Tempranillo

Varietal: 90% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
Hometown: Paso Robles AVA, Willow Creek District
Birth Date: September 10 – 28, 2020
Birth Weight: 26.8º Brix
Rearing: Fermented in concrete tanks and 1-ton bins
Education: Aged 30 months in French oak barrels (36% new)
GPA: 4.04 pH | 5.0 g/L TA | 14.7% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled June 20, 2022
Siblings: 569 cases

Biography: Exuberant with red fruit, herb, and tannin, the 2020 Tempranillo is showing no signs of its extra year spent chilling in barrel. Red cherry, red plum, tobacco, roasted herbed meats, and cinnamon spice speak loudest at first sniff, then, with air, more subtle notes of fig, graphite, and fresh dill come into play. The palate remains fresh and lively and see-saws between fruit, minerals, spice, and, of course, lots of compact, youthful tannin. This Tempranillo is built for age – if you can’t wait, decant, or keep it open for a day (or three). – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 – 97 points, Jeb Dunnuck

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Varietal: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: 100% Catapult Vineyard
Hometown: Paso Robles AVA, Willow Creek District
Birth Date: September 17, 2019
Birth Weight: 26.8º Brix
Rearing: Fermented in concrete tank
Education: Aged 30 months in French oak barrels (40% new)
GPA: 4.10 pH | 4.8 g/L TA | 15.2% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled June 10, 2022
Siblings: 272 cases

Biography: The gifts of extra time in barrel and bottle are apparent in the 2019 Reserva Tempranillo’s gorgeous bottle bouquet spanning from floral, to fruit, to earth and spice notes. Aromas unfold as air enters the glass and continue onto the mouth’s entry with red roses, tobacco, forest floor, red plum, red cherry, sassafras, sugarplum, cinnamon, and wet gravel. Flavors enter encircling the front palate, but then the big boy Tempranillo tannins set in, especially after multiple sips, dominating the show. You can (and should) lay this bottle down for five to ten years without missing a beat. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Varietals: 85% Tempranillo, 6% Graciano, 6% Syrah, 3% Grenache
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek District, Paso Robles
Siblings: 517 cases
Birthdate: September 16 – October 7, 2019
Birth Weight: 26.6 Brix
Rearing: Fermented in new French oak puncheons and stainless-steel tanks
Education: Aged for 30 months in French oak barrels (44% new)
GPA: 4.08 pH | 4.7 g/L TA | 15.3% Alc.
Graduation: June 10, 2022 

Biography: This baby needs to be open for at least 12 hours before enjoying in its youth. The 2019 Tempranillo with 30 months of barrel age shows great balance and tilts its hat to its Spanish homeland in Rioja with notes of red cherry, red plum, vanilla, cigar box spices, tobacco, leather, and dried fig. Characteristic Tempranillo tannins build on the mid and back palate and send the wine finishing in all directions, making it a great dinner companion for a variety of meat dishes. If you are able to cellar this wine and wait, the gifts of patience and age will not go unnoticed. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95-97 points, Jeb Dunnuck

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Varietals: 85% Tempranillo co-fermented with Graciano, Syrah, and Grenache for a natural boost in acidity
Parentage: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek District, Paso Robles
Stomping Grounds: Rocky, calcareous, west-facing hillsides
Siblings: 538 cases
Birthdate: September 7 – 25, 2018
Birth Weight: 26.6 Brix
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel tanks and ½-ton puncheons
Education: Aged 29 months in French oak barrels and puncheons (54% new)
GPA: 3.88 pH | 5.3 g/L TA | 15.3% Alc.

Biography: Epoch’s 2018 Tempranillo is a diversion from past bottlings – it has spent an extra nine months in oak, totaling 29 months overall, to help tame its tannins before they begin to age in your cellar. With its extra time in barrel, cigar box character abounds and is mixed with sweet tobacco, ripe red cherry, vanilla, roasted herb, sweet earth, and forest floor. A few hours in the decanter or several years in your cellar are a must before partaking on this structured journey across the palate that only Tempranillo can provide. You can feel the architecture of this wine and watch it soften as you check in on it over the next decade. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 97 points, Wine Advocate; 94-96+ points, Jeb Dunnuck 

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Varietals: 87% Tempranillo & 13% Graciano
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek District
Hometown: Paso Robles
Siblings: 238 cases 
Birthdate: September 13, 2017 
Birth Weight: 24.9° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel
Education: Aged 30 months in French oak barrels (39% new)
GPA: 3.76 pH | 5.6 g/L TA | 14.4% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled May 27th, 2020 

Biography: This deep-garnet-hued special bottling of our Paderewski Tempranillo was co-fermented with 13% Graciano to naturally boost acidity like many wines of the Rioja region in Spain. Aromas evolve with time in the glass – cherry, red plum, cinnamon spice, vanilla, anise, roasted resinous herbs, and grilled meats. This wine enters juicy with full red fruit and herbs on the palate, leading to barrel spice, sweet tobacco, and graphite. Chalky, structural tannins set in mid-palate and send the wine’s sensation circling around back-to-front. This wine has a long life ahead of it, so patience will prove very virtuous in 5 – 10+ years. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 98 points, Wine Advocate; 95 points, Jeb Dunnuck

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek
Hometown: Paso Robles
Siblings: 497 cases
Birthdate: August 29th – September 12th, 2017
Rearing: Fermented in oak puncheons and concrete tanks
Education: Aged 19 months in French oak barrels and puncheons (67% new)
GPA: 3.96 pH | 5.3 g/L TA | 15.4% Alc.

Biography: Red plum, holiday spices, tobacco, sweet leather, black tea, bing cherry  –  pure and serious Tempranillo through and through, however, 2017 offers a bit more plushness and approachability than previous vintages. Enjoy some sooner and age some for longer! – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 94+ points, Jeb Dunnuck; 94 points, Vinous; 94 points, Wine Advocate 

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Varietals: 100% Tempranillo 
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 90 cases produced
Birthdate: September 7, 2016
Birth Weight: 26.4° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in one stainless steel tank
Education: Aged 33 months in French oak barrels (26% new)
GPA: 3.78 pH | 5.8 g/L TA | 15.1% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled June 13, 2019 

Biography: This reserva-style Tempranillo will make you want to hunker down and experience how its flavors evolve over the course of a meal or in an open bottle over several days. Ripe blue and black fruits, sweet oak, anise, and tar combine with savory/earthy flavorsof roasted herbs, cured meats, graphite, and crushed gravel. Texture abounds while the wine’s acidity and structure keep the sensation fresh and multi-faceted as it travels across the palate – front to back and then to the front again. This wine screams for a fine cut of juicy marbled red meat. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 97 points, Jeb Dunnuck 

Varietals:100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: 86% Paderewski and 14% Catapult Vineyards
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 363 Cases Produced
Birthdate: September 6 – 9, 2016
Birth Weight: 26.8° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in 35% new French oak puncheons, stainless and oak tanks
Education: Aged 19 months in French oak barrels and puncheons (80% new)
GPA: 3.80 pH | 5.7 g/L TA | 15.3% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled July 24, 2018 

Biography: The 2016 Tempranillo is our unabashed Spanish cowboy, so different in flavor and structure from our other wines. It’s built to stand the test of time and needs a healthy decant or aging in your cellar to realize its true potential. Red plum, red cherry and sweet earth round the front upper and lower palate. A bright acidity and varietally-correct structure direct the wine to the back palate. From there, it’s a wild ride of texture shooting off in all directions. Dried tobacco leaf, fig, brown baking spice, vanilla and a hint of cedar linger on the finish. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 94 points, Vinous; 03+ points, Jeb Dunnuck; 93 points, Wine Advocate

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Varietals: 99% Tempranillo, 1% Grenache
Birthplace: 64% Paderewski and 36% Catapult Vineyards
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 390 Cases Produced
Birthdate: August 27 – September 12, 2015
Birth Weight: 26.8° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in concrete, oak tank, and 1/2-ton new French oak puncheons
Education: Aged 19 months: French oak barrels (60% new)
GPA: 3.94 pH | 5.4 g/L TA | 15.4% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled June 3, 2017 

Biography: This wine will need decanting until at least 2020 if not longer! Even better, cellar this fresh and structured serious bottling. The tannins need time to broaden, and the aromas and flavors need exposure to air to open and reveal dried bing cherry, red plum, pipe tobacco, dried tea leaves, pencil lead and a savory gaminess. A vanilla, toasty barrel spice is subtle but frames and adds layers to the palate. Fans of Tempranillo, a gift is in store for you. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 98 points, Jeb Dunnuck; 94 points, Vinous; 94 points, Wine Advocate

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Varietals: 90% Tempranillo, 5% Grenache, 5% Mourvèdre
Birthplace: 72% Paderewski and 28% Catapult Vineyards
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 481 Cases Produced 
Birthdate: September 4-17, 2014
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel and concrete tanks
Education: Aged 20 months in new French oak barrels and puncheons (58% new)
GPA: 3.71 pH | 5.7 g/L TA | 15.5% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled August 17, 2016 

Biography: Whether you are Tempranillo fan or not, this Spaniard will have you by the heartstrings. Epoch’s 2014 Tempranillo is so well rounded, so delicious while still staying true to the flavors and textures of the Tempranillo grape. A consistent round of tannins stuff the mouth and keep the wine turning from front to back, filling your palate with dried cherries, red plum, Christmas and barrel spices, smoked and cured meats and sweet tobacco. Minerality and bright acidity keep the wine from ever seeming too overpowering. Big tannin in balance seems like an oxymoron but not in this bottle! – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 98 points, Jeb Dunnuck; 93 points, Vinous; 93 points, Wine Advocate

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Varietals: 87% Tempranillo, 10% Grenache, 3% Zinfandel (all non-Tempranillo varieties are from co-fermentation additions)
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 511 Cases Produced
Birthdate: September 2 – 23, 2013 | Birth weight: 26.5° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel, concrete and oak tanks – all destemmed
Education: Aged for 17 months in 41% new French and Hungarian oak barrels and puncheons
GPA: 3.95 pH | 4.9 g/L TA | 15.4% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled April 24, 2015

Biography: The lone wolf, Epoch’s Tempranillo is so distinctly different from all our other wines in aroma, flavor and most obviously tannin structure. Big and juicy red plum and pomegranate fruits lead the entry as cinnamon and oak spice tumble around the palate, intensified by a cascade of chewy, multi-faceted tannins that fold from front to back. This wine resides at the intersection of rustic and refined and once again has earned his spurs to be deemed our Spanish cowboy. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 points, Wine Advocate; 92 points, Vinous

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Varietals: 78% Tempranillo, 22% Grenache
Parentage: 100% Catapult Vineyard
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Siblings: 217 Cases Produced
Birthdate: September 9, 2013
Birth Weight: 27.5° Brix
Rearing: Fermented in stainless steel tanks
Education: Aged for 35 months in French oak barrels
GPA: 3.72 pH | 5.6 g/L TA | 15.7% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled August 17, 2016

Biography: Bring out the Christmas wreaths, mulling spices, and cinnamon brooms, this wine smells like the holiday season! This is Epoch’s 3rd rendition of a Reserva – only having been produced in the 2009, 2012, and now 2013 vintages. In addition, this Tempranillo is the first of its kind to be exclusively from our Catapult Vineyard. The extra year plus in barrel permits more evolution of Tempranillo’s bold structure, yielding rich notes of barrel spice, integrated red fruits and chewy tannins. Once open, this wine should stay happy in the bottle for several days if kept at a cool temperature. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 points, Wine Advocate

Varietals: 94% Tempranillo, 6% Grenache
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Stomping Grounds: One southwest sloping limey hillside
Birthdate: September 19 and 28, 2012
Birth Weight: 27.2° Brix
Rearing: Fermented ~15% whole cluster in stainless steel tanks
Education: Aged for 19 months in 66% New French oak barrels
GPA (High School): 3.81 pH | 6.4 g/L TA | 15.5% Alc. 

Biography: The 2012 Tempranillo conjures up all the melancholic, deliciously shiver-inducing sentiments of a perfect autumn day – dried leaves on forest floor, red plum compote, sweet leather and pipe tobacco. This new vintage has all the unforgettable and endearing sides of our beloved Spanish cowboy, while also displaying a soft youthful approachability. Layers of red fruit, brown spice and earth tumble around the front to mid-palate, gently leading to enough tannin on the finish to know this wine is Tempranillo without overdoing it. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 points, Wine Advocate; 93 points, International Wine Report; 92 points, Vinous

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard
District: Willow Creek, Paso Robles
Stomping Grounds: One steep, west-facing limestone hillside
Siblings: 218 Cases Produced
Birthdate: September 28 – October 10, 2013
Birth Weight: 27.1° Brix
Rearing: Fermented ~75% whole cluster in new French oak puncheons and stainless steel tank
Education: Aged for 29 months in 88% new French oak barrels and puncheons
GPA: 3.74 pH | 5.8 g/L TA | 15.2% Alc.
Graduation: Bottled April 24, 2015 

Biography: Reserve Tempranillo is a thick mustache-wearing, seasoned wrangler with some sharp edges alongside layers of softness that have developed after years of patience in the barrel. Flavors of brown sugar, barrel spice, vanilla bean, sun-ripened red plums and dried tobacco leaves are so inviting and yearn for a cool evening curled up by the fire. Next to his Rhone cousins produced at Epoch, Tempranillo is a dark and swarthy foreigner, however we love him just the same and marvel and his idiosyncracies. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95+ points, Wine Advocate; 93 points, Vinous

Varietals: 92% Tempranillo, 6% Syrah, 2% Grenache
Birthplace: 100% Paderewski Vineyard
Rearing: Fermented in concrete tanks and French oak puncheons
Education: Aged for 17 months in 65% new French oak barrels and puncheons
Siblings: 297 Cases Produced

Biography: With Don Juan suavity, our Tempranillo never lets us forget its Spanish roots. Tempranillo is on its own time, and regardless of vintage, it is always very different than our other varieties. We embrace its uniqueness and let it hang out in barrel and/or bottle for as long as is needed. The coolness of the ’11 vintage is apparent in the brightness of fruit and acid in this wine as well as its tight tannin structure. It begs for decanting (or drinking over a day or two), and then the true romantic emerges. Always connected to the earth, red plum, violet, forest floor, black olive and cigar box flavors converge into a Tempranillo form of elegance. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 points, Wine Advocate; 93 points, International Wine Report; 90 points, Vinous; 90 points & Cellar Selections, Wine Enthusiast

– The Wine Advocate: Jeb’s Best of 2013

Varietals: 92% Tempranillo | 8% Grenache
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard
Rearing: Fermented in concrete and stainless steel tanks, and French oak puncheons
Education: Aged for 20 months in 82% New French Oak
Siblings: 268 cases produced

Biography: This mouthwatering, one of a kind Tempranillo blurs the lines of how we think about wine; he is bright, juicy and playful yet serious in focus and structure, full and lush yet chock full of tannin, Californian yet Spanish. You definitely won’t be bored with this in your glass! – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 96 points, Jeb Dunnuck; 96 points, Wine Advocate; 96 points, Rhone Report; 94 points, International Wine Report; 92 points, Vinous

– International Wine Report’s #13 Wine of the Year for 2012

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Hometown: Paderewski Vineyard
Education: Aged for 23 months in 75% new French oak barrels and puncheons
Siblings: 447 cases produced

Biography: Honoring its heritage with a hefty serving of tannins, this Tempranillo is definitely a red wine drinker’s wine. Let it breathe before serving and you’ll be served with some delicious aromas of sweet earth, leather, pencil shavings, dried red cherries and vanilla. The palate shows tobacco leaves, red plum, roasted meat and newly pressed olive oil. Tannins are intense yet ripe and elegant and will soften and become more velvety in texture with bottle age. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Accolades: 95 points, Jeb Dunnuck; 95 points, Rhone Report; 94+ points, International Wine Report; 93 points, Vinous

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard
Education: Aged for 35 months in 75% new French oak
Siblings: 148 cases produced

Biography: The six barrels of 2009 Tempranillo that comprise our Reserva Tempranillo have always felt extremely connected to their Spanish roots. Since its inception, this wine insisted on being left alone, begging for extended barrel aging in the traditional Rioja ‘reserva’ style. We followed orders and, except for monthly topping, did not touch these barrels for three years, until the wine’s tannins had softened and flavors concentrated. Now, after almost one year in bottle, it is time to share our demanding yet mind-opening 100% Reserva Tempranillo. Two winemaking worlds collide in this striking wine, which seesaws between the old and the new. – Jordan Fiorentini, Winemaker

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard
Education: Aged 22 months in French oak barrels (once-filled)
Siblings: 322 cases produced

Biography: Tempranillo … West Paso style! The 2008 Tempranillo is our second vintage of this exciting and very different variety;  we produced a small quantity in 2007. We harvested in several different picks to select only the fruit with the softest and ripest tannins. The warm growing season of 2008 allowed our Tempranillo’s tannins to achieve high levels of ripeness and suppleness, creating a wine that’s enjoyable young but sure to age for several years. Aromas are both savory and sweet – smoked meat, tobacco, brown sugar spices, red plum and leather – echoed by a rich, broad palate whose flavors mirror its aromas. Firm with structure but yet surprisingly soft for a Tempranillo, this wine is sure to strike you as deliciously different! Drink now or with 5-10 years cellar age. 

Accolades: 93 points, Jeb Dunnuck; 93 points, Rhone Report; 93 points, Wine Advocate; 91 points, Wine Spectator; 90 points, Vinous

Varietals: 100% Tempranillo
Birthplace: Paderewski Vineyard, Paso Robles
Education: Aged 23 months in barrel with 100% new French oak
Siblings: 90 cases produced

Biography: A traditional-styled wine for the passionate Rioja lover. As with many Rioja wines, our 2007 Tempranillo patiently aged in French oak barrels (23 months!) waiting for flavors and tannins to co-mingle perfectly. True to its variety, this wine plays on the senses differently than our other wines, yielding a new and exciting tasting experience. This wine presents smoky red cherry, red plum, leather and brown tea leaf flavors with a nutty, caramelized, refined and textured palate, indicative of its prolonged barrel age. Drink now or with 5-10 years cellar age.

Accolades: 94 points, Rhone Report; 94 points, Wine Spectator; 93 points, Wine Advocate