Paso Cab just hits different. As any loyal reader knows, I drink a fair bit of Napa and Sonoma cab–and not a whole lot of Paso. Not really a conscience decision–just happenstance. And–unpopular opinon coming–I think Santa Margarita and the East-side make better cab than the blingy glory-holes of the coveted–and $$$–West-side. Clean and direct, showing all the things EYE like in a Cabernet. All without the eye-rolling concentration of the west.
Gorgeous dark ruby, a nose cool and calm with gobs of leathery tobacco and dank savory side-events. The ripe cherry has sharp edges of briary vegetal, dusty and mineralific, and even here headed into 9, shows basically NO tertiary. Two years in French oak also do not register in the nose: definitely a side-event orchestrated for pure cab drinkers and NOT for the tourist relish of copious oak.
The taste is likewise clean and direct, transferring all that young vibrancy onto the tongue with spicy vigor. Not super-complex–but also nowhere near simple–tannin is a boisterous affair: attacking the palate early and justifying the ripeness throughout. I can’t find an ABV anywhere on this label, and I’m guessing it a safe mid-14’s–possibly even lower–as its shrill reflection of blackberry and pomegranate do little to prop up the typical flab-masters of the region. This wine seems nearly timeless in bottle: I hope you have a few of these to taste over the next 20 years. I don’t think I’ve ever said that about a Paso cab before.
2013 POMAR JUNCTION ‘Reserve’ Cabernet Sauvignon Pomar Junction Vyd. El Pomar district Templeton Gap Paso Robles
Stephen McConnell 