Winemaker Notes
Deep purple ruby core with black secondary color, and a plum rim with slow forming, moderately stained tears. Aromatic and complex with black cherry, blackberry and currant fruit mixed with sweet spice, dusty leather, smoke and cracked pepper. Full bodied, with ripe black cherry and blackberry jam fruit mixed with vanilla and cinnamon barrel spice on the entry and pleasant slightly rustic elements of smoky leather, dried herbs, black pepper, and sustained dusty fruit on the midpalate. The finish is long and fresh with lingering fruit mixed with complex sweet spice and oak and savory elements mixed with chewy tannins that focus the wine’s many flavors and textures nicely. This is a bold wine displaying uncommon table manners with the Cabernet giving elegance to the Syrah, making it a wide ranging pairing wine for most bold flavored foods. Whether you try it with BBQ beef ribs Texas style, or a Ratatouille, you’ll see that the 2015 SAVANT makes the best of a wide range of situations.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
The nose on this blend of 80% Syrah and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon starts with boysenberry, caramel, cocoa and fresh purple-flower aromas. The palate is framed by lush tannins, carrying a black cherry flavor that leads into a coffee and crème brûlée finish.
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.
With hundreds of red grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended red wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged resulting in a wide variety of red wine styles. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a red wine blend variety that creates a fruity and full-bodied wine would do well combined with one that is naturally high in acidity and tannins. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
How to Serve Red Wine
A common piece of advice is to serve red wine at “room temperature,” but this suggestion is imprecise. After all, room temperature in January is likely to be quite different than in August, even considering the possible effect of central heating and air conditioning systems. The proper temperature to aim for is 55° F to 60° F for lighter-bodied reds and 60° F to 65° F for fuller-bodied wines.
How Long Does Red Wine Last?
Once opened and re-corked, a bottle stored in a cool, dark environment (like your fridge) will stay fresh and nicely drinkable for a day or two. There are products available that can extend that period by a couple of days. As for unopened bottles, optimal storage means keeping them on their sides in a moderately humid environment at about 57° F. Red wines stored in this manner will stay good – and possibly improve – for anywhere from one year to multiple decades. Assessing how long to hold on to a bottle is a complicated science. If you are planning long-term storage of your reds, seek the advice of a wine professional.
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.