2017 Seventeen Forty Reserve

The Daou brothers, Daniel and Georges, have definitely rocked the boat in Paso Robles with their spare-no-expense winery and tasting room as well as high-end red wines, mostly based on Bordeaux varieties, that can rival the best that Napa has to offer. These are rich, extroverted wines, usually lavishly oaked, intensely fruity and often structured for long aging. The latest set of releases, almost all from 2019, continue that trend, and they make a case for being at the very top of the local pecking order, quality-wise, for their respective varieties. As noted, the Daou wines can stand up to many of the best Napa wines and, although far from inexpensive, they sell for quite a bit less than those of similar or lesser quality from up north. In recent vintages, the Daous have ventured into Pinot Noir, which they source from one of the top vineyards in the Central Coast. The results have been outstanding, especially if your tastes run to the exotic, concentrated and intense expression of the variety.

Daniel Daou’s Bordeaux-variety-centric wines are among California’s most successful expressions of those grapes not just in Paso Robles, but in the New World. As I’ve mentioned before, no expense has been spared by the Daou family in their pursuit to show that this region deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Napa when it comes to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. To my mind, they are succeeding, heartily. The 2018s, as well as the late-release 2017s (including the jaw-dropping Patrimony bottlings) here are still extremely young, if highly promising. By all means give them plenty of air if you can’t fight the temptation to open them now or over the next couple of years.

Brothers Daniel and Georges Daou’s deeply flavored, expressive, polished wines are consistently at the top of the Paso Robles heap of Bordeaux-inspired wines. They can stand toe-to-toe with the best that Napa has to offer, as I have experienced a number of times in blind tastings. The entry-level Cabernet Sauvignon bottling, which includes purchased fruit, is a flat-out steal and makes by-the-glass appearances at top restaurants across the country. The upper-level wines, which are made from fruit grown in the Daous’ 92-acre mountaintop vineyard, are by no means inexpensive, but they are actually solid, even outstanding values relative to their peers from up north - even the ultra-luxe Patrimony bottling, which stands up to comparisons with any Cabernet Sauvignon that I know, from anywhere.

Tasting through the new and upcoming releases with Daniel and Georges Daou is always eye-opening as their ascent to the upper tier of Paso Robles’ Bordeaux-inspired wines has been as impressive as it has been rapid. No expense is spared here, starting with meticulous farming of their 115 acres of vines, 68 of which are planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, along with state-of-the-art winery equipment, including a space-age optical sorter, and barrels from France’s best coopers, including ones made specifically to the Daou’s specifications. Then there’s the spacious and luxurious mountain-top tasting room and patio, which provides a pretty jaw-dropping view of the Adelaida District that would put plenty of Napa Valley facilities to shame. The proof, of course, is in the bottle and these was an extremely impressive line-up of wines that showed almost shocking energy given their hot weather-, drought-vintage origins. I also had a chance to look at a number of 2016 barrel samples and from an early glance they appear to be wines that will be tighter than the 2015s and 2014s reviewed here.

The Daous began working with their new, state-of-the-art optical sorting machine (a Pellenc Vision 2, to be exact) with the 2015 harvest, and Daniel Daou said that the efficiency and precision it brings to the process "is just incredible." These things do not come cheap, he admitted, but he firmly believes that the investment will pay off because "its selection detail is incredible, kind of unreal, actually." The proof, of course, is in the wines, and based on the 2015s I tasted from barrel at this perfectionist estate this summer some really fine stuff is on deck.

The Daous began working with their new, state-of-the-art optical sorting machine (a Pellenc Vision 2, to be exact) with the 2015 harvest, and Daniel Daou said that the efficiency and precision it brings to the process "is just incredible." These things do not come cheap, he admitted, but he firmly believes that the investment will pay off because "its selection detail is incredible, kind of unreal, actually." The proof, of course, is in the wines, and based on the 2015s I tasted from barrel at this perfectionist estate this summer some really fine stuff is on deck.

French-born Daniel Daou and his brother Georges own more than 200 acres of prime vineyard land on the west side of Paso Robles, but unlike virtually all of their neighbors they have opted to focus their efforts on Bordeaux-style bottlings. Their wines are assertively perfumed and flavored, with generous use of new oak that mostly works seamlessly with the lush fruit that the region consistently delivers. Interestingly, the Daous have placed a good amount of emphasis on Cabernet Franc, a variety that Daniel thinks "can be truly great if it gets ripe enough, which is hardly an issue here." No expense has been spared in the vineyards, the winemaking or the visitors' center, which is one of the more opulent ones that you'll find outside of the Napa Valley.

French-born Daniel Daou and his brother Georges own more than 200 acres of prime vineyard land on the west side of Paso Robles, but unlike virtually all of their neighbors they have opted to focus their efforts on Bordeaux-style bottlings. Their wines are assertively perfumed and flavored, with generous use of new oak that mostly works seamlessly with the lush fruit that the region consistently delivers. Interestingly, the Daous have placed a good amount of emphasis on Cabernet Franc, a variety that Daniel thinks "can be truly great if it gets ripe enough, which is hardly an issue here." No expense has been spared in the vineyards, the winemaking or the visitors' center, which is one of the more opulent ones that you'll find outside of the Napa Valley.

Daou is one of the most impressive new wineries in Paso Robles. In 2012 brothers Georges and Daniel Daou purchased the Hoffman Mountain Ranch high up in the Adelaida hills, the site of the first commercial winery in Paso Robles. Originally of French-Lebanese descent, the Daous built a successful computer networking company, but also caught the wine bug along the way to achieving notable success as entrepreneurs. The Daous lost both of their parents within 14 months are now focused in building a business they can pass on to the next generation. Daniel Daou makes rich, opulent wines with plenty of texture from aging in a high percentage of new French oak barrels. Some of Daou's models are the To-Kalon Cabernets from Napa Valley and top-flight Bordeaux, including wines like Leoville Las Cases, a family favorite. Georges Daou runs the business. The Daous describe the soils in the Adelaida Hills, one of the cooler, rainier microclimates in Paso Robles as consisting of a combination of clay and limestone that reminds him of his favorite vineyards in France. New plantings are high-density, while the level of ambition is as high as I have seen anywhere in the world. Daou is one of the most exciting new wineries in Paso Robles. Needless to say, it will be very interesting to see where things go from here.