A tasting time in Central California

I'm in Central California. Based in between Paso Robles, Templeton and Atascadero.

It's rightly called central California, as this sign in Templeton shows - it's almost exactly half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Templeton was a quaint, stereotypical western town. Worth a drop in. Loved the Grain Store building. Built from planks stacked one on top of the other. We also got great Coffee and Cookies at a local coffee shop. Run by a man that just enjoyed talking. Made great Maple Syrup, Bacon & Tabasco cookies.

I have to admit, this is not an area I'd really heard of, but as I've already visited places like Monterey & Carmel - I was interested in getting a little further south of San Francisco,

This area is still the rolling hills & cattle that you see around Modesto - but now you find grapes. There also seems to be a thriving brewery industry here.

We started our adventure in Tin City http://www.tincitypaso.com/

This is on the outskirts of Paso Robles. Wineries as well as Brewhouses have their distribution & tasting centers here. So a good place to try a variety of wines.

Like a lot of places now - all the tastings had a cover charge - about $15 seemed the norm for about 6 tastings. As well as any 'Revisit' you may want. Good word 'Revisit' - here it means 'Try a taste again' or maybe - get the most form your $15!

Field Recordings https://fieldrecordingswine.com/ was a chic place - like most of their offerings. Unusual for me, but actually seemed a trend here in Central Cal was the the Rose that they put on skins for only a few hours - so really no pink hue at all. Our Designated

Driver liked the Foeder, a rich plum and blackberry wine, with a dark chocolate finish. It wasn't the flavor that appealed to her, but the label made out of a wafer thin leaf of wood.

Although lots of Winery outlets, we tried ONX wine as well, but were less impressed. https://www.onxwine.com/ there were very few food or dehli places - a real missing element of Tin City. We stopped in at Tin City Cider https://www.tincitycider.com/ and tasted some of the varieties they have. The Original was the best, but their Parrot Head with a Pineapple edge was refreshing & less chemically than I'd feared. The Okie Pie which was Cider fermented with a Beer Wort didn't work for me. Too in between with no clear identity.

We stopped to try some of the ale at the Barrelhouse Brewing Co. https://www.barrelhousebrewing.com/

A big range of beers. Maybe too big, but something on tap to appeal to all palletes and strengths. Started with a Wee Heavy - a mahogany colored Scotch Ale. Really creamy and sweet caramel with roast coffee and spice flavours. Great, but at 9% ABV, not one to drink much of !

It was great that while at the bar you were surrounded by all the brewing equipment, such as the malt grain ready to be used, or the stainless steel fermenters.

Now - anyone who drinks beer in California & probably around the world should have heard of Firestone Walker. https://www.firestonebeer.com/

Well, they are based in Paso Robles. A Brewery owned by brother in laws. On a British Ex-Pat (the Lion on the Logo) & one a Californian (the Bear).

As we went past the Brewery, the sweet, sticky smell of the Malt took me back to my childhood. A mix of local breweries and making homebrew with my dad.

Inside and it's back to tasting. Think our Designated Driver was getting a bit board though. No scenery here, but the bottling plant! Recommendations away from the standard IPA's - well the Pivo Pilsner was crisp and refreshing. Hoppy Poppy was refreshing, but maybe a little too bitter - does that describe anyone you know?

After all this drink - any food ? Well, we did end up on the Central California coast - at Cayucos. Here the sea food is a must. Paired with a Paso Robles Sauvignon Blanc. Something like the local Oysters.

Of course - you can't not try a local Clam Chowder - served in a Sour Dough bread bowl.

#Foodie #Travel