2009 The Farm Winery Cardinal Cabernet Sauvignon

The Farm Winery in the Westside Hills of Paso Robles was started by two couples who are longtime friends. One of the group is Santiago Achaval, an Argentine winemaker known for being a founding partner of Achaval-Ferrer Winery in Argentina. He was also winemaker there and is widely admired for bringing high quality Argentine Malbec to the international market. The Farm’s inaugural vintage was the 2009. At The Farm the portfolio includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux-style blends, Syrah, Grenache and Rhone-style blends. Achaval makes the wines at The Farm Winery.

Paso Robles AVA is midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and it is considered one of the West Coast’s most exciting winemaking regions. With its hot, sometimes searingly dry and sunny weather, it is especially good country for growing warm climate grapes such as Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre. Because many Paso Robles wineries have been successful with blending these grapes into Rhone Valley-style wines, it is known as the Rhone zone of California. The AVA was created in 1983 and there are 32,000 vineyard acres. In late 2014 the AVA was divided into 11 smaller sub-appellations, so starting with 2015 vintages labeling will become more specific on Paso Robles wines, which will now also list sub-appellations. Located in San Luis Obispo County, Paso Robles, the town and its surrounding area, was traditionally a farming and ranching region. But from a few dozen wineries in the early 1990s to more than 200 today, the area is quickly becoming known for wine and risk-taking winemakers.

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.