The Paso Robles Rhone Revolution: L’Aventure Wines

I wrote about what makes L’Aventure Winery’s wines so unique last May, but since barely anyone read this blog back then, I think I’ll revisit.  My hope is that our thousands of weekly readers can get to know these wines and will come to enjoy them as much as I do.

Stephan Asseo, the French winemaker and owner of L’Aventure, is leading the Paso Robles charge as the Rhone style capital of the United States.  Though some of Asseo’s wines feature Cabernet, Rhone varietals are his focus – the “special sauce” for his wines and the Paso Robles AVA as a whole.  A Paso wine earned Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year honor, with Justin Smith’s 2007 Saxum James Berry Vineyard, but luckily for those of us who aren’t on their mailing list, Saxum isn’t the only game in town.

How L’Aventure is still available in retail stores (vs. mailing list only) is somewhat beyond me, considering that they are favorites of Parker and Tanzer.  Not only are they still available, but the prices of their top wines have actually dropped below the $60 mark this year, having been as high as $80.  I wouldn’t expect that trend to continue, but plan to get while the gettin’s good as this is by far the lowest price I can find anywhere.

L’Aventure makes two top tier wines, the Estate Cuvee and the Cote a Cote.  If you are just getting in to Paso Rhone blends I would recommend the Estate Cuvee, which is 50% Bordeaux varietals and 50% Syrah.  It’s a spectacular and unique blend that usually tastes more Cabernet than Rhone.  For those that are already sold on the Rhone blends, the Cote a Cote is 40% each of Syrah and Grenache, with 20% Mourvedre, and more indicative of what is making Paso such a hot wine region.  Even within Paso, L’Aventure has found a totally unique piece of land (pictured above), which has enabled Stephen Asseo and his team to grow some of the region’s premier wines.

Buy Here: 2008 L’Aventure Estate Cuvee $59.95

2008 L’Aventure Cote a Cote $59.95

Estate Cuvee: International Wine Cellars 94 points

“($85; 50% syrah, 36% cabernet sauvignon and 14% petit verdot; 15.9% alcohol) Inky purple. Cassis, blueberry and smoky Indian spices on the expansive, heady nose, with a sexy floral quality that gains strength with air. Deep, sappy and palate-coating dark fruit compote flavors show unlikely energy and become spicier with air. Strikingly expressive, potent and compellingly fragrant wine that finishes with remarkable clarity and sweet persistence. This was raised in 100% new French oak, but I’d never have guessed it.”

Cote a Cote: International Wine Cellar 94 points

“($85; 40% each of syrah and grenache, with 20% mourvedre; 15.9% alcohol) Opaque ruby. Very sexy aromas of black raspberry, blueberry, apricot pit, licorice and violet. Wonderfully precise and vibrant, with terrific cut to its creamy flavors of dark berry compote and candied violet. Round and sweet on the back end, finishing with excellent clarity, length and a lingering note of floral pastilles. Asseo called this wine “a bit of a prostitute, but a very nice one.”