10/27/09 – los rojos de robles (Paso Robles reds)
Paso Robles (shortened version of El Paso de Robles, Spanish for “the pass of the oaks”) is a barren, desolate place, nearly three hours from the nearest major league baseball stadium, and is totally unfit for human habitation. Despite these limitations, however, they make some pretty delicious wines there. Come out on Tuesday night and drink some of the red ones!
Jason recently returned from a trip to Paso, and he’s eager to show us the awesome bottles he picked up there — although we may have to twist his arm to get him to actually open any of them. You can assure yourself an excellent drinking experience, however, by picking up an awesome Paso red of your own! And there are many to choose from…
As little as a couple decades ago, Paso was still something of an obscure name in the wine world. It’s got quite a historic winemaking past — the missions were turning out plenty of juice back in the 1700’s — but it was only recently that it’s Zinfandel started to be appreciated as some of the best in the state, due to its exciting liveliness and intensity. While nearly every winery in Paso makes a Zin, the region is also known for its Rhone varietals — Syrah primarily, as well as such grapes as Grenache, Mourvedre, etc. Wineries like Eberle, Qupé, and Tablas Creek make some of the best Rhone-style reds in the state. Finally, the region has also proved capable of producing some really interesting Bordeaux reds (i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot). Like the Zins and the Rhone-style wines, the Cabs and Merlots often have a certain Paso Robles spiciness to them. Naturally, I’d be inclined to think it’s something in the soil… but this is Jason’s meeting, and he doesn’t believe in terroir, so let’s just leave it there.
For this meeting, please bring any red wine made in Paso Robles. It can be a single-varietal, or a blend… get whatever looks interesting to you. (As usual, feel free to bring a $10 donation if you prefer.)
We’ll be meeting at Jason’s place in Brentwood. The RSVP system functions like this: if you want in, you click on this link and tell me so (don’t forget your full name, e-mail address, and a cute message conveying to me your intentions). If you’re denied entry due to a meeting exceeding capacity, don’t worry — you’ll be at the top of the list the next week.
Once you’ve gotten your confirmation e-mail, go out and find yourself a bottle of Paso red (or a $10 bill), and get your game face on. We’ll see you on Tuesday night—