A huge cab. Massive and alcoholic in the nose, a chokingly-dense mash of berry, apricot and slight prune distilled down into jelly and syrup giving off toasty notes over heated briar, ink and newsprint. Paso certainly builds them big, and finding balance is key. Here, things go mostly in the wine’s favor, though not for the faint-at-heart.
I love this winery for a lot of reasons. First of all, their Derbyshire Vineyard in the SLO Coast AVA is one of the coolest spots for Pinot and Chard in California, with biting coastal winds and fog and laughable yields. Then they restored the iconic Paso Almond Growers Granary–a beacon to wine-country visible from both directions coming up the 101. Third, they’re cool people, producing a bunch of awesome varieties from their vineyards scattered throughout Paso, and: things aren’t over-priced. In fact: this cab is one of the least-expensive wines they sell. There’s only 5 or 6 wineries in Paso I recommend to visitors who query. This is one of them.
A lot more delicate on the palate than expected. The fruit goes sharp into high-notes of green raspberry and tart plum, dusty orange rose adding citrus and lush floral to an elixir I’m gonna call 15-2. The fruit thins nicely into the finish, bringing a zingy chalkiness so welcome to cut a bit of this alcohol. It all collapses into powdery tannins with magnificient fruit expressions. Be interesting to see where these wines are in another decade or more. It’s not super-complex, but sure is fun to drink.
2017 DERBY Cabernet Sauvignon Laura’s Vyd Estrella Dist. Paso Robles 14.7
Stephen McConnell 