2023 Brecon Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot (98 points)
This is somewhat outside our usual wheelhouse. Primarily because the only Merlot we have ever had “a crush on”, from a ripeness perspective in our rarified locality, can best be described as just half a hilltop block. How our winemaker (5’8”) strong-armed the grower (6’6”) to only pick what we call “Diagon Alley” (diagonally) across the block, I will never know! This strip aligns with a band of calcareous bedrock and provides a distinctive fruit quality that is ripe, bright, elegant, and the perfect balancing match to our historic old vine crooner of a Cabernet vineyard. Needless to say, the grower has resisted in subsequent years. Perhaps I need to play cupid and smack him over the head with a bottle (rhetorically speaking, btw) so he truly understands such matchmaking.
98 points. Womens International Wine Competition, May 2026.
94 points. International Wine Report, May 2026.
Double Gold. Pacific Rim Wine Competition, May 2026.
Gold. 94 points. Sunset International, June 2026.
The Cab is a historic old-vine vineyard. We wanted a Merlot to complement the Cabernet, showcasing its elegance. Old vines tend to have unmatched complexity but may not be as strong in the fruit and tannin department as some of the younger clones. So picking the right complementing Merlot at the correct percentage is a true winemaking skill. Early co-mingling to ensure seamless integration is also part of it.
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Varietal Composition | 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, Adelaida District, Brecon Estate Vineyard.
45% Merlot, Adelaida District, Adelaida Springs Ranch. |
| Appellation | Paso Robles, Adelaida District |
| Acid | 0.57g/100ml |
| PH | 3.72 |
| Aging | Drink Now - 2040 |
| Residual Sugar | 0.04g/100ml |
| Alcohol | 14.30% |
| Volume | 750 ml |
| Bottling Date | 08/13/2025 |
| Cases Produced | 346 |
Brecon Cabernet Vineyard (now Certified Historic) is essentially as close to the cooling Pacific Ocean as you can get while still being on the main block of Calcareous Bedrock in Paso Robles. There are only a few outliers that are closer to the coast. Think of these as small, isolated islands or patches of Calcareous bedrock. Adelaide Springs Ranch Merlot block straddles one such outlier. Hence, our desire to cherry-pick through the block based on the underlying bedrock.
