It seems like it's been a while since we reviewed a wine from Paso Robles and I found quite a few different Paso bottles on the shelves to choose from during my last trip to Costco.
Many I've had before, but this is the one that drew me in, largely because of its unique blend that just begs the question, what does this taste like?
That blend is 55% Syrah, 27% Zinfandel, 13% Petite Sirah and 5% Petit Verdot, hence the name of the wine, Renegade, which is proper to describe this rather unconventional, "daring" blend.
But on to the wine itself, I thought it was pretty solid. First impression is that it is young, which it is, but after it chills out with some air, it starts to show what it's really made of.
The wine is a super dark, inky purple on the pour. Nose is fresh, violets, floral; pretty full bodied and packed with flavor in the mouth. Dark fruit primarily, blackberry, plum, black cherry, and mocha flavors; really nice finish that hangs around much longer than I was expecting.
Still, it's a young wine, clearly a New World blend of different varietals, but I like the execution. It's well done, and priced at $18.49. Retail is $25 but you can find it online around $17-$18 so the Costco price is just ok in this instance.
As far as California blends are concerned, I prefer the recently reviewed Illegitimate from Chateau Potelle if you happen to come across it. But this was a fun, if not different type of wine, to throw in for a change. We paired it with some 12 hour Green Egg smoked pork tacos which was a nice combo.
CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 87 points
Costco item number: 595947
Purchased at Costco in: Atlanta, GA (Kennesaw)
Alc. 14.6%
David A. Lopez says
Just wanted to share an experience last week. Grabbed a bottle that was sitting around a while in the bin by itself that never sold. It ended up being ringed up at half the price listed on the sticker. Ever experience that?
Editor says
No, I never have. What bottle was it?