2018 L'Aventure For Her
Estimated value
Buying options
Tasting notes
Opaque ruby. Expansive black/blue fruit preserve, cherry cola, exotic spice and floral scents show excellent clarity and pick up vanilla and pipe tobacco nuances with air. Finely detailed, spice-laced blueberry, cherry liqueur and fruitcake flavors are complemented by smoke and mineral notes and a touch of candied rose. Broad and velvety in texture, finishing with emphatic, floral-driven persistence and building tannins that lend closing grip. All of the fruit for this wine was co-fermented.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2018 For Her is a blend of 53% Syrah, 35% Graciano and 12% Viognier, all co-fermented and aged in 58% new French oak. Opaque ruby-purple, the nose explodes with cassis, coffee, violet and lilac perfume with touches of blueberry pie. The palate is full-bodied, super firm but surprisingly fresh and perfumed, with a haunting, floral finish and fantastic purity of fruit expression. 250 cases were made.
A blend of 53% Syrah, 35% Grenache, and the rest Viognier, the 2018 For Her sports a glass-staining purple color as well as rocking notes of ripe blackberries, currants, chocolate, crushed violets, and chalky minerality. Full-bodied, broad, and expansive on the palate, it still has a vibrant, pure, gorgeously balanced style as well as a finish that won't quit. Another incredible blend from this estate, it’s going to benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age and cruise for 10-15 years in cold cellars.
The 2018 For Her is more closed and dense than the Cuvée Chloe and offers lots of blue fruits, crushed rock-like minerality, and chocolaty herb aromas and flavors. Based on 53% Syrah, 35% Graciano, and 12% Viognier, it's rich and full-bodied, with a mouthfilling texture and a big finish. It's going to need 2-3 years of bottle age to show at its best and should evolve gracefully. I certainly blew the call on some of the Bordeaux blends from l’Aventure last year, and their Estate Cuvée and Côte a Côte are much better wines than my barrel reviews suggested.
About the producer
L’Aventure is one of the leading wine estates in Paso Robles, California. It was founded by Stephan Asseo and his wife Beatrice who left their native France in 1997 in search of a place to make wine without the restrictions of France’s appellation system.