86340 Mon Oct 18 17:33:29 -0700 2004 14 3 California 0 476754 Wow, what a wonderful time we had this weekend exploring the Paso Robles wine country. The first winery we visited was the Cumeria Vineyards winery. We sampled some Syrah from the barrel-tasting station and some excellent, warm pumpkin soup that was flavorful and delicious. Next we went to the Tobin James winery where they were giving out samples of BBQ'd meat. Lots of pork and chicken that was very good to go along with the wine tasting. We really enjoyed the Tobin James "Cash Flow" which is a very nice, versatile red table wine. Then off to the Bianchi Winery. The tasting room was just completely remodeled and is absolutely gorgeous. Definitely the prettiest tasting room in the area. We ordered the BBQ pizza which you could choose from a variety of ingredients which were made-to-order. We had this out on the deck overlooking the koi ponds and waterfall with a glass of their wonderful Merlot that we purchased. We also were able to find a copy of the French Laundry cookbook I purchased for a Christmas present. Next stop was the EOS vineyard where picked up some wine awaiting us from the wine club we're in there. We sampled some very nice olive oils they had for sampling. We then headed over to the Martin & Weyrich winery where I wanted to pick up some of their great Nebbiolo. Complimentary with a bottle of wine were the wonderful jalepeno Italian sausage sandwiches which were out of this world! We had two they were so yummy. Next stop was the San Marcos Creek vineyard. This is a gorgeous winery and still in the process of being built. We tasted their white Merlot which was very good and the Syrah was the best we tasted on the trip so we purchased a bottle for our collection. Here there was a small buffet set out with very yummy treats with suggestions on which to try with each wine sampling. The bacon and cheese stuffed tomaotes were very good, the cranberried meatballs and the homemade fudge to go with the late harvest Moscato was very good. Off to the Wild Coyote, what a kick this place was. It is a pueblo-type winery, like something out of New Mexico. Very nice inside with a fire going. It's know as the "House of Red." We sampled two very good Zins and Merlots and a nice Syrah. We chose a bottle of the Merlot to take home. Here they had some really good red cabbage cole slaw with pine nuts that was nice to nibble on while sampling the wines here. I'm going to order a bottle or two of their Zin for DH for a Christmas present too. Got DD a cool t-shirt she loved. Very unique experience here. Well, after all of this is there still room for dinner at 5:30 at Buona Tavola? You bet! We headed over to downtown Paso Robles for our 5:30 reservation. Buona Tavola means "Good Table" and the SLO locatoin is Zagat and Wine Spectator recognized. I know I was going to like this place, I just had a really good feeling about it and I was right!! We were seated at a nice table near the back of the restaurant. The place is small, but very elegant, yet casual and fun. We started with the Antipasta of Insalata del Dante which is a salad of baby fresh spinach,diced organci tomatoes, roasted pine nuts and red onions in a gargonzola dressing. We shared this and it was very good. We decided to do a split plate thing since we were a little full from all the great foods at the wineries. There was no extra charge for this and the server was very accomodating. Our Primi Piatti course was the Tortelloni de Zucca alla Salvia e Mascapone which is a homemade tortelloni stuffed with pumpkin, and ricotta cheese in a sage and mascapone cheese sauce topped wtih roasted walnuts. The split portion was quite generous and this dish was excellent. I would order it as an entree next time. Our Secondi Piatti (main course) was the Satlimbocca alla Capo Vico which is a veal scallopine with prosciutto, melted imported fontina cheese served on a bed of spinach with a rosemary veal reduction sauce. Very unique flavors, and excellent. We shared a glass of the Wild Horse Merlot since we didn't have a chance to visit this winery. Still room for dessert? Well of course! For our Dolci (dessert) we shared a slice of the chocolate-chocolate flourless cake, drizzled with raspberry sauce and mascapone cheese. This was rich and decadent. A very nice finish to a perfect day and excellent meal. I will return to Buona Tavola again and again. Antonio Varia has done a wonderful job with this place. Bon appetit! ***kim*** Mon Oct 18 17:33:29 -0700 2004 0 kim c 1 476761 I'm glad you were able to visit several different wineries. I always take visitors to Wild Coyote because the wines are good and the setting is interesting. There's usually a very funny woman giving the tastings. Was she there? Mon Oct 18 21:24:35 -0700 2004 476754 0 SGB 2 476762 Oh boy was she, LOL!! She was unbelievable! There was also another girl that was helping her who was really nice. That lady is a total kick! What a bundle of energy. We spent about half an hour there and would have stayed a lot longer if we didn't have an early dinner reservation at BT. I wanted to post a web address for BT, www.btslo.com for others to enjoy. Doesn't Wild Coyote have some great wines? That place was a total surprise. When we pulled up I commented, "we have now entered New Mexico!" LOL ***kim*** Mon Oct 18 22:58:51 -0700 2004 476761 0 kim c 3 476765 I really like Wild Coyote's Zins. Also we keep a case of Tobin James' Chateau Cash Flow on hand as a reasonably priced table wine. Be sure and post next time you're coming this way and I'll tell you about some other wineries you might enjoy. Tue Oct 19 00:16:54 -0700 2004 476762 0 SGB 4 476775 Oh, tell us now!! LOL There might be others out there who will benefit from your suggestions. One day definitely was not enough. We still didn't make it to Tablas Creek, Justin or any of the Templeton wineries. Which ones do you like that we missed? I also wanted to put in a plug for the excellent wine list at Buona Tavola. They have a really good selection of BTG local wines, also and a couple of reds from Italy BTG. I had the Wild Horse Merlot that was excellent. ***kim*** Tue Oct 19 11:38:46 -0700 2004 476765 0 kim c 5 476788 Just wanted to say that it's nice that we agree about some things. The two meals I've had at Buona Tavola were both excellent. I enjoyed your review. As far as wineries go, you should explore the west side wineries next time. Tablas Creek is a favorite of mine (and of course Justin), but Peachy Canyon, Dover Canyon, and a couple of others whose names escape me in the same general area are good. And on the east side, have you tried Eberle? Wed Oct 20 09:58:36 -0700 2004 476775 0 e.d. 6 476791 My husband and I go tasting about every other week, and so many Paso wineries are worth a visit. A few, however, jump to mind as must-visits for out-of-town folks. On the east side -- Eberle, Chateau Margene (way out there, but their Cabernet Sauvignons are SO amazing), Wild Horse and a co-op with four wineries (www.coastal vintners.com). This last is pretty new and not on the map. It's right by Garretson and gives you 12-15 tastes for free and it can be dangerous for numbing the taste buds if you drink it all. It's good, but be aware. And call for directions! They have no signs. On the west side -- I like Hunt, Mastantuono, Dark Star and Norman. We have a long way to go on that side, though. :) Haven't gotten to all of them. Happy sipping! Lindsay Link: http://www.coastalvintners.com/ Wed Oct 20 15:17:44 -0700 2004 476788 0 SLOLindsay 7 476799 Here are a few of my favorites: West Side (closer to 101): Doce Robles-small, family-run. Their Barbera is usually very good. Grey Wolf-another small, family-run winery. Casa de Caballos-the wines are good but it's also a neat place to visit because it's also an Arabian Horse farm. Turley-they make some excellent wine! Be prepared for a $10 tasting fee however. West Side ("Far Out Wineries"): Tablas Creek-partially owned by the owners of Chateau de Beaucastle in France, they make some very fine Rhone-style wines Villicana-some nice wines come from this small, family-run winery Le Cuvier-another small winery with some tasty offerings East side: Eberle-Almost all their wines are good IMO. Rio Seco- yet another small, family-run place. Clautiere-Some good wines are found in the most whimsical, amusing tasting room around Chumeia- the wines from here are really starting to be recognized Wed Oct 20 19:36:00 -0700 2004 476791 0 SGB 8 476804 Chumeia was the first one we visited. Has anyone ever been to Laura's Vineyard across the street from EOS? We pulled up and then turned around, it looked rather uneventful and we were in a hurry, but I'll stop next time. We also passed Villicana to try Wild Coyote. I'm really glad we got to "experience" that place! LOL ***kim*** Wed Oct 20 23:48:46 -0700 2004 476799 0 kim c 9 476807 So you like EOS? Back when it was called Arciero, I thought the wines were terrible in the tasting room and then later I bought a bottle of something from there on sale at TJ's and hated it also. I'd always figured that the name change was just to lure in a new crop of suckers and have never stopped back. But maybe there is new ownership or vineyards or winemaker. Thu Oct 21 10:14:54 -0700 2004 476804 0 e.d. 10 476813 Have you tried their Late Harvest Moscato? Very nice. I also like their Sauv Blanc from EOS. Our year with their wine club is over. It as a way to get us over there, tho! LOL (We preferred to pick it up rather than have it delivered to our home since we frequent Cambria so much.) ***kim*** Thu Oct 21 12:11:20 -0700 2004 476807 0 kim c 10 476825 I worked at a place that printed wine labels. Thankful winemakers would often drop off a case and we would fight over the wines. No one ever fought over the Arciero/EOS wines. They were pretty uniformly terrible, even to a bunch of underpaid printers. Thu Oct 21 20:10:32 -0700 2004 476807 0 snackish 11 476842 LOL, someone must like their 2002 Estate Bottled Chardonnay. It scored 94 Pts./Best of Class:South Central Coast at the 2004 CA State Fair Wine Competition, a Double Gold Award at the 2004 San Franciso Chronicle Wine Competition and a Gold Medal at the 2004 New World Int. Wine Competition according to this month's Wine Entusiast magazine. ***kim*** Fri Oct 22 15:15:45 -0700 2004 476825 0 kim c 8 477453 Thanks all to those who've posted tips on tasting in Paso Robles. They were very helpful in planning a recent trip my husband and I took to the area. We had such a nice time -- lots of good wine and friendly people (both pourers & fellow tasters) to talk to during our tastings. Here are my favorites (moving generally from west to east): Tablas Creek - Pretty sophisticated wines all from the traditional French varietals they imported from France which had to be quarantined for something like three years before planting in the Paso Robles soil. Decent whites can be a bit tough to find in Paso Robles given growing conditions (generally too hot), but they've got them here. And their reds are really good. We spent too much money here, but I know it's going to be worth it. Le Cuvier - The guy who owns this place is somewhat of a local wine growers guru, providing advice to many of the locals when they need it. He produces some really nice wines. Dunning - A little tiny dark place in the woods. These people put their blood, sweat & tears into their wine. I thought the cabernet sauvignon is really, really good, and the zin very tasty. And their chardonnay is nothing to sneeze at either. Peachy Canyon - They concentrate on zins, and have LOTS of them to try in their pretty tasting room. The woman pouring was really helpful in planning the last half of our trip. Clautiere - Definitely a fun place. They do a really nice job with their blends. Eberle - Probably the best priced wines we found on the trip. Plenty of good reds at resonable prices. Especially liked their cab/shiraz blend. Soon after we returned home from the trip, we went to see Sideways, a film about two guys who take a part road trip, part last fling in the Santa Ynez wine region (not too far from Paso Robles). A super movie and great follow-up to our trip. Lisa Mon Nov 22 19:29:26 -0800 2004 476799 0 Lisa in Chicago 6 476793 Yes, we went to Eberle, but left, it was really crowded and the tasting room was a little dismal for my liking. We did sample a couple of wines there and they were good. We've been to Peachy Canyon & Mastantuono a few times but have yet to make it out to Tablas Creek. It was on my list but we ran out of time. We just needed one more day there! My Merlot at dinner from Wild Horse was very good, also. We've been enjoying the Cash Flow red table wine from Tobin James with our dinners all week. Great stuff! ***kim*** Wed Oct 20 16:37:55 -0700 2004 476788 0 kim c