Rhone Reds

My husband and I celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary by heading to Paso Robles for a little tasting last weekend. The weather cooperated and I was thankful not to see rain. We visited several wineries but I am going to tell you about two of my favorites.

On Sunday after breakfast we headed to EPOCH. A little history first... In the early 1900's Paso had a famous resident. His name was Ignacy Jan Paderewski. Ignacy was a concert Pianist, composer and a statesman that owned several thousand acres in the area and in 1933 he won a gold medal at the state fair for his Zinfandel. Long story short... in 2004 Bill and Liz Armstrong purchased 350 acres which included Paderewski's Rancho and York Mountain Winery where Epoch's new tasting room now sits. We tasted four wines at Epoch. First was the 2008 Epoch Red, a blend of Syrah, Tempranillo, Grenache, Petite Sirah and Mourvedre. Then we had the 2008 Zin, a 2007 Tempranillo and last but definitely not least the 2008 Ingenuity. At $55.00 a bottle it is probably not an every day drinking wine but a special one for sure. This unique blend of 61% Syrah, 17% Grenache, 14% Petite Sirah and 8% Mourvedre is a delight for Rhone fans. It is fruit forward but with serious structure. I recommend a visit to Epoch and do it before the Ingenuity is gone. Only 415 cases of this were produced.

Next stop... DENNER! Said to be the hub because of the 400,000 tons of grapes they process each year, Denner is also a collaboration of seven winemakers. The top dog there is 25 year old Anthony Yount who became the Denner's winemaker in 2009. The Denner's own 126 acres and sell grapes to a number of wineries, Justin probably being the most well known. In addition, their wine maker's also collaborate on 10 different wine labels including Epoch. We tasted four wines at Denner. First was a Viogner, then a Grenache blend and then....The Ditch Digger! This blend of 40% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Mouvedre, 5% Cinsaut, and 5% Cinoise is a mouthful of ripe raspberries, black cherry, red licorice and cocoa. Don't let the name fool you, this is an elegant wine. Two thumbs up for this one. Last but again not least... Mother of Exiles is 70% Cabernet, 20% Petit Verdot and 10% Cab Franc. With a taste of black cherries, black licorice, caramel and leather this will not disappoint. We were lucky to have been able to take home The Ditch Digger as these wines SELL OUT. If you make it to Paso, Denner and Epoch need to be top on your list!

Wine Spectator did a feature in March on the Paso Robles Rhones including the two I talk about here and this month Paso will host Hospice du Rhone April 28th-30th. This event is like no other, we spoke to one winemaker who said he now volunteers at the event since it is a little expensive to actually attend. $795.00 for the weekend package but from what I understand well worth it for Rhone lovers. Last year the event hosted over 130 Rhone wine producers and importers from all over the world. For more info on this fab event: http://www.hospicedurhone.org/index.phpw

Cheers to the Rhone Reds!