TASTING NOTES: There’s a photo on the wall for each bowler who’s scored 300 at Gold Country Lanes—and they’re all him. Bushy mustache, pleated khakis, with a beachball gut, he’s just failed to get the shoe attendant’s number and bumped into a rack of pearlescent eight-pounders. But god, you’ve never seen a more graceful four-step approach. And when his red-appleskin ball hits the pins, it’s an explosion of dried red fruit, dark chocolate, and candied cherry. Ripe fruit power and spicy poise in equal measure. You’re hanging another photo before he even hits the tenth frame.
ABOUT: For Russell P. From, Paso is a place to push new frontiers in the exploration of full-force flavor. Milk & Honey exposes the best of the promised land. Tempranillo was chosen as the base of this blend due to its similarity to one of Paso’s new keystone varietals, Grenache, while also giving a nod to the region’s stylistic similarities to Ribero del Duero. While Paso is an emerald city for some, it is also home to derelicts and grifters and ne'er–do–wells, for whom the artwork is an homage.
DRINK NOW: 65º F; 1 hour decant
CELLAR: Now through 7-8 years