Underneath us all, under our feet, our homes, our highways, our farms, and vineyards, there is soil full of millions of years of bones and shells. While that sentence could be the start of a scary story, it can also be the start of some fantastic wine. Paso Robles on California’s Central Coast is particularly rich in this type of calcareous soil, rich with limestone that many vines love.
It’s in these soils that the 2019 L'Aventure Optimus was born. This red blend thrives in those soils, and it also thrives under the artful winemaking of Stephan Asseo. Asseo left behind Bordeaux and the winery he owned there in search of a region somewhere in the world where he could make fine wine with fewer strict rules. He found that in Paso Robles, and in 1998, he and his wife began their adventure in California.
Asseo produces just about 10 different wines at L'Aventure, all from estate, primarily French variety grapes. They are all his grapes, and he takes great care in making all his wines, although if you look at the percentage of his wines that contain Syrah, and the high percentage of it in most wines, you might conclude it’s his favorite child.
That favored grape creates the backbone of this perfectly balanced blend of 57% Syrah, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Petit Verdot, full of dark fruits, ripe cherries, and cassis on the nose and plum, pepper, chocolate, and smoke when you sip. It will continue to evolve in the bottle for at least 10 years. James Suckling says it’s the most balanced L’Aventure encountered, giving it 96 points. Jeb Dunnuck says the savvy should snatch up this elegant, pleasure-bent 94 point wine.
We agree, and we’re offering it at a snatch-it-up 28% off, just $64.89. The only question is: How many will you choose to snatch?
