I could swear that I had been to Parrish Family Vineyards before for a dinner they hosted for the Cab Collective. However the property on Adelaida Road was new for me as it was for everyone else, only having been opened this past year. It nagged at me for about a nanosecond, then I was quickly caught up in everything this new discovery held for me. (One of which was seeing former SCVer Denise Criste living the dream, having moved to Paso and now working in the tasting room at Parrish!)
Took some photos of the calcareous stonework that contributed not only to a large wall but also to the terroir of the wines, and some of the bright red umbrellas – that could be seen from the road below – that sheltered many inviting groups of tables on the grounds overlooking vineyards.
The tasting room was welcoming. With many different cushiony seats to choose from, we learned that this would be a theme throughout. There were member’s only rooms, meeting rooms, dining rooms adorned with leather seating, balcony seating – the inside and outside seating options seemed endless. We learned that many people would move from one spot to another to enjoy their tasting, or to linger over a bottle for part of their day, some even circling back to Parrish for a second visit the same day as they are the only winery on Adelaida open until 6pm.
Membership options began with as little as a four bottle allotment and allowed for nearly monthly gatherings where you could reserve the exact spot you wanted to sit – I could definitely see a draw for a growing numbers of members.
We were shown a wall of photos and memorabilia that flanked both sides of the entrance to the tasting room that every guest will pass through. These items told a bit of a story of Earl Henderson, the grandfather of existing owner David Parrish, who had a love for golf (there is a small putting green for you to partake in the game if you so desire) and began cultivating grapes before prohibition.
David, before taking the mantle, was known for his work in trellising. At one point he had 24 patents for different trellis types for different fruits. He has seven active now. The winery made their first vintage in 2006. Coppola, L’Aventure, Clos Solene and others buy up their grapes. Learn more about Earl Henderson and David Parrish here.
Wines Tasting
While we toured and learned about Parrish we tasted through some of their wines. Bought a couple of bottles for home as well:
A crisp 2017 Sauvignon Blanc; 2016 Chardonnay with a lovely amount of oak; the nicely balanced 2014 Silken – named for how a member described as silky – Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon blend that my husband bought; an extremely approachable 2014 Petite Sirah that I had to buy for home as we don’t often find one we love; 2014 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from the Creston vineyard property; 2015 Petite Sirah I like almost as much as the 2014; 2015 Silken blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah and a tiny bit of Syrah; 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon and a 2014 Zinfandel that was really mellow for a Zin but damn fine just the same.
Parrish Family Vineyards, 3590 Adelaida Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446, (805) 286-4028 www.parrishfamilyvineyard.com Open from 11 to 6pm daily – the only winery open until 6pm on Adelaida Road.
To see the photo grids from all of our Paso winery visits from this trip click this.
Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET), a “certification in first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), Level 1 Sake Award from WSET, was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video (over 16k views), authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Long Beach Grand Cru and the Global Wine Awards. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits. You can also seek her marketing advice via Eve@EveBushmanConsulting.com
