It’s been absolutely dumping here. The experts keep coining new terms - atmospheric river, moist plumes, bomb cyclones, and drippy deluge. Ok, the last one I made up.

We’re not talking about the ten inches of rain. It’s pouring down DEALS! We’re feeling like Noah trying to round up every last one and safely usher them into your home. And this Cab blend, done in the juicy-good Paso persuasion style? Straight A+, certified prime, crowd-pleasing, wallet-friendly (via us!) stuff that warms the cockles of your heart.

With a 94 from IWSC, a healthy double the 92 points from critics to boost that, and a near 60% OFF we are 100% here for this FLAGSHIP offering. Trust your agents of wine! For $22 this drinks well above even its $54 price tag.

Le Vigne’s Filippinis switched from hay and cattle to grapes in the early ‘80s and have been instrumental in growing Paso’s fine wine scene since. A first-generation Italian immigrant, Walter Filippini still has a strong tie to the culinary traditions of the Old World, since he grew up in the gorgeous Lake Como area, working at family vineyards and gastronomic institutions. It should not come as a surprise then that besides grapes, the Filippini Ranch also grows olives and pistachios to die for.

Consulting winemaker Terry Culton is a local legend in the Paso Robles wine scene. Honored by Robert Parker himself as a “top-flight winemaker” he learned the ropes at Peachy Canyon, Adelaida Cellars, Calera, and Willamette Valley Vineyards along his decades spanning career.

This has all that fruit-forward Paso power you want, but it’s so, SO fresh too. At 14.1% it shows restraint that many wines from the region lack. It’s certainly not “thin”, but it’s also not at all inky, extracted, or overblown. PURITY is the word, and we agree with the Wine Enthusiast’s “lively (rather than brooding) palate” observation.

A blend of 2/3 Cabernet, with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot making up the other 1/3rd leans on the red spectrum of fruit, with shades of black. Primary strawberry, sweet pomegranate, and black cherry mingle with black plum and cassis. That pure fruit is flanked with gorgeous violet notes, a touch of dusty minerality, and some fantastic spices like nutmeg and cinnamon. No sense of “fake” additives, or any of that cheap one-dimensional Ludens syrup. Even the oak is beautifully done here - integrated, mild, and supportive rather than stealing the spotlight.

Scooped 6 bottles and will probably get another 6. This will for sure be one of the more re-ordered and re-requested wines of the year once you taste it. The only thing we can’t predict… will there be any left?

94 Points – IWSC

92 Points – Antonio Galloni’s Vinous “Dusty violet and lavender tones give way to musky black currants as the 2019 Nikiara opens in the glass. It’s round and pliant on the palate with depths of red and black fruits. A coating of chalky minerals collects toward the close. The 2019 offers a staining of primary concentration and fine-grained tannins through the structured and youthfully tense finale. Drink 2025-2033.”

92 Points – James Suckling “Lots of violets and blueberries, plums, wet stone on the nose, as well as tomato leaves. It’s medium-bodied with fine yet firm tannins. Structured and balanced, with an attractive basket of blue fruit and a focused finish. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petit Verdot. Drink or hold.”