Winemaker Notes
From 100% direct-to-press juice, Hearst Ranch 2024 Julia Rosé shows a gorgeous, pale salmon hue in the glass. Vibrant and bright, the nose overflows with notes of sweet honeydew, strawberries and refreshing watermelon. The jubilant aromatic profile gives way to an elegantly focused palate. Flavors of bright grapefruit layered with steely minerality are all framed in by firm acidity. The crisp, clean finish helps this versatile wine be at ease with a variety of tasty bites or all by itself.
Blend: 51% Grenache, 49% Malbec
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
A very pale hue of pink in the glass, this is a dynamic and versatile rosé, fitting for beach days as well as to pair with opening courses of elegant dinners. Aromas of stonefruit, melon and blood orange peel lead from the nose into a tense palate where stonefruit and riverstone flavors are splashed with energetic citrus elements.
Editors' Choice
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
Paso Robles has made a name for itself as a source of supple, powerful, fruit-driven Central Coast wines. But with eleven smaller sub-AVAs, there is actually quite a bit of diversity to be found in this inland portion of California’s Central Coast.
Just east over the Santa Lucia Mountains from the chilly Pacific Ocean, lie the coolest in the region: Adelaida, Templeton Gap and (Paso Robles) Willow Creek Districts, as well as York Mountain AVA and Santa Margarita Ranch. These all experience more ocean fog, wind and precipitation compared to the rest of the Paso sub-appellations. The San Miguel, (Paso Robles) Estrella, (Paso Robles) Geneso, (Paso Robles) Highlands, El Pomar and Creston Districts, along with San Juan Creek, are the hotter, more western appellations of the greater Paso Robles AVA.
This is mostly red wine country, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel standing out as the star performers. Other popular varieties include Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Grenache and Rhône blends, both red and white. There is a fairly uniform tendency here towards wines that are unapologetically bold and opulently fruit-driven, albeit with a surprising amount of acidity thanks to the region’s chilly nighttime temperatures.