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United States

Paso Robles

16 000 ha under vine

Soils
Calcareous shale and clay-loam on rolling inland hills
Climate
Warm days, very cool nights — one of California's widest diurnal swings

On the map

Paso Robles — 16 000 haMendoza — 150 000 haCentral Valley — 120 000 haNingxia — 40 000 haMarlborough — 29 000 haColumbia Valley — 25 000 haSonoma County — 24 000 haNapa Valley — 18 000 haStellenbosch — 15 000 haWillamette Valley — 11 500 haBarossa Valley — 11 500 haMaipo Valley — 11 000 haSwartland — 10 000 haCanelones — 7 500 haMcLaren Vale — 7 000 haCasablanca Valley — 6 000 haMargaret River — 5 800 haNiagara Peninsula — 5 500 haClare Valley — 5 500 haCoonawarra — 5 700 haHawke's Bay — 5 000 haFinger Lakes — 4 000 haOkanagan Valley — 3 000 haHunter Valley — 2 500 haYarra Valley — 2 500 haTasmania — 2 000 haCentral Otago — 2 000 haConstantia — 450 haPaso RoblesMendozaCentral ValleyNingxiaMarlboroughColumbia ValleySonoma CountyNapa ValleyStellenboschWillamette ValleyBarossa ValleyMaipo ValleySwartlandCanelonesMcLaren ValeCasablanca ValleyMargaret RiverNiagara PeninsulaClare ValleyCoonawarraHawke's BayFinger LakesOkanagan ValleyHunter ValleyYarra ValleyTasmaniaCentral OtagoConstantia
Blob size ≈ vineyard area · approximate locations · coastlines from Natural Earth

On the warm inland hills of California's Central Coast, Paso Robles has grown from a sleepy Zinfandel outpost into one of the state's most dynamic regions. Big day-night temperature swings ripen powerful, generous reds while keeping freshness, and the limestone soils suit an unusually broad range of grapes.

Cabernet is its commercial backbone, but Paso made its name as a haven for Rhône varieties — Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and their white cousins — and for old-vine Zinfandel. Warm, experimental and fast-rising, it is the Central Coast's most exuberant wine country.

The vineyard

Indicative share of plantings

The wines

Paso Robles Red Red wine

Through time

Indicative presence index, 0–100Origins & Antiquity — 0The Monastic Middle Ages — 0Exploration & the Fortified Age — 0Classifications & the Golden Age — 5Phylloxera & the World Crises — 5The Modern & New World Era — 78Antiquity0500150017001875195078
Classifications & the Golden Age 1700 Phylloxera & the World Crises 1875 The Modern & New World Era 1950