Halfway between LA and San Francisco on California’s Central Coast, Paso Robles is gaining attention with its world-beating wines, increasingly chic downtown and locally focused restaurant scene, all served with a helping of laid-back cowboy cool.
Chances are you’ve either never been to Paso Robles or it’s one of your all-time favourite places. This Californian city is the kind of destination people come back to or long to come back to – a loudly whispered secret among those who know about it.
There are around 300 wineries, striping valleys among humps of blonde, velvety hills that are studded with centuries-old oak trees. The latter, some etched with the marks of 18th-century Franciscan missionaries and Spanish conquistadors, who mapped their journeys through the state, gave the region its name (from the Spanish for The Pass of the Oaks). Those missionaries also introduced wine grapes to the area.
The destination has pottered quite happily under the radar for years, a little overshadowed by California’s better-known wine regions like Napa, Sonoma and Santa Barbara’s Santa Ynez Valley. But that’s changing, partly due to wines regularly winning global accolades and partly because of Bruce Munro’s Field of Light exhibition. The English-Australian artist’s display of tulip-like fibre optic spheres illuminated 15 acres of oak-dotted hills from May 2019 to January 2020 and the site – Sensorio – will be here permanently, with further exhibits and even a hotel planned in future.
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Here are some of the best things to in Paso, from vineyard horseback rides to natural hot springs – wine optional and pretty much always available.
1. Go horseback riding through a vineyard
Vines are as pretty to look at as the wine they yield is delicious to sip, and one of the loveliest ways to view them is on horseback. Family-run Central Coast Trailrides offers guided daytime and sunset rides around several wineries including Cass. Here, after being matched with a horse in a tucked-away corner of the vineyards, tours start with a walk through the Cabernet vines before dipping down into the soft, sandy bed of a (usually) dried-up creek.
Duck under the branches of broad oak trees before heading into the hills for views that sweep across the winery to vine-striped slopes, olive groves and hilltop villas. It’s a nice way to get a sense of the landscape and to earn the included wine flight, served in the tasting room after you dismount.
2. Browse downtown boutiques
Downtown Paso, whose red-brick and Renaissance-Revival buildings are arranged on around the grassy City Park, looks rather quaint – the kind of place you might potter around for an hour or so. Get closer, though, and you’ll realise you need a little more time and possibly a bigger suitcase.
Sample crumbly, slightly salty biscuits at Brown Butter Cookie Company, stock up on pretty stuff you don’t need (but really want) at General Store and prepare to get lost among vintage glassware and globes in Reminisce Antiques Etc. You can even watch Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory among a fantasyland of old-school sweets at Powell’s, where the 1971 movie plays on a loop.
Because this is Paso, there are more than a dozen tasting rooms here too. Try stylish JUSTIN, where Bordeaux varietals can be paired with chocolate, cheese or charcuterie, or Copia, which pours Rhône-style wines in an industrial-chic space.
Save space and time for dinner at Fish Gaucho, known for margaritas made with seasonal, fresh juices, and subtly spiced tacos, grilled meats and seafood, playing upon the region’s Mexican and ranching heritage.
3. Soak in natural hot springs
Paso Robles’ thermal springs and mud baths have drawn travellers for centuries. The Salinan people, who have occupied the area for millennia, referred to the area as Springs, and Franciscan priests from nearby Mission San Miguel constructed mineral baths in the 18th century.
Now, there are far fewer places to soak in the mineral-rich springs, though you can still take the waters at River Oaks Hot Springs. Choose from one of the individual outdoor tubs, which jut on a hillside above a neighbouring vineyard, or a partially-covered spa in the main building. And, of course, you can order sparkling wine to sip while you soak.
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4. Hang out on an industrial estate
It doesn’t look like much at first. In fact, you could easily drive by and never know it was there. But Tin City, a sort of micro-district where everything is about drink or food (or both), is one of the hippest places to go wine tasting.
Just off busy Highway 101, this industrial area – still home to pool manufacturers and car repair shops – has become a hub for small-production, 'garagiste' winemakers, with around 20 tasting rooms in corrugated tin sheds alongside distilleries and restaurants.
The choice is overwhelming, but some of the most interesting wineries include Monochrome, which only produces white wines, and Desparada, an all-female operation making bold, delicately complex reds.
Line your belly with pizza or pasta at Tin Canteen, followed by sheep milk ice-cream from Negranti Creamery for dessert. And, for a break from wine, slug an intensely refreshing sour beer or citrussy IPA in the garden at BarrelHouse Brewing Co. – a pioneer when it opened here in 2012.
Best of all, you can stroll between tastings as everything is contained within a few blocks. Just make sure someone else is driving.
5. Catch some free live music
Head to pretty much any of Paso’s wineries and you’ll be greeted by warm smiles and very generous pours. Sometimes, it’ll even be the winemaker or owner topping up your glass. Many of them also encourage you to purchase a glass or a bottle and stay a while for a picnic, often with a soundtrack of live music.
Several wineries have regular free concerts in their grounds in summer and on festival weekends like harvest. Try Sculpterra, whose manicured gardens are dotted with art, and Still Waters, where musicians serenade picnickers under centuries-old olive trees.
From June to August, Concerts in the Park takes over Downtown City Park with entry-free gigs performed on the pagoda. It’s a real community event: people bring wine picnics, chairs, blankets and (for the truly committed) blow-up sofas.
6. Sleep in a wine-centric hotel
Opened in October 2019, The Piccolo has brought new levels of chic – and excitement – to Downtown Paso. It’s attached to the 19th-century Paso Robles Inn, where Theodore Roosevelt and Clark Gable have stayed, and pays homage to its sister property with exposed brick detail in each of the enormous rooms, designed to mimic the detail of the Inn’s Grand Ballroom.
It’s one of the many ways the boutique hotel blends classic details with modern luxury, rooted firmly in a Paso state of mind – lightly, luxuriously chilled, with a glass of wine in hand. Rooms have wooden furniture, chandeliers and leatherwork crafted by local artisans, with champagne pink throws and cushions printed with the names of grape varieties.
The Piccolo/Facebook
Other touches are decidedly contemporary. Like the in-room wine fridges, for example, and the champagne vending machine in the lobby, dispensing mini bottles of Moët (guests are given a token). And Tetto, the first rooftop bar in Downtown, with sofas, fire pits, an impeccable drinks list and wine country views that seem to roll on forever.
Getting there
Paso Robles is around a four-hour drive, or one-hour flight, from LAX or San Francisco. You can also arrive via train on Amtrak’s Coast Starlight route, which goes from Seattle, Washington to LA.