Sharing a bottle. Sharing advice. Even sharing wine making facilities and space. Sharing is a huge part of how wine gets made and why it’s so enjoyable to drink. Heck, Alta Colina wouldn’t even have a tasting room except for the generous and sharing nature of their neighbors at Villacana (awesome women’s t-shirts in their tasting room, btw). Earlier this year Villacana owners Alex and Monica offered to let first-time winemaker Bob Tillman use their equipment and rented them an unused portion of their building so they could turn it into a cozy upstairs tasting room.

This is where we met Meg after a short drive down Adelaida Road, one of the most scenic winery-laden byways in the Paso Robles area. Her family’s brand new winery just finished its first bottling (2007) from their 31 acre vineyard  of Rhone varietals, some of which were bought by the venerated Justin Vineyards & Winery–a good sign in and of itself.

No doubt these are incredibly young vines (just three years old). However, the extremely refreshing and rounded white blend of Marsanne, Rousanne and Greanche Blanc, the pleasingly light GSM, two radically different Syrahs (one from grapes blended from different blocks of vines in the vineyard and one made exclusively from grapes grown in the mysteriously superior block #9)  plus a pleasantly metallic/tobacco-laced Petite Syrah don’t taste like young’ins. (The winery’s viognier is still fermenting in the barrels but we can’t wait to taste that too.)

Prices are on the high end ($28-$48), which Meg explained as a conscious decision by her father who believes  that the wine is and will continue to be worth the price (particularly the 2008 Claudia Cuvee and the 2007 Old 900 Syrah, if you ask us) so rather than start out with lower first-bottling prices then have to raise them on people Mr. Tillman wanted to set the bar where he feels it belongs from the outset.

Tasting room hours

Thursday – Sunday 11AM – 5PM.

Free or fee?

$5  (free for wine club members)

Bar snacks

Wrapped morsels of Dove dark chocolate on the tasting room bar

Soundtrack

Billy Holiday

Bottle prices

$28-$48

Wine club

Yes and accepting new members. Alta Colina’s club offers a full 20% discount to members and only members of their wine club can buy the wonderfully earthy and seductive 2007 Old 900 Syrah (from the magical vineyard #9) and the already sturdy 2007 Ann’s Block Petite Syrah.

What we walked out with

A bottle of the super-refreshing and so-drinkable 2008 Claudia Cuvee white blend (for a limited time you can get a case of this stuff for $240!) and a bottle of 2007 Old 900 Syrah.

More info

Winery profile from the Paso Robles Country Wine Alliance

August Ridge Vineyard was opened by Jill and John Backer in 2001 and they released their first vintage (2005)  in 2007. The mostly-red wines are, in their own words, “Cal-Ital” style and lean heavily on Sangiovese, Barbera and Nebiolo grapes. All were delicious and enjoyable even at such a young age. The 2007 barbera, a varietal that’s getting harder and harder to find around here, was luscious and proper like a beautiful, but married, Italian woman and the  2006 Sangiovese was all bottled smiles, though the 2005 Sangiovese may have a bit too much alcohol (15.5%) for some, including Jill the owner.

The lone white wine currently being offered at August Ridge (a Sauvignon Blanc is rumored to be in the works) introduced us to an Italian varietal we’d never heard of: Arneis. With a clean, almost austere mouth-feel and a refreshing crispness capped off with an almost lemon-juice acidity at the finish the August Ridge Arneis beats the capris off Pinot Grigio any day.

Tasting room hours

Friday 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM or by appointment (call 805-239-2455).

Free or fee?

Free except for their two reserve wines for which a $5 fee covers both. Fee is waived upon purchase of a reserve bottle.

Bottle prices

$21-$44

Wine club

Yes and accepting new members–and with such small production numbers (fewer than 70 cases for some varietals) wine club members often get goodies that are never poured in the tasting room.

What we walked out with

1- 2008 Arneis, 1- 2006 Sangioves, 1- 2007 Barbera

More info

Winery profile from the Paso Robles Country Wine Alliance