Two Grapes, Two Stories: Carignan and Grenache in Paso Robles

Carignan’s roots trace back to Spain, where it was known as Car­iñe­na, and lat­er to South­ern France, where it became a blend­ing sta­ple. Once abun­dant in California’s ear­ly vine­yards, Carig­nan was often over­looked in favor of more com­mer­cial­ly dri­ven grapes. But in recent years, wine­mak­ers have redis­cov­ered its charm: bright acid­i­ty, red-fruit­ed ener­gy, and herbal complexity.

In Paso Rob­les, Carig­nan thrives. The region’s long grow­ing sea­son gives the grape ample time to ripen while main­tain­ing its sig­na­ture fresh­ness. Warm days build lay­ers of black­ber­ry, fig, and cher­ry, while cool nights pre­serve its back­bone of acid­i­ty — a bal­ance that makes Carig­nan one of the most food-friend­ly grapes you’ll encounter.

Car­nala ​’23: Struc­tured, Earthy, Alive

Our Car­nala ​’23 cel­e­brates Carignan’s best attrib­ut­es. With Carig­nan lead­ing the blend, Mourvè­dre deep­en­ing the earth tones, Syrah adding rich­ness, and Grenache offer­ing a hint of lift, this wine is as com­plex as it is approach­able. Expect notes of red cher­ry, blue­ber­ry, dried herbs, choco­late, fig, and orange rind. Tan­nins are present but gen­tle, cre­at­ing struc­ture with­out heav­i­ness, while the fin­ish lingers with a savory whis­per of herbs.

Car­nala doesn’t need a spe­cial occa­sion — it cre­ates one. This is the kind of red you can open on a week­night with roast­ed veg­eta­bles or linger over on a Sat­ur­day with braised meats.

Per­fect Paso Pair­ings for Car­nala ​’23

• Slow-Braised Short Ribs or Lamb Shanks — the wine’s acid­i­ty cuts through rich­ness. Find your meat local­ly at Sin­ton & Sons in Paso Robles.
• Mush­room Risot­to — smoky veg­eta­bles high­light Carignan’s herbal tones; shop sea­son­al pro­duce at the AG, Mor­ro Bay or SLO farm­ers markets
• Aged Cheeses — Manchego or tangy goat cheese brings out the wine’s fig­gy depth. Look for selec­tions from Cen­tral Coast Cream­ery in Tem­ple­ton and Paso Robles

Behind both wines is the Thibido phi­los­o­phy: wine root­ed in stew­ard­ship, curios­i­ty, and com­mu­ni­ty. Our vine­yard is cer­ti­fied organ­ic (CCOF) and farmed with regen­er­a­tive prac­tices that hon­or the land. ​“Waste has no place” is more than a mot­to — it’s a com­mit­ment to sus­tain­able farm­ing and thought­ful pack­ag­ing choic­es that make a big impact on your sens­es, not on the planet.

Com­mu­ni­ty is woven into every­thing we do. From sup­port­ing 1% for the Plan­et to work­ing with MUST! Char­i­ties and At Her Table SLO, we believe a ris­ing tide lifts all boats. Fam­i­ly and lega­cy shape our sto­ry too — Thibido is named for our grand­par­ents, and we car­ry their phil­an­thropic spir­it forward.

In our new tast­ing space at Écluse Wines, you’ll find Thibido and Écluse wines poured side by side. It’s more than a tast­ing; it’s an invi­ta­tion to con­nect, learn, and share. Whether you’re join­ing us for a qui­et Thurs­day after­noon or a live­ly week­end vis­it, hos­pi­tal­i­ty with a sense of delight is always at the heart.

Con­clu­sion: Rais­ing a Glass to Paso

Paso Rob­les is a place where tra­di­tion and inno­va­tion walk hand in hand. Carig­nan and Grenache may not be the first grapes you think of when you hear Paso, but once you taste them, it’s impos­si­ble to for­get their charm.

Car­nala ​’23 and Future Cross­ings ​’23 are our way of cel­e­brat­ing these grapes — ground­ed in the land, shaped by the sea­son, and made to share around a table filled with good food and good company.

We invite you to explore them with us:

• Book a tast­ing at our new home with Écluse.
• Join our wine club for exclu­sive releas­es like The Only and mem­ber-only perks.
• Shop online to bring a taste of Paso Rob­les to your table.