The Juice

Unusual People do Unusual things

During the summer, Damian Grindley of Brecon Estate got back to his Welsh roots and cleansed his wine palate while pottering around the pubs of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Additionally he got dutifully rained on at Rhossilli Beach and built a coracle! A coracle is an ancient Welsh craft used for catching minnows or storming castles!. You can carry it on your back, too. Unfortunately, since their design dates back to ancient times, they are a pain to paddle and have zero flotation. Damian wisely passed it to his daughter for its maiden voyage. You won’t see it in the tasting room, though: it didn’t fit into checked luggage!

Get to know the character that is Damian Grindley with a trip to the Brecon Estate tasting room and we’re sure he’ll have more tales to tell.

CAB Collective is proof that winemaking runs in the family

As we look around at our member wineries it’s hard not to notice the family ties that exist. Beyond the many husband and wife teams that we find, we also see multiple generations and branches of families contributing to winery success. Here are a few of their stories:

… Read more »

Producer Profile: Broken Earth Winery

One of the newest members to join the PRCC is Broken Earth Winery, whose beautiful, historic property was originally called Rancho Tierra Rejada, Spanish for “land of worked earth.” Established in 1973 as the Shimmin Canyon Vineyard , the current vineyard comprises 520 acres on Paso Robles’ east side…. Read more »

Producer Profile: Brecon Estate

The Paso Robles CAB Collective has definitely hit its stride with a large infusion of new members – so many that we consider our docket full. One of our newest members comes to the Collective from Paso Robles’ westside, Brecon Estate.

Damian and Amanda Grindley

Located on Vineyard Drive just north of the famed West Hwy 46, Brecon Estate is owned and operated by … Read more »

Producer Profile: Cass Vineyard & Winery

Paso Robles CAB Collective member Cass Vineyard & Winery sits on our AVA’s east side, about 8 miles from downtown Paso Robles. Devoted to the production of 100% estate-grown wines, Cass focuses primarily on Rhône and Bordeaux varieties.

Cass wines are inspired by owners Steve Cass and Ted Plemons‘ visit to Stellenbosch, South Africa. On that trip, Cass and Plemons fell in love with the South African wine style, as well as the ambiance of the tasting rooms there, and even found Cass Winery’s chief winemaker, Lood Kotze, by posting a job to the help wanted board at the University of Stellenbosch.

Cass vineyard’s first harvest took place in 2003, and the tasting room opened its doors in 2005. Since then, Cass’ fruit-forward wines have won critical accolades as well as popular acclaim. Their current Cabernet Sauvignon release, from 2011, is comprised of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Petit Verdot and 7% Malbec. Tasting notes from the winery include:

“…aromas of warm winter spice notes of cinnamon and clove accompanied by baked plum, currant, cassis, and cedar. On the palate, flavors of baked black cherry, cola, licorice, red plum, and fig jam are complemented by high notes of brown sugar and wintergreen. Soft and full, the tannins are sweet and integrated, showing good mid-palate traction and a spicy body that trails off with a burst of melted cherry.”

Winemaker Lood Kotze

The Cass Winery buildings were built by co-owner, Ted Plemons, and integrate beautifully with the surrounding landscape. In addition to a full-service tasting room on site, Cass Winery also offers a cafe under the direction of Executive Chef, Jacob Lovejoy, who creates a variety of specialty plates from crab cakes to smoked chicken salad. The café is open daily from 11AM to 5PM and is also available to host private parties and events.

For more information on Cass Vineyard & Winery, please visit their website at www.casswines.com