2015 Villa Creek - Rhone Blend Central Coast Avenger (750ml)

Cris and JoAnn Cherry moved to Paso Robles in 1996 to open a restaurant and put down roots in wine country. Buying their first grapes in 2001 to pour at the restaurant, they soon built that hobby into Villa Creek Cellars, with Avenger as the wine that started it all. The winery, built in 2003, still produces only a few thousand cases a year.

Avenger is built around Syrah from G2 Vineyard, a steep, windswept, west-facing block of limestone soil just down the road from James Berry Vineyard in the Willow Creek District, where ocean fog keeps daytime temperatures in check. Mourvèdre from the Denner and Luna Matta vineyards adds a deeper base note, while a small amount of dry-farmed Petite Sirah from the Rolph vineyard rounds out the volume. The blend leans mostly Syrah, with smaller portions of Petite Sirah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre filling out the rest.

Freshly pressed blackberry meets tar and asphalt on the nose, joined by elderberry, sagebrush, and wild thyme. Firm, grippy tannins carry the fruit through a long finish with real concentration and purity. Pour it with wild boar ragù, grilled merguez sausage, or a hard sheep's milk cheese.