Winemaker Notes
Dark ruby/purple core, lighter in color toward the rim. Moderate plus viscosity with slow forming, slightly stained tears. Highly aromatic with ripe black cherry and cassis fruit, vanilla and cinnamon spice with cedar, graphite, dried autumn leaf and licorice notes over an attractive toasted oak background. Dry, full-bodied with ripe, complex black fruit of cherry and blackcurrants layered with baking spice on the entry. The mid palate has continuing ripe fruit with savory dried leaf elements, cedar, anise, camphor and a bit of cocoa surrounded with firm, chewy tannins and sweet spice notes that add complexity as the palate evolves. Sustained fruit, spice, and savory elements mix through a very long, complex and fresh finish with lingering tannins. The 2016 ISOSCELES is full-bodied, complex and balanced and pairs well with rich, full-flavored dishes. If you can, try cellaring some of your 2016 ISOSCELES to better experience the added complexity and finesse that only time can bring to this exceptional wine.
Try the 2016 ISOSCELES right now with rich, full-flavored dishes like braised beef short ribs over polenta as easily as it does with a classic New York steak simply seasoned with salt and pepper and grilled over an open fire.
Blend: 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, 7% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Soft aromas of black cherry and smoked meat gain complexity thanks to hints of olive, tar and thyme in this Cabernet Sauvignon, which includes 8% Cabernet Franc and 7% Merlot. It boasts chiseled but firm tannins and a blackberry jam flavor that entices on the palate, while thyme, cracked pepper and soy tones ride out the close.
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Tasting Panel
Juicy and ripe, with plum and blackberry appearing on a smooth texture with fine structure. Balanced and rich, elegant and tangy. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Merlot.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Isosceles is a Left Bank-styled blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and 7% Merlot, aged 21 months in 100% new French oak. Medium to deep ruby, it has a nose of dark fruits with touches of cassis, cedar, tobacco and aniseed. The full-bodied palate is firm, grainy and mineral-laced with a long finish. It's approachable now but will age well over the next 3-5 years in bottle.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
85% Cabernet Sauvignon; 8% Cabernet Franc; 7% Merlot. Big, bold and insistently rich, yet not at all overdone or owing overly to exorbitant ripeness, Justin’s 2016 Isoceles is a deep and wellstuffed, very complete wine that displays a nice sense of layering and plenty of continuous dark fruit that stays in advance of its moderate tannins. Already showing a bit of palatal polish that makes for fairly attractive drinking right now, it has room to grow all the same, and those who favor complexity over obvious fruit might want to wait for another three or four years before bringing it out of the cellar.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: Paso Robles is well known for its ultra-rich, blended red wines. The 2016 Justin Isosceles is that and more. TASTING NOTES: This wine shows a load of ripe fruit and a generous palate. Its aromas and flavors of black fruit and oak should stand up with any red meat dish no matter how rich it is. (Tasted: May 23, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
The pioneer of Paso Robles, JUSTIN Vineyards & Winery was founded in 1981 by Justin Baldwin and is known for crafting world-class wines using Bordeaux grape varieties. Once the grapes are harvested, JUSTIN Winemaker Scott Shirley and his team sort, select, age, taste, blend, and decide what goes into every bottle. JUSTIN consistently receives top honors around the world, establishing itself as a leader in new-world Bordeaux-style winemaking. JUSTIN's Vineyard Estate features a Tasting Room, luxury five-star accommodations at the JUST INN, and a MICHELIN-starred Restaurant-making it one of the only wineries on the Central Coast to offer all three amenities. JUSTIN also has a downtown Paso Robles tasting room where guests can enjoy their wines. Visit to discover what makes JUSTIN Vineyards & Winery so exceptional.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
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.