Hidden Oak Winery

It took a little creative navigating to get there, but we finally found the home/winery of Mike and Martha James, owners of Hidden Oak Winery.

Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking.

The winery is located in Templeton which is just southeast of Paso Robles. Standing on the property and overlooking the rolling hills and fresh green landscape of the late March spring was an incredible experience.

Mike and Martha were perfect hosts to my little group as we started talking about what Hidden Oak was about, what his plans are for the future, and his love – no, passion – for beautiful wines.

Originally from upstate New York, they bought the property in 1998 from an almond farmer. Not surprisingly, it was covered with almond trees. They already knew that growing almonds was not their goal in life and decided to grow grapevines so that they could craft their own wines according to their preferences. It was a difficult decision, but the almond trees had to go. Surprisingly, in the middle of the acres and acres of almond trees stood a single oak, which was discovered by the workmen who were doing the clearing. Thus the name of the winery was born: Hidden Oak. With the last name of James (and they called their venture James Vineyards for a short period of time), they wanted to be sure to differentiate themselves from another famous Paso Robles name, Tobin James. No, they’re not related.

Mike and Martha originally grew and sold grapes to others, but realized that their unique microclimate of sun-warmed days, ocean-cooled evenings, and Linne Calodo soil (stratified calcareous and sandstone soils), offered them the opportunity to make their own mark on the wine world. In a nutshell, they wanted to be more than a single-vineyard designation on another winery’s label.

The soil itself is especially fascinating. One of my traveling companions has a background in geology and was particularly interested in the soil. More on that later.

We were privileged to be able to taste a few of the Hidden Oak wines - 2005 Encanto, a Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon blend (71/25), and 2005 Merlot Reserve Series. He has his first Sauvignon Blanc in the bottle and resting, and we were able to taste some of his barrel selection wines. The barrel samples were a 2006 Cabernet, 2006 Encanto, and 2006 Merlot. All very young, very fruit forward, and with great promise. I can’t wait to try the ’06 Encanto if its fragrance is any indication of what will be.

We tasted the wines and I was completely blown away by the quality. I’m not a Merlot person, but the Merlot instantly became my favorite. The bouquet was “dab behind the ears” heady and fragrant, and despite its relatively low alcohol content, was viscous on the glass. Rich and lush on the tongue, it sang of berries, chocolate, and spice. My unabashed favorite!

The Encanto had the qualities of the Merlot, but with a bit of added plum, cigar box, and espresso. Delicious and very, very drinkable.

A walk out to the vineyards found us examining the soil. The bits of limestone, sandstone, and, (according to our geology person) flint, revealed why the wines have such complexity and structure. And, incredibly, we discovered the heady scent of the Merlot in the soil of the Merlot vineyard. Amazing.

For those of you who are Cellar Tracker fans, (http://www.cellartracker.com ) Hidden Oak Winery wines are great favorites of the wine drinkers there.

Hidden Oak doesn’t have a tasting room yet – you can see some barrels in the area where the future tasting room will be in the slideshow – but their wines are available through the wine club. Be sure to check out their website and to drop them a note letting them know that you read about them here.

http://www.hiddenoakwinery.com

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more articles on the Paso Robles wineries I have visited. Meanwhile, keep sippin’!