Winemaker Notes
Macerated cherries, strawberry reduction, sweet spice, spring flowers, plum tart, melted licorice, and fresh herbs. The palate has an exuberant, sweet approach, with a long, mineral-laced finish. Enjoy with: Smoked brisket with red wine reduction barbecue sauce.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A mix of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Graciano, and a few other varieties, the 2019 High On The Hog has lots of ripe plum, flowery incense, and pepper nuances as well as a medium to full-bodied style on the palate. It’s a pleasure-bent beauty to drink in its youth. Range: 89-91
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby-purple, the 2019 High on the Hog is scented of spicy blackberries, charcuterie, black plums and licorice. The medium-bodied palate is brighter and fresher than expected, with a long, spicy finish.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2019 McPrice Myers High on the Hog Red packs a load on the palate and stays long in the finish. TASTING NOTES: This wine excels with aromas and flavors of black fruit, anise, and oak. Try it with oven-baked short ribs. (Tasted: October 9, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
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Wine Spectator
Plush and easygoing, with jammy raspberry, licorice and spice flavors that linger on the plump finish. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Graciano, Petite Sirah and Viognier. Drink now.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
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.