2018 Torrin Seneschal

I loved the 2018 Seneschal, a Grenache-heavy split of Grenache and Graciano from the 4 Hearts and G2 vineyards. Aged 22 months in one-third new barrels, this full-bodied, rich, textured beauty has loads of ripe black cherry fruits as well as textbook Grenache peppery garrigue, melted licorice, and spice aromas and flavors. It’s concentrated and ripe, with beautiful elegance and balance. Drink it over the coming decade. This report looks at the new releases from Viquel and Scott Hawley’s Torrin Wine, and this is another estate in Paso Robles that has recently completed construction on a new tasting room and winemaking facility. The 2018s reviewed here all show the fresher, more focused, and structured side of the vintage and I suspect will benefit from a handful of years of bottle age. Looking at the different cuvées of the estate, the Maven and the Seneschal are always the Grenache-heavy releases, with the Maven being 100% Grenache and the Seneschal being a split of Grenache and Graciano. The Banshee is a true GSM blend and close to equal parts Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre, all coming from the Willow Creek District. Moving to the Syrah-heavy releases in the lineup, the Le Devoir is mostly Syrah blended with a good chunk of Graciano, and their Akasha release is 100% Syrah. The Akasha has been all Paso Robles fruit in the past but since 2016 has included fruit from the Shadow Canyon Vineyard in the York Mountain AVA and the Bien Nacido Vineyard outside of Santa Maria. Lastly, the Tsundere always stands out in the lineup for being mostly Cabernet Sauvignon blended with smaller amounts of Syrah, Tannat, Grenache, and Petit Verdot. The estate also releases some terrific Pinot Noirs under their Lagom label, and while they weren’t submitted for this report, I’ve certainly loved them in the past.