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Easy Wine Trail on East Highway 46Thursday, September 21, 2006Attractions that are close to home are easy to overlook. Laurie Daniel at The Tribune wonders how many Californians have never been to Yosemite or Disneyland or Lake Tahoe or how many county residents haven't gone wine-tasting in Paso Robles. In her article, she lays out an easy route along the east corridor of Highway 46, where the tasting rooms average about one a mile between the Highway 101 interchange and Tobin James Cellars, the easternmost tasting room. From Paso, it's an easy loop out and back, avoiding most left turns. Here are the don't-miss wineries along the way. (Call ahead or check Web sites for hours.)A short distance from 101, take a right at the light at the 46 East intersection with Golden Hill Road. It's a fairly quick left onto Union Road and then into a small industrial park where you'll find two tasting rooms. The first offers the wines of Hug Cellars and Orchid Hill Vineyard. Augie Hug produces very good pinot noir and even better syrah; try the dessert wine, called Encantada ($25 half bottle), too. My favorite Orchid Hill wine is the 2004 pinot noir ($27). Tasting is $3. 2323 Tuley Court, Suite 120-D, 226-8022, www.hugcellars.com, www.orchidhillwine.com. Next door is Garretson Wine Co. Fans of big, bold, ripe wines will be in heaven. Free tasting. 2323 Tuley Court, Suite 110, 239-2074, www.garretsonwines.com. Back on 46 East, the next stop is Robert Hall Winery and its impressive, nearly new visitor center. Quality is high across the board, and the Rhone-style wines, such as grenache, syrah, viognier and two blends, Rhone de Robles and Blanc de Robles, are particularly good. Tours of the underground wine cavern are available. Tasting is $5. 3443 Mill Road, just off Highway 46 East; 239-2626, www.roberthallwinery.com. About six miles east of Highway 101 is the tasting room for EOS Estate/ Arciero Vineyards. This is a great stop for auto-racing fans. Winery founder Frank Arciero Sr. has sponsored a number of racing teams, and there are three cars on display. Tasting is free, or you can pay $10 to taste the reserve wines (includes a logo glass). There's a wide range, but my favorites are the EOS Estate Reserve Petite Sirah ($25) and the dessert wines. The tasting room also has a shady picnic area, and you can pick up some packaged cheeses and salami from a refrigerated case in the tasting room. 5625 Highway 46 East; (800) 249-9463, www.eosvintage.com. Next, head to the friendly, Wild West-style tasting room for Tobin James Cellars. You can sample a wide range of wines, from bubbly to dessert, but if you're trying to limit yourself, the best offerings are red. On a recent visit, I sampled the luscious yet well-balanced 2004 ‘Ballistic' Zinfandel ($18) and the ripe, smoky 2004 ‘Rock-N-Roll' Syrah ($18). Tasting is free. 8950 Union Road; (805) 239-2204, www.tobinjames.com. Turn left onto Highway 46 East and head back toward town. You'll arrive shortly at Meridian Vineyards. Granted, Meridian wines are everywhere, but at the tasting room you can sample limited-release wines that aren't sold elsewhere, including a very good dry gewürztraminer ($18) and a Santa Barbara County pinot noir ($22). There's also a pretty picnic area in the shade of some large oaks. Tasting is $5. 7000 Highway 46 East; 237-6000, www.meridianvineyards.com. The weekends get pretty lively at Eberle Winery, established by one of Paso's pioneers, Gary Eberle. It's hard to go wrong with these wines, but I think the best bottles are the Rhone-style wines (roussanne, viognier and syrah) and the cabernets. If the syrah rose is available, by all means try it. Cave tours are offered every half-hour. 3810 Highway 46 East; 238-9607, www.eberlewinery.com. Your last stop is the Italianate tasting room for Martin & Weyrich. Among the whites, be sure to try the pinot grigio ($13) and the lightly sweet Moscato Allegro ($12). I also like the fruity ‘La Primitiva' zinfandel ($16). For a nice picnic, pair the zin with some of the cheeses and meats available for sale in the tasting room. Tasting is $4, or $10 for the reserve tasting. Highway 46 East and Buena Vista Drive; 238-2520, www.martinweyrich.com. Whew, that's a lot of wine. Be sure to spit or, better yet, take along a designated driver. Article: Easy trip on Hwy. 46 visits eight great wineries The Tribune, Laurie Daniel Tags: San Luis Obispo Central Coast Wine |
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