All Rileyed Up

A mere 5-6 hour drive, depending on how many times you hear the phrase “I have to go pee!”, we arrived in Paso Robles a group of 5 adults and 4 kids under the age of 6. Our first stop was a restaurant where we scared away all the people sitting around us, knocked over two bottles of root beer, and made the tallest pile ever of trivial pursuit cards. After such an eventful meal, wineries were the clear choice for next stop.

Wild Coyote

Wild Coyote is run by Gianni Manucci and his family. The winery is situated at a high elevation, making for beautiful 360 degree views. The family embraces their Native American heritage with wines named like Black Elk (Merlot) and Dream Catcher (Late Harvest Syrah – tasty!) and they just opened up a sweat lodge for the daring spirit seekers.

The tasting room for Wild Coyote opens up to a beautiful fountain and seating area, where the kids romped around while the adults watched from the comfort of the tasting room. And for anyone wondering how the winery might feel about that, Gianni himself was manning the tasting bar and showed us pictures of his own three kids, and said they loved the fountain too.

Tolo Cellars

Tolo is another small winery, nestled in amongst walnut trees and a haven to deer and lizards. They have a grassy area in front of the tasty room, which is an old house with a red brick wall and an old fashioned white and chrome stove. Again, the kids were able to frolic outside while the adults watched from the comfort of the tasting room and amused themselves with the tasting notes. (From their 2004 Asini tasting notes: “Has the Good Humor man rolled through the ‘hood passing out little tabs of psychedelic flavor? Our minds are blown away. Lush on the palate, the wine has miles to go before it sleeps, with cherry liqueur, cinnamon and dried sage taking our senses on a magic carpet ride.”) The woman manning the tasting bar, Jennifer, was friendly and chatty, telling us about her own two kids and how she took her daughter and her friends to see High School Musical 3, leading me to confess that I enjoyed watching the trials and tribulations of Troy and Gabriella. Jennifer gave us tips on other wineries where kids can play. We hope to get to them today.