Alta Colina winery in Paso Robles on Adelaida Road
Alta Colina winery
New since our last visit to Paso Robles in 2014 is the Alta Colina winery on the scenic wine country backroad of Adelaida Road. We had a very pleasant mid afternoon at Alta Colina winery enjoying a picnic lunch and sipping a delightful Rhone red blend. The new tin structure, which you can see from the photo, opened at the beginning of this year. The winery is owned by the Tillman Family. Bob Tillman found this property in 2003 and began his quest for making the finest Rhone-style wines in Paso Robles. The vines are high above Adelaida Road on a hillside, thus the name of the winery Alta Colina (high hill). The winery was completely sold out of all the white wines, so we had no chance to taste or review those wines. Obviously, they must be popular. In just a few days they will begin to bottle the 2014 vintage of the white wines. We were able to taste the red wines, and we can aptly review them as big, bold and beautiful. We tasted the four red wines produced at Alta Colina, the GSM, Toasted Slope Syrah, the Old 900 Syrah and the Petite Sirah. They were all 2011 vintage, and alcohol levels edged over the 15% mark. The wines rest in French Oak barrels in 60-gallon and 120-gallon sizes. We must say in tasting the wines, neither the high alcohol nor the heavy presence of oak was detected. The wines are rich in aroma and character, with a generous rounded mouth feel. The GSM, no doubt, was our favorite wine. The red wines we tasted ranged in price from $45 to $55. The winery has two Tesla Electric Vehicle charging stations, but plans to remake one of those into a standard EV charging station. One of the best ideas in the Paso Robles wine zoning laws is to allow wineries to offer wines by the glass. Alta Colina does just that. Their picnic area is very comfortable and the views across the way are of the beautiful hillside vineyards of the Denner Winery. Currently, the Alta Colina winery is opened Thursday to Monday, from 11am to 4pm.