2023 Tooth and Nail Audubon The Possessor Red Blend Paso Robles

Most Paso Robles wineries will tell you the land is special. Rob Murray actually bet his livelihood on it. A lifelong agriculturalist who arrived in Paso with more conviction than capital, Murray built Tooth & Nail from the ground up — farming the estate himself, fighting the elements, and refusing to make wine he couldn't be proud of in a region that doesn't give anything away easily. The vineyards are sustainably farmed: hand labor instead of herbicides, deficit irrigation to concentrate the fruit and conserve water, 1% of profits pledged to 1% for the Planet. Director of Winemaking Jeremy Leffert runs the cellar with the same seriousness — clean extraction, honest oak, wines that taste like where they came from.

The Possessor draws estate fruit from the Willow Creek District and the Chaparral Vineyard in El Pomar. The profile is consistently dark and structured — blackcurrant, ripe plum, and violet on the nose, with pencil shavings and cedar underneath; a full-bodied palate with finely grained tannins, vibrant acidity, and a finish that runs long and silky. Open it tonight with carne asada or put it down for a few years. The structure is there for both.