Alma Sol Winery
Get the Dirt from winemaker John Shaw
“Where else can you go ANYWHERE in the world where you can walk in and find the owner or winemaker at the winery? Paso has some of the best wine in the world and some of the most talented wine folks in the world and they are still out in the fields, working in the tasting room and out and about around town accessible to everyone.”
Alma Sol Winery is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of John Shaw and Lisa Cuevas Shaw. It all began in 2002, during weekend trips to Lisa’s family’s vineyard in Paso Robles. John and Lisa visited local wineries and soon adopted wine-tasting as a serious hobby. In Paso, they found the winemakers and winery owners highly accessible and approachable – so much so, that they came to know the area and the industry extremely well in little time. It started with learning about vineyard practices, the kinds of varietals that grow well in the area, and then gradually extended into learning about the entire winemaking operation.While Paso is well-known for its Zinfandel and award-winning Rhone varietals, they decided that they wanted to make the best Cabernet they could by using Paso fruit, to prove that a great Bordeaux could be realized in the central valley. They released their first vintage in early 2012 – a 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon. Their inaugural 2009 releases received numerous accolades, including 90pts in Wine Enthusiast, a Silver medal in the 2012 Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits competition, and a Silver medal in the 2012 Monterey County Wine Competition, among other awards.
1. What was your first vintage year? 2009
2. How many cases do you make per vintage? Approximately 300. Typically we try to produce three separate bottlings.
3. Do you have a Tasting Room? Yes. 1321 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, CA 91362. USA. We are open Fridays 6-9pm, Saturdays 1-6pm and Sundays 2-5pm.
4. If not you, who is your winemaker? We take responsibility for the wine direction and overall wine program, but rely on quality advice from great talented winemakers around us.
5. How did you get your start in the winemaking business? Our family are growers in Paso Robles. We decided to take it to the next step to carry out the vision of producing great wine from the family vineyard. From there, we just kept finding other interesting opportunities and people that inspired us in Paso. We really just wanted to make the best Cabernet possible from the family vineyard and Paso Robles.
6. What wine made you want to become a winemaker/start your own winery? From Paso Robles, Cabernet’s from Chateau Margene, L’Adventure, Anglim, or Zinfandel from Zin Alley, just to name a few. In general, California Cabernet’s from Napa Valley, specifically, Rutherford and Oakville wines. Anything produced off of The Morisolli in Napa. All good wine that we have had has inspired us and continues to do so.
7. What varietals do you work with? We primarily focus on Cabernet and Bordeaux varietals. We love all varietals equally though, so if we find great fruit or a vineyard that we love, we will do a small lot of that wine (for the “special wine of the year.” It is just so hard to say “no” to something good.
8. What vineyards do you source from? Why? Primarily the Cuevas Vineyard (the family vineyard) and Halter Ranch. The family vineyard produces such amazing and unique Cabernet. Halter Ranch, besides being beautiful, produces some amazing fruit with unique characteristics.
9. What type of oak treatment do you use? Primarily French. Primarily from two coopers, Seguin Moreau and Ana Selection. We will also throw in some American oak from A&K Cooperage. We have applied different levels of oak to each vintage but have been pleased with the combination thus far.
10. What do you love about your winemaking region? What makes it different special? Everything! Access. Access to the people that make up the great Paso Robles appellation. Where else can you go ANYWHERE in the world where you can walk in and find the owner or winemaker at the winery? Paso has some of the best wine in the world and some of the most talented wine folks in the world and they are still out in the fields, working in the tasting room and out and about around town accessible to everyone. This is not a pretentious place. Besides for that, the different climates and soils and the variety of amazing fruit available in the AVA. The town is beautiful, the restaurants are world class, and the people of Paso Robles are among the best in the world. Why go anywhere else?
11. What's the story behind your name/label? “Alma” means “Soul” and “Sol” means “Sun.” We felt that everything in life needed these two elements to exist. Vines and fruit have to have sun to thrive and each vine and grape have a soul, which makes them unique. We both love being outdoors. John is originally from Hawaii. We wanted to find something that represented who we are. We finally came up with the name on a trip to Mendoza, Argentina. It was very important that we found a logo that symbolized the name. We found an image of an ancient sun cross and adapted it what you see today.
12. What's the one thing you wish someone had told you about the wine business before you started your own winery? That [drinking] beer really does make the best wine. Really, to be honest, everyone was brutally honest with us beforehand about the business and the challenges-we came in with eyes wide open. Certainly, sales and marketing are instrumental and that was probably understated. Wine does not sell itself and $5 and a catchy label talk more to a pocketbook than a story about how much expensive wood from a French forest you use and the unique terroir from your 50 year old, head-pruned, dry-farmed vineyard.
13. We're curious…do you even get tired of drinking your own wine? Is it considered bad form to dip into your inventory? Everything is good in moderation. We started this saying that if we can’t sell it we have to drink it so make wine that we love ‘cause we might be drinking it for a LONG time.
14. Do you still have a day job? YES! Lisa and I both work for a scholarly academic publisher in Southern California. Someone has to pay for the winery!!For more information about ALMA SOL and their wines, please visit their WEBSITE or follow them on FACEBOOK and TWITTER.