Accolades for Armenian Abroad

Yacoubian-Hobbs is enjoying its first major accolade of the year with its 2017 Rind Areni from the mineral-rich region of Vayots Dzor.

Ranked 95 by The Wine Enthusiast in their Top 100 worldwide wines, the editors noted the complex wine for its variety of fruity aromas, warm tannins, earthy-sweet flavors, and poignant finish.

^{A 2017 Yacoubian-Hobbs Areni from Rind village, Vayots Dzor | Photo Credit: Paul Hobbs Wines}

“This deep garnet-colored wine has aromas of strawberry, pomegranate, and lilac,” wrote Contributing Editor Mike Desimone. “It is bright on entry, with velvety tannins and flavors of black cherry, blackberry, aniseed, and vanilla that culminate in a soft, spicy finish.”

To be named as one of The Enthusiast 100 represents a high honor in the wine world, as the list contains many renowned winemakers from around the globe but often omits some better-known wine labels. Contributing to this ranking is the 2016 and 2017 Sarpina Arenis, scoring 93s, and the 2017 Rind Areni scoring a 92. All of these wines are from the Vayots Dzor region.

The 2017 Rind Areni represents one of the more popular wines from Yacoubian-Hobbs’s newest vineyard, which shares the region with the Areni-1 cave, a 6,000-year-old winery thought to be the oldest known worldwide. The 2014-planted vines in Vayots Dzor grow from volcanic and limestone soils in the warm temperatures of the Armenian summer. But because of the 4,000-foot altitude, the region experiences cooler temperatures and water from melting snowcaps from nearby Mount Ararat.

^{Vine rows from the Yacoubian-Hobbs estate overlook the village of Areni and the Areni-1 cave down below | Photo Credit: Paul Hobbs Wines}

Since beginning his partnership with Yacoubian in 2008, winemaker Paul Hobbs has overseen the growth of the new vineyards, introducing practices from his more than four decades of winemaking experience to the region. His previous accomplishments include elevating Malbec into the global spotlight, founding two separate wineries in the USA and Argentina, and earning the moniker “the Steve Jobs of the Wine Industry.” The goals of the partnership are to elevate the region and honor its history of winemaking, especially in a country “unmarred by modern farming and industrial practices.”