Kukkula Winery

Went here yesterday on our last stop of the day and ended up joining their wine club. Best wines of the day in my opinion. Every wine we tasted was stellar and I can’t wait to open all the bottles we purchased!

It was ok but with plenty of other wineries to choose from in the area we probably won’t go back. The tasting room is a little sterile or cold — can’t quite put my finger on it. For being located on such a beautiful hill, that beauty just doesn’t make its way into the tasting room. There is a little counter where you can order a sandwich and maybe that combined with the small size of the room makes it feel like you’re sitting in a deli not a tasting room? We enjoyed a few of their wines though and did purchase one to get our tasting fee waived — no complaints on the wines.

Most wine tastings usually results in one, maybe two, winners and the rest in the meh category. Kukkula’s wines are all excellent, and highly regarded. And what other winery might you find the owner pouring and describing each wine?
Great little winery, a must add to your tour of wine country.
Get on their wine club for great discounts and access to their hard to find bottles.

We discovered this winery on the way to another winery and we were so happy that we stopped here. We met Kevin, the winemaker/​owner and his wife. Their entire flight was amazing. We loved their wines so much that we joined their wine club on the spot. Look forward to many years of drinking their incredible red blends.

Stopped here on a whim based seeing this beautiful stunning piece of architecture of a home on the top of a hill while wandering the wine country of Paso Robles. Came around the corner to discover a winery if similar beautiful design… and as they say the rest is history. Loved loved loved every wine So much we joined the wine club. Kevin and his wife were awesome. Can’t wait to come back

Brochure said they hear that people say they like every wine they tasted there. It couldn’t be more true! If you love blends and wines with great flavor, this is the place for you! The wine maker and his wife are lovely people as well! A wonderful experience!

I have found my favorite winery. (Thanks to Wine Folly that recommended this winery for their specialization in Rhone blends!)
To qualify, it had to satisfy all these requirements:
— Not snooty (This is really key!)
— Friendly and inviting (The guy working the day I went was really laid back, casual, and cool to talk to.)
— Knowledgeable and willing to share knowledge in a non-​conceited way (Again, the guy there was super helpful and shared all sorts of interesting tidbits about the wine, the property, and the Finnish influence on the winery/​wines.)
— ALL the wines on the tasting menu have to be at least «pretty good» to «this is amazing!» (This was the real kicker… so far Kukkula is the first and only to pass this requirement!)
Seriously, all their wines are fantastic. I had such a hard time discerning between which ones I liked best because they were all so good. I have been to roughly 40 – 60 wineries in Sonoma, Healdsburg, and Paso Robles combined, and I didn’t think that day would ever come. It was the first time I had ever asked about the wine club at a winery because I liked everything they made (even the white blend!). Sadly the wine club is slightly out of range since their wines in general average in the $ 35 – 40 per bottle range, so we left with only one bottle of the «In The Red» (as opposed to the 6 bottles of a red we bought at Caparone, also another nearby great winery). If they could afford to lower their wine cost a little more, I’d be all over multiple shipments a year. Le sigh. I will be thinking of you, Kukkula, until I can afford to join your wine club.

Had a good lunch and excellent wine tasting experience at this vineyard. Learned a lot from the owner and appreciate his approach and style to grape growing and wine making. Left with a case of wine!

The food here is delicious, great stop for lunch, service very friendly and amazing view. Wines tend to follow a Rhone style and lots of blends. Great stop!

Ah-​maxing wines!!! We loved everything we tried. A little pricey but considering that it’s dry farmed, small, labor intensive… Worth IT!

Ask the Unilocal Whisperer — QOTD
September 22, 2015
Dear B, I’m heading to Paso Robles in a few weeks, eager for more than good wine. I don’t need new tastes; I need a new narrative — a song told in vine about people of integrity, vision, and hard work who care. Quality and value of the wine are high priority, but I’m not asking for perfection. I’m open to ambivalence, eager for creative friction, searching for new talent, and open for learning lessons in patience. Got all that? My taste buds are in your hands!
Pekka H.
Los Olivos, CA
Hi Pekka. The Chimney Rock — Adelaida Road area is prime Westside wine tasting territory, with lovely, lingering-​in-​memory wines, captivating golden and green landscapes, and unique human stories playing out in all their compelling complexity. Case in point: Kukkula. Pencil it in bold print for your upcoming visit. I think you will find it to be extremely worth your while.
The impressions here are based on a single weekend visit, so don’t assume that this experience will be shared by others. This is Unilocal,not Wine Spectator, but for me 5-​star wineries are about an elusive harmony of three: place, people, and product. Place matters, and here that’s evident: stone, vine, tree, and sun, thick-​cut glass and polished metal, barrel room, bar seating, landscaped paths leading from gravel and dirt into an elegant and intimate space where the wines are to be poured. The hills are covered in pruned vine, with walnut and olive trees and above them all, open sky. Elemental, unadorned, inviting — but not exactly cozy. This is the sort of place where you can’t hide from the elements — you are meant, I think to be found, to be confronted with the terroir and to get the sense from the start of what went into the wines that you’ll be tasting.
The people part is invariably the most unpredictable: will the winemaker be pouring that day, and will he be happy to do so? Will the energy of the room be casual, or comatose? Will there be laughter, or tears (of joy, of despair, from allergies, or otherwise …)? Will the pourers who serve you have worked there for years, or for weeks? Will they want to give you the standard storyline, or will they riff off of your opening comments? Jazz or classic rock? Don’t worry; do the research ahead time. Don’t be surprised by the Finnish family heritage, the exceptional quality of the vineyards and facilities, the lack of a gift shop, the absence of a multigenerational winemaking pedigree. Embrace the slight edginess about the place, confidence masked by the hint of uncertainty, blended in some fashion with fatherhood issues that, if not Freudian, are clearly complicated; one does not reliably make money by pursuing a post-​capitalist dream of sustainable artisan expression. And the prodigal son makes for one hell of a great narrative. Don’t expect an Oprah moment here, but listen for the love that beats in the hearts and flows down the hillside from the vines. I heard it, and maybe so will you.
Product means the limited production of small-​batch artisan wines: a white Rhone blend, followed by rosé, then a variable sequence of reds: dense, brooding, 15%+ wines that mix Finnish words with Paso Robles grown grapes into a mysterious mélange of youthful abstract expressionist exuberance crossed with father-​knows-​best prudence; it’s Robert Parker meets Charlie Parker, Dizzy shaking hands with Dvořák, Streisand sings a Martha Scanlon tune («Seeds of the Pine,» from The West was Burning album, springs to mind). Maybe it’s the epic drought of the past few years that amped up the souful Syrah sound; maybe the dry heat makes the Grenache more spiced fruit compote than fresh cherry blossom. Maybe the ancient walnut trees are confused by all the new plantings of olive and lavender. But the Counoise, the Mourvèdre, and the Cabernet really shine, and as more estate-​grown grape enter the lineup in place of purchased lots, the better the products on offer will reflect the people involved, and the better that the place in which the grapes were raised to peak maturity will come to the fore.
As I said, this is a personal impression sort of thing, probably more wrong here than right, but I genuinely like the whole package on display here — place, people, and product. Not that I’d object if the place were renamed «Walnut Hill Winery» using varietal or locational/​vineyard names for the wines instead of the Finnish language ones. Terroir means making one’s mark on a place, but also letting that place make a mark on the self as well. I’d love on a subsequent visit to Kukkula to get a hint of walnut, of chaparral, of forest floor, and of sunshine, to think not of the Old World, but of the New. That’s what Paso means to me, Pekka, and that’s why I love visiting places just like this. So will you, I hope. Happy tasting! Maybe they’ll be pouring a new release of Noir that day.

I like the kukkula wines so much I joined the wine club membership. The membership discount is nice and the annual wine maker’s dinner is a bonus.

Really loved the look and feel of this winery. The winemaker and his wife personally served us in the tasting room and talked about their wines (Rhone varietals that are dry irrigated). They also make a fantastic wine jelly.

These wines are disgusting; Full of VA and underripe. The male tasting room attendant/​cellar hand is pushy and indecisive about his own wine! The sandwiches were made of stale bread and rotten meat. This is another case of a lifestyle winemaker and winery. Great wine is made, not bought.

Great food loved the green bean salad. Staff was friendly even gave me the recipe for green beans wine was very smooth and full body

Great winery! Beautify and simple. Great reds! I also highly suggest their wine jelly, to die for!!! Staff is so nice too!

The first time up to Paso Robles we were invited by our friends that go every year. They said «Hey, were going to camp out & go for a leisurely bike ride & wine taste along the way». We drove up on a Friday and arrived at the campsite late but our friends set up our tent for us so it wasn’t a problem. Next morning we peak out of our tents to find that we are camping with serious Lance Armstrong type bike riders. Our friends reassure us that our group of riders are laid back… we’re going wine tasting afterall. Don’t fall for that line my friends! The ride was uphill against the wind both ways 10 miles one way and 10 miles back to camp in town. After my so called friends tried to kill me on Saturday, I told my husband that I was done with them. We opted to roam via truck on our own on Sunday.
It is beautiful up in Paso Robles with it’s rolling hills (as long as you’re not on a bike). We went for a long drive and saw a modern looking house being built up on the hill. Since we were in the middle of our remodel, we were curious. We drove up to take a closer look. When we got up there, we found a work truck and a person up there. Too late to turn back he saw us. He approached us so we got out to let him know that we were admiring the project from below and came up to take a look. My husband asked if he was the contractor and he turned out to be the owner of the house. We introduced ourselves and he asked if we wanted a tour of the inside of the house. We enthusiastically said yes. It was beautiful! The stonework that was quarried from the property and the Walnut shelving and stairs throughout was milled from trees on the property. He told us that he was from L.A. and that he decided to move his family up to turn his hobby into a business. When I got back to L.A. and told my boss about the winery he bought a case and I bought several bottles as well.
The next year since I signed up on their mailing list we were invited up for their Grand Opening. Everything was beautifully finished. We enjoyed tasting wine, having appetizers and met his wife and kids. They are the nicest people. Kevin also told us that we were his first customers. Cool!
This year I found out that they also opened a restaurant. We were happy that the winery was doing well. On our way back from Sonoma we wanted to check in with Kevin & his winery but unfortunately they are closed on Mondays. We will definitely have to make a special trip up to Paso Robles to visit Kukkula again.
From their website:
Tasting room hours: Thursday — Sunday from 11 — 5 pm
Restaurant hours: Friday — Sunday from 11 — 5 pm

Well worth the drive. Beautiful modern tasting room, the likes of what you might see in Napa, but the personal touch and genuine kindness is something you won’t get in Napa. Kevin the winemaker/​owner is down to earth and very passionate about the wines he makes. Awesome views of the hillsides make the visit complete. Definitely take the time to stop by and taste the 07 Sisu, Lothario & Lagniape!

Oh man this place is amazing! Fairly simple building, not much in the way of amenities outside but c’mon, you’re here for the wine. And it’s GOOD. And it’s not super expensive. One of the highlights of our trip and would absolutely recommend it to others with taste.

What a wonderful winery. You think the building is the star of the show, but it’s not.
The wines are extremely excellent for the price, $ 25 range. Tasting flight of 7 wines I think, and started with one wine blend. I liked almost all the wines. My friend and I decided to join the club and split the membership. She is entirely anti-​wine club membership right now and she loved the blends. The pas de deux, lothario, and sisu were great. Together we bought nine bottles, less than $ 200. Unheard of these days.
Can’t wait for my first shipment.