Winemaker Notes
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.
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.
The largest and perhaps most varied of California’s wine-growing regions, the Central Coast produces a good majority of the state's wine. This vast California wine district stretches from San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara along the coast, and reaches inland nearly all the way to the Central Valley.
Encompassing an extremely diverse array of climates, soil types and wine styles, it contains many smaller sub-AVAs, including San Francisco Bay, Monterey, the Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley.
While the Central Coast California wine region could probably support almost any major grape varietiy, it is famous for a few Central Coast reds and whites. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are among the major ones. The Central Coast is home to many of the state's small, artisanal wineries crafting unique, high-quality wines, as well as larger producers also making exceptional wines.