Featured Winery, Spring 2008
Paras Vineyard
Paras Vineyard Syrah
Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2005 ($42)
Paras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2005 ($67)
Paras Vineyard Viognier
Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2006 ($38)
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The picture above is, naturally, the Paras Vineyard, cresting the top of Mount Veeder. Bike riders know its location best...reach Paras Vineyard and you're at the peak. "Spectacular," hyperbolic as it is, best describes the view up here. The wines reach hyperbolic levels too. 
Jim Paras, San Francisco labor lawyer half the time and winegrower the other half, bought this sweet piece of land in 1991. Neglected at the time, Mr. Paras and Winemaker Doug Danielak resurrected this vineyard and produced their first wine in 1994 (a Jade Mountain Syrah...this label has since been sold). The Paras Vineyard label debuted in 1999 with a most delicious Cabernet Sauvignon. Since then, nothing has stopped them except a warehouse fire that wiped out big chunks of their 2002, 2003 and 2004 vintages. This bump in the road is now in the rear-view mirror, and we can all enjoy these delicious 2005 and 2006 wines.
There are eeh-eeh Mt. Veeder wines, where green pepper and bay leaf play key roles in the flavor profile (sun-sheltered vines) and there are amazing Mt. Veeder wines, like Paras, where long days of sun bring on ripe, heady, palate-grabbing flavors. These wines are not shy. They are rich, powerful, supple and opulent. Their big flavors are California-made through & through. My notes on three of their wines are below. All are for sale right now at Back Room Wines.
Make your own case or half case:
10% off a case of Paras wine, mixed or the same.
5% off a half case of Paras wine, mixed or the same.
Paras Vineyard Syrah, Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2005 ($42)
I really really like this wine. Big and broad with flavors of chocolate-covered cherries, smoked beef roast, black olives, blueberry jam and toasted egg pastry. Dry and decadent, this super-extracted Syrah is an attention grabber, and in this instance you want to be grabbed. Paras and Danielak have planted many grapes on this vineyard (Nebbiolo, Merlot and Grenache as well...the Grenache by the way is the best made in California I feel) and all of them shine. That written, Syrah, the king of the Rhone grapes, lays greatest claim to this majestic, sloping vineyard.
Paras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2005 ($67)
Sweet, spicy, extravagant barrel sets the tone for this mighty Cabernet. Waves of anise, mexican chocolate and vanilla bean hits the nose. Bold, sweet mulberry, black & blueberry, black cherry and cinnamon toast flavors meld together into one grand sphere of flavor in the mouth. Robust and chewy, yet not drying, and slam-packed full of flavor, this is a slam-dunk Cab recommendation.
Paras Vineyard Viognier,
Mount Veeder, Napa Valley
2006 ($38)
Interesting I finish with this Viognier. It's a serious mouthful of nectarific pleasure. Must note that it's rather sweet thusly not for everybody. Taste orange marmalade, lemon curd, honeysuckle and pineapple. I truly would serve it at the nut and cheese part of the dinner. Very well made, sensory-enveloping, liquid gold, curvy like 19th century beauty, look at this as a dessert wine and you can see what a great value we have here. If you love wine enough to be reading this far down the page, I think you'll know how to serve and appreciate it.