Latest harvest ever.
That’s the mantra heard frequently in and around Paso Robles Wine Country this fall. An unusually cool summer and unexpected, copious rains meant that vineyard owners, winemakers and workers were still hard at work when we visited in early November.
“Sorry about the occasional fruit fly,” said Annie, our host at Broken Earth Winery‘s industrial-chic tasting room, restaurant and music venue. “We’re still crushing back there now. We’re late because we had no warm days until July — about two months late.”
But, this means that 2023 will be a good year, said Mike Mooney, owner of Chateau Margene and refugee from the fast-paced world of high-tech and the film industry. He, his wife and son do nearly all the work it takes to produce their 3,000 cases a year.
“(This year) saw a good amount of rainfall, so the salts were flushed out (of the soil). A cool spring meant a late bud break by three weeks. Cooler weather meant we were able to let the grapes hang until we had the perfect balance.”
For the uninitiated, refreshingly uncrowded Paso Robles (pop 32,000) and Paso Robles Wine Country American Viticultural Area are situated about midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. If you want to sound like a local, pronounce Robles like “nobles.” Even better, just say Paso.
Though only 30 miles by 40 miles, the region includes a sampling of many grape-growing climates throughout the world. Sixty-plus varieties grow here because of unique soils, different elevations, microclimates, wide range of daily temperatures, and the wind and fog that slides through the passes.
Paso has grown incredibly since the mid-’90s. More than 200 wineries sit among the rolling hills, spectacular vistas of endless vineyards and stands of old-growth oak and native conifers. Each vineyard and winery illustrate the diversity and complexity of the people who grow the grapes and create the wine.
The story of Anita and Varinder at Copia Vineyards contains both technology and tradition. Varinder, born and raised in Punjab in northwest India, met Anita online. Each had broad and varied careers, but their love of wine brought them together and to Paso.
“We had wine and our Indian heritage in common,” Anita said. “Varinder also comes from 13 generations of farmers in India, and in 2015, we did a deep dive into Paso. We became Paso’s oldest interns.”
Immigration also plays a key role in the story of Glunz Family Winery & Cellars.
“Our great-grandfather Louis Glunz came to America at the age of 17 in 1879 — before Ellis Island opened,” Stephan Glunz said. He and brother Matthew, numbers eight and nine of 10 siblings, are fourth-generation in the wine, beer and spirits business. Their welcoming tasting room features a photo wall that tells their interesting family story.
Tradition and immigration brought brothers Arnaud and Guillaume, owners of Benom Wines, to this country, but their path took a left turn.
“In France, there are many regulations on what grapes you use for what wines,” Arnaud said. The brothers come from six generations of winemakers in southern France. “Here all those regulations are gone. It’s like the Wild West. We can be very creative. Paso is magic.”
Especially in autumn, when the vermillion foliage of young liquidambars and Japanese maples are in full display. Millions of grapevines transition from an ocean of green to waves of yellow, gold and red. The comfortably warm days and crisp nights signal the culmination of months of hard work and rewards to come.
“This is the most beautiful time of year in Paso,” said Kelsey McClure at Castoro Cellars, Paso’s first certified sustainable vineyards and winery. This means employing organic farming methods, hundreds of solar panels and electric tractors that cultivate land once under water. To prove this, McClure showed us a dense piece of whale bone discovered in one of the vineyards.
“That’s why we call it Whale Rock Vineyard,” she said.
Damian Grindley of Brecon Estate Winery, an avid caver, came to Paso via his native Wales and world travels. The winery has vines on about 30 of its 50 acres, including 50-year-old cabernet vines.
“Paso still has a family feel,” he said. “It’s a place where you can have a chat over the fence. You don’t get that in other places.”
It was a neighborly connection that brought Rick Quinn, proprietor of Opolo Vineyards, from Camarillo to Paso. Here, with winemaker James Schreiner, Quinn has created a destination for those who enjoy not just wine, but spirits, food (including gluten-free pizza), festivals and concerts on the bucolic, sustainable vineyard grounds.
Quinn “grew up making wine in Minnesota,” and honors his Serbian heritage with the name Opolo, a rosé-style wine discovered on the Dalmatian Coast.
For more, visit Paso Robles Cab Collective. For more photos and discussion, visit www.facebook.com/elouise.ondash.
