Three More Wineries in Paso Robles
Paso Robles, CA - Mon, 11 Nov 2019, 3:30pm
My plan to visit two wineries this afternoon in Paso Robles (after visiting one before lunch - see previous blog) got stretched into visiting three.
Eberle
First up in the afternoon was Eberle Winery. At only 40 years old it's one of the first wineries in the region, and its founder Gary Eberle an elder statesman of Paso Robles wines. Perhaps in sticking to its "old school" roots the winery is one of the few in the area, and literally the only 1 of 8 I've visited this weekend, that charges no tasting fee.
On the whole I liked Eberle's wines. They're well developed and well balanced. And they're also reasonably priced; most were around $30, give or take a few dollars, list price. I bought a bottle of their Zinfandel and a blend named Full Boar Red, a nod to the family name's German meaning, "small boar".
Robert Hall
Robert Hall Winery is another of Paso Robles' old guard. The founder, Robert Hall, passed away several years ago, though, and his heirs were not in a position to operate the company so it was sold to a conglomerate that kept the name... and much of the staff, including the head winemaker. The winery was half a mile from Eberle, so it was easy to combine the two on one visit.
I was surprised when I entered Robert Hall's expansive building with an understated elegance that it was practically empty. I was alone except for two tasting coordinators! That surprised me especially as Robert Hall is a brand you can find on store shelves across California. Wouldn't more people come here on name recognition? That was certainly part of my reasoning. ...Not to taste their "supermarket" wines, of course, as I can do that anywhere, but to explore their finer offerings.
I opted for a flight of their reserve wines (they're not interested in pouring "supermarket" wines, either) with a cheese pairing. I went for the cheese because it seemed interesting, each cheese matched to the character of 1 of their 5 wines and because, well, I was a little hungry and wanted a bit of food to help soak up the wine.
On the whole I liked Robert Hall's wines. They were spendier than the two wineries I'd been at earlier in the day, so that tempered my enthusiasm a bit. The tasting coordinator poured me a few samples of their supermarket label. Yeah, the reserve wines were better, but enough to justfy $40-ish prices intead of $10-15? Well, there's the rub. I did buy two bottles while I was there, as much out of appreciation for the staff spending quality time with me in the afternoon as anything else.
Brochelle
I made a bonus stop at Brochelle to round out the day. One of the tasting room employees at Eberle suggested it when I asked my question, "Where [else] would you send a friend visiting from out of town?" She noted Brochelle makes some uncommon varietals, such as Grenache, I'm interested in. Plus, it was literally on the way back to the main highway, so why not?
Well, it wasn't exactly on the way back. It was in a small industrial complex with its sign facing the main highway, but finding the entrance to it required a bit of navigational zen. It was nestled back-to-back with a company that rents out forklifts and other special-purpose trucks; not where you usually go thinking, "Mmm, wine tasting!"
Brochelle had a small, elegant tasting room, and I had it all to myself while I was there. The wines were... boutique-y. They were less common varietals and unusual blends, all with some over-the-top flavor element. I'm not a boutique-y kind of person, so I found them not as much charming as "trying too hard". Plus, they were spendy, with even the cheapest over $40. I paid for my tasting and hit the road.
Next Stop: Home!
Okay, my "hit[ting] the road" after Brochelle meant driving only as far as the Cold Stone downtown. I'm hungry as I had a light lunch 4 hours ago, and I'll feel more comfortable with a bit more food in my stomach after all that wine tasting.
Yup, finishing off a day of wine tasting with ice cream... It's a charmed life. But seriously, the next stop after this (except for maybe a toilet stop) is home, which the map app on my phone says is 2 hours 50 minutes away. I should still be there in plenty of time to have dinner with Hawk tonight.
Next Entry: Mostly Home from Paso Robles 🤣
My plan to visit two wineries this afternoon in Paso Robles (after visiting one before lunch - see previous blog) got stretched into visiting three.
Eberle
First up in the afternoon was Eberle Winery. At only 40 years old it's one of the first wineries in the region, and its founder Gary Eberle an elder statesman of Paso Robles wines. Perhaps in sticking to its "old school" roots the winery is one of the few in the area, and literally the only 1 of 8 I've visited this weekend, that charges no tasting fee.
On the whole I liked Eberle's wines. They're well developed and well balanced. And they're also reasonably priced; most were around $30, give or take a few dollars, list price. I bought a bottle of their Zinfandel and a blend named Full Boar Red, a nod to the family name's German meaning, "small boar".
Robert Hall
Robert Hall Winery is another of Paso Robles' old guard. The founder, Robert Hall, passed away several years ago, though, and his heirs were not in a position to operate the company so it was sold to a conglomerate that kept the name... and much of the staff, including the head winemaker. The winery was half a mile from Eberle, so it was easy to combine the two on one visit.
I was surprised when I entered Robert Hall's expansive building with an understated elegance that it was practically empty. I was alone except for two tasting coordinators! That surprised me especially as Robert Hall is a brand you can find on store shelves across California. Wouldn't more people come here on name recognition? That was certainly part of my reasoning. ...Not to taste their "supermarket" wines, of course, as I can do that anywhere, but to explore their finer offerings.
I opted for a flight of their reserve wines (they're not interested in pouring "supermarket" wines, either) with a cheese pairing. I went for the cheese because it seemed interesting, each cheese matched to the character of 1 of their 5 wines and because, well, I was a little hungry and wanted a bit of food to help soak up the wine.
On the whole I liked Robert Hall's wines. They were spendier than the two wineries I'd been at earlier in the day, so that tempered my enthusiasm a bit. The tasting coordinator poured me a few samples of their supermarket label. Yeah, the reserve wines were better, but enough to justfy $40-ish prices intead of $10-15? Well, there's the rub. I did buy two bottles while I was there, as much out of appreciation for the staff spending quality time with me in the afternoon as anything else.
Brochelle
I made a bonus stop at Brochelle to round out the day. One of the tasting room employees at Eberle suggested it when I asked my question, "Where [else] would you send a friend visiting from out of town?" She noted Brochelle makes some uncommon varietals, such as Grenache, I'm interested in. Plus, it was literally on the way back to the main highway, so why not?
Well, it wasn't exactly on the way back. It was in a small industrial complex with its sign facing the main highway, but finding the entrance to it required a bit of navigational zen. It was nestled back-to-back with a company that rents out forklifts and other special-purpose trucks; not where you usually go thinking, "Mmm, wine tasting!"
Brochelle had a small, elegant tasting room, and I had it all to myself while I was there. The wines were... boutique-y. They were less common varietals and unusual blends, all with some over-the-top flavor element. I'm not a boutique-y kind of person, so I found them not as much charming as "trying too hard". Plus, they were spendy, with even the cheapest over $40. I paid for my tasting and hit the road.
Next Stop: Home!
Okay, my "hit[ting] the road" after Brochelle meant driving only as far as the Cold Stone downtown. I'm hungry as I had a light lunch 4 hours ago, and I'll feel more comfortable with a bit more food in my stomach after all that wine tasting.
Yup, finishing off a day of wine tasting with ice cream... It's a charmed life. But seriously, the next stop after this (except for maybe a toilet stop) is home, which the map app on my phone says is 2 hours 50 minutes away. I should still be there in plenty of time to have dinner with Hawk tonight.
Next Entry: Mostly Home from Paso Robles 🤣