Bianchi Wines on the East Side of Paso Robles
Visiting wineries far away from the main highways is part of the exploration of California bottles of wine. So we did that just recently visiting Bianchi in Paso Robles. We’ve written about the tourist trade, weekends and the crowds at wineries parked next to Highway 46 W. & East. We like to wander off highway.
Bianchi actually has roots in Southern California as well as Paso Robles. They operate a tasting room in Laguna Beach on Pacific Coast Highway. So if you live in the basin you have a nice place to visit and enjoy wine pickup parties. We visited in January. Be advised, it is a small and intimate venue.
Bianchi’s Paso Robles sits on Branch Road south of Highway 46 on the east side. It’s a beautiful facility with a gorgeous patio, pond, koi fish and a concert venue. Our server, Cass, is a 10 year veteran of winery work and was knowledgeable about the product.
Wine Maker Todd Weiher creates a variety of wines from sparkling to tasty reds. So what did we taste? Here goes:
2021 Rose $27 ✰
2021 Chardonnay $29 ✰+
2020 Chardonnay $52 ✰+
2018 Cabernet Sauvignon (18 months in barrel) ✰+
2019 Petite Sirah $37 ✰++/✰+
2018 Cabernet Sauvignon $73 (32 months in barrel) ✰+
2019 BDX (Bourdeaux style blend) ($83 club only) ✰+
2018 Petite Sirah $37 ✰+
2019 Duality (Zinfandel/Sangiovese Blend) $73 ✰++
You have your choice of flights, the signature collection at $25 and reserve tasting at $35. So get off the highway drive the country roads to find your wine wine to savor.
Some notes on our wine ranking system.
Bill & Erin Hodge write about California Wine, the estates & winemakers producing them and educational information about Vino. Living in California Wine Country provides a front row seat to the places you want to visit the most here in the Golden State.
– -✰ means -What’s next on your list of wines
-✰ means -Not liking it too much
✰ means -We’ll drink this wine, especially if it’s hosted!
✰+ means -You’ve got our attention and we might buy this wine.
✰+ + means -We’re hooked and we’re going to buy this wine.
When you see -✰/✰+ with a slash, it means we disagree.
