About The Wine

Paso Robles is known for being the California wine region with few rules, and they like it that way there. It gives winemakers the freedom to follow their instincts rather than expectations or tradition. This mindset, along with the fantastic soils that sit under the vineyards of the Central California Coast region, make Paso just right for L’Aventure and its owner/winemaker Stephan Asseo.

Trained in France where he owned a winery in Bordeaux, Asseo felt confined by the rules of the region. So he left France and searched the globe for the right terroir for his next vineyards and winery, a region where he could craft world-class wine under his own rules. Asseo and his wife Beatrice decided Paso Robles was right for them, and they began their adventure making some of Paso’s finest wines in 1998.

The L’Aventure Optimus 2019 is primarily made of estate-grown Syrah with some Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot blended in. These grapes thrive in the calcareous soils of Paso Robles, created from millions of years of marine bones, shells, diatoms, and plankton turning into limestone. Under those soils sit clay, metals, and quartz. 

A long growing season with heavy diurnal shifts benefits the grapes that go into Optimus, too. After the grapes are harvested at their optimal ripeness, they undergo alcoholic fermentation in 89% new French oak and 11% 1-year-old French oak with full malolactic fermentation.

Aging: 14 months in barrel 

Tasting Notes: 50% Syrah, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Petit Verdot.

Reviews

Pure perfection from Paso Robles, the 2019 Estate Cuvee checks in as 50% Syrah, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Petit Verdot that was raised in 81% new French oak. Incredible cassis and blackberry fruits as well as violets, chocolate, graphite, and who knows what else emerges from the glass, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a concentrated yet weightless mouthfeel, building tannins, and a great finish. It’s more seamless and approachable than the more backward, structured 2018 and will have two decades of prime drinking. | Stephan Asseo, who’s assisted more and more by assistant winemaker Patrick Davies, continues to keep his L’Aventure estate near the top of the pyramid in Paso Robles. This report looks at the 2019s and 2020s, and both appear to be beautiful vintages. The 2019s are some of the finest wines I’ve tasted at this estate and have a rare mix of power and vibrancy, with incredible aromatics and sensational purity and precision on the palate. ~100 Jeb Dunnuck

Blackcurrants, crushed stone, and lavender with some rosemary. Full-bodied, yet it spirals deep and true on the palate, with creamy tannins and a dark, brooding finish. Provocative on the palate. Asphalt and spice notes. 50% Syrah, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot. Drinkable now or try after 2025, but you should really give this at least another five years in the bottle. ~97 James Suckling

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