Stormy Aftermath

But I suppose that any day is a good day for a little wine tasting. We had a nice trek on the East side starting in Templeton to taste at Clavo Cellars then off the Wild Horse (hence the inspired “Wild Weather” phrase), and a final stop at Sculpterra. If you have not been to the latter, you must make a trip! I had heard tales of sculptures in the gardens around the tasting room but had not imagined how striking these pieces would be in real life. There are numerous large, no, huge sculptures around the property and when you get in side there are miniature replicas to pour over!

The Cat's Meow

The Little Mermaid

Despite, or maybe because of, the weather a good time was had by all trying out a few new wineries. With so many wineries here in our backyard I look forward to trying a few new places on the next trip.

A longtime supporter of Central Coast Vineyard Team and the SIP program – some of Castoro’s vineyards are SIP certified, as well as being certified organic – Niels started as a local cellar rat back in 1981, when no one knew what a Paso Robles was. He and his wife Bimmer launched Castoro (Italian for Niels’ nickname: “Beaver”) in 1983, and over the years, it can certainly be considered one of the labels that helped put Paso Robles on the map as a stellar wine region.

Over the years, the Udsens quietly but steadily practiced responsible stewardship of their vineyards, and have clearly emerged as successful role models for sustainability and community leadership. To name just a few of their efforts: their employees are encouraged to recycle, there is no bottled water sold at the tasting room, the events room at the Templeton tasting room is largely powered by solar panels, and Castoro was one of the first wineries in the area to offer employee benefits.

Under the direction of Niels, Winemaker/Enologist Tom Myers, and Assistant Winemaker Mikel Olsten, Castoro Cellars has grown into a 60,000 case label (plus a thriving custom crush facility and mobile bottling service). Typically, there are about 15 varietals bottled, from the flagship Zinfandels to the more obscure varietals such as Cabernet Franc. Several blends and vineyard-designate wines are always on hand as well, but – despite the breadth of available wines – we’ve never found Castoro to be about quantity. All the wines are classic varietal interpretations, some with forward fruit if the grape and vintage suggest it, but the rest show veteran finesse and restraint in the winemaking process, making them wonderful wines to pair with food.

Paso Wine Centre is a great place to taste a lot of wines for a reasonable price.  First, charge your card with money, then use that card in the wine machine to purchase 1 oz. pours ranging in price from about $1.25 to $3.00.  And, as if the selection and the ability to try so many different wines didn’t already wow me, I felt even better knowing that for each sip I purchased raised money for a good cause.  100% of profits from the Centre goes to their charity, Wine for Water.

Wine for Water is a non-profit dedicated to bring clean drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene education to people around the world.  A quick browse through their website taught me some alarming facts: 1 billion people don’t have daily access to clean and safe drinking water, and every day 6,000 people die from diseases caused by drinking unsafe water.  Wine for Water is dedicated to building wells in areas where they can change these startling facts by bringing clean water to people in need.  They have a great website that provides a lot more information about these problems and their mission to help people in need.