The Puzzle of Paso

This week we are exploring California’s Central Coast, an area that is home to over 40 AVAs (American Viticultural Areas). One in particular, Paso Robles, has been the area of much debate in recent years. Paso covers an area of over 1,000 square miles (that is more than Hamilton and Marion counties combined)! So the question is, can all of that area really be the same when it comes to growing grapes and should they all be in one AVA?

Well, the answer, unsurprisingly, is no. The area ranges in elevation from 500 feet in elevation to over 2100 feet in elevation. There are some places, like the Templeton Gap, that are on the coolest end of winemaking in California, while others, like the Paso Robles Highlands are almost too warm to grow grapes. And trust us, you don’t want to hear us talk about all the various soil types!

So, with all of that in mind, the winemakers and wine growers of Paso worked together to create sub AVAs. Those are AVAs that fit within the larger Paso Robles AVA but get to still be their own thing. Now instead of having one giant area the producers agreed to 11 smaller areas. These districts have been around for about 10 years, but are only now catching on labels. We’ve decided to divide them up into the warmer and cooler areas within Paso. A bit of a rule of thumb, look for white wines and red wines that may be a little lighter on their feet in the cooler areas, while in the warmer areas look for bold reds that can provide plenty of big ripe fruit aromas!

Cooler Areas (Fresher wines)

Warmer Areas (Bolder wines)

Adelaida

El Pomar

Paso Robles Willow Creek

Santa Margarita

Templeton Gap

York Mountain

Creston

Paso Robles Estrella

Paso Robles Geneseo

Paso Robles Highlands

San Miguel

San Juan Creek

In the coming years we think more AVAs will be broken down into sub AVAs to provide more detailed and thoughtful evaluations of the areas, and Paso is going to be a great example of how to do it well. We help this helps to make the world of Paso wines a bit simpler for you, and we hope to see you at one of our Friday tastings!