Exploring California’s wilder side with Chloe Asseo of Paso Robles winery L’Aventure – Tuesday 23rd June

Frenchman Stephan Asseo studied winemaking in Burgundy before making wine in Bordeaux, where, over the course of 15 years at his Domaine de Courteillac, he gained a reputation as something of a maverick.

That reputation was borne out when, frustrated by the restrictions of France’s AOC regulations, he upped sticks and set about finding a new base where he would have more freedom to follow his instincts. The search took him from South Africa to Lebanon, Argentina to Napa, before he eventually fell for the climate of Paso Robles, in southern California.

There, in 1998, he and his wife Beatrice founded the appropriately named L’Aventure – ‘where French winemaking meets California terroir’. At the time, there were just 25 wineries in Paso Robles. Today there are more than 250.

The Asseos’ 25 hectares are planted to 10 Bordeaux and Rhône grape varieties, largely Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, but also the likes of Grenache, Rousanne and Mourvèdre. The result is a series of blends that would be unthinkable in Stephan’s native France, but in the case of wines such as the Syrah-Cabernet Sauvignon-Petit Verdot blend Optimus, flourish in this part of California.

Today, the property is run by Stephan and Beatrice’s daughter Chloe, who came on board in 2013, and has benefitted from investment from the family behind Champagne Thiénot to take the winery to the next level.

We invite you to join her to discover California’s wild side.

The wines we’ll be tasting:
2017 Cuvée Estate, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2017 Chloe, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2020 Optimus, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2021 Optimus, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2021 Cote à Cote, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2022 Cote à Cote, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2022 Cuvée Estate, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California
2022 Optimus, L’Aventure, Paso Robles, California

Tuesday 23rd June
St James’s Room
18:30 – Welcome reception
19:00 – Masterclass begins
20:30 – Masterclass ends

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