee researched the vines, he discovered that the clone Sawdy had was the Chapoutier clone, planted on its own root in a fine sandy loam soil. Syrah naturally is very vigorous so with this soil the vines have to struggle harder, which tames the natural vigor and concentrates its effort on the fruit, not the leaves. The current 2002 Syrah, which was named one of the Top 12 Syrahs in California, is our first vintage from this vineyard. Now he has a tough act to follow," she said.

Asked what wine Chumeia is best known for, Lee Nesbitt laughed and said, "The one we are sold out of."

On the marketing side, Kristen Nesbitt said she really doesn't focus on any one thing. "All of the above, you might say. Including restaurants, tasting room and retail. We produce wine at several price-points, which allows us to approach restaurants, chains and offshore customers," she said. The largest export market for Chumeia is Japan.

There are also price-points that specifically focus on the tasting room as well as the wine club. "In a perfect world, we would prefer to sell all of our wines through our tasting room and wine club," she said.