Paso Robles winery visits

Paso Robles, on California’s Central Coast, sits on US Highway 101 about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Its wineries are spread over the hills around the town, and Paso Robles winery visits cost less than in Napa. At the four compared here, the entry tasting costs nothing to 30 dollars per adult.

A free tasting with a cave tour

Eberle Winery, on Highway 46 East, is the standout for value. Its seated Vineyard Deck Tasting of five wines is complimentary, and the same booking can include a guided tour of the 16,000 square feet of underground caves beneath the tasting room, for 90 minutes in all, still at no charge. Groups are one to eight guests, and the reservation must count everyone who needs a chair, children and non-drinkers included. Free does not mean walk-in: the tasting is booked through the winery’s reservation page.

Tastings on the west side

West of town, three wineries sit in the hills along Adelaida Road and Vineyard Drive.

• Tablas Creek Vineyard, at 9339 Adelaida Road, charges 25 dollars for a general tasting, indoors or outdoors. The winery is known for Rhône grape varieties.
• Adelaida Vineyards & Winery also charges 25 dollars for its tasting experience, available every day from 10 am to 3 pm, on a property with an organic walnut ranch, wildlands and estate vineyards.
• Opolo Vineyards, at 7110 Vineyard Drive, pours its Indoor Classic Flight for 30 dollars, or a Reserve Flight for 50 dollars, in 60 minutes, for groups of one to eight, aged 21 and over.

At Tablas Creek and Adelaida, the tasting fee is waived when you buy two bottles, and club members taste free. If you plan to take wine home, the tasting can end up costing nothing.

The table below lists each winery’s offers.

Planning a day

A realistic day is three wineries: Eberle on the east side first, then two of the west-side wineries, since they are close to each other. Allow an hour and a half at Eberle if you take the cave tour, and about an hour at the others (Opolo’s flight lasts 60 minutes). Highway 46 crosses the region east to west, and the town centre lies between the two sides, handy for lunch.

The wineries are spread out: drive, with someone who skips the tastings, or hire a driver. The legal drinking age in the United States is 21.

Budget for Paso Robles winery visits

Eberle plus Tablas Creek and Adelaida comes to 50 dollars per adult in tasting fees, or less if you buy bottles. Swap one of them for Opolo’s classic flight and the total is 55 dollars.

When to go

Harvest in California runs from late summer into autumn, the liveliest season in wine country.

Where to stay

The town of Paso Robles has hotels and restaurants within reach of both sides of the wine country. Paso Robles also has a railway station on the coastal line between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, though you will still need a car or a driver for the wineries.

Also in this guide

Halter Ranch, another Paso Robles estate, runs a tasting room in Temecula, in Southern California’s wine country.