J & L Wines Photo

Opolo Vineyards

This estate is located in the western Paso Robles Hills at 1600 ft of elevation, 12 miles from the Pacific Ocean.  Dave Nichols and Rick Quinn, partners in the winery, farm a total of 270 acres of premium vineyards, In both the rolling hills to the east of Highway 101 and on land surrounding the winery in the more mountainous areas to the west.  Their philosophy is simple: great wine starts with great fruit, and their goal are to grow the finest quality grapes possible.  Starting with vineyards planted to hillside of rocky, chalky soils on low vigor rootstocks, then limiting the vines access to water, leaf pulling, crop thinning, hand harvesting, you name it., these two are meticulous farmer, sacrificing yields for quality, and the results speak for themselves.  Most of the fruit from Quinn’s and Nichols’ vineyards will continue to be sold to other labels, but the pairs’ estate vineyards will be a major source of fruit for the Opolo label. This is a situation that both Nichols and Quinn relish. “It really helps us as vineyard owners to get direct feedback about the wines we’re producing from our vineyards,” explained Nichols. “We want to make great wines, and the more information we can get, the more we can control the viticultural process and find out what we’re doing right.” Quinn agreed, saying “we obviously want to optimize our farming methods to produce excellent fruit, and because we have total control of the vineyards, we can apply the methods we believe will produce the absolute best quality fruit and, therefore, the best possible wine.” What does this fruit yield?  Concentration, body, intensity and style; in short, wines with an opinion and not for the faint of heart.

Winemakers: Rick Quinn, Dave Nichols & Chris Rougeot

Wines Produced

  • - Half Bottles Available
  • - Wine Kegs Available
  • Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Chardonnay
  • Meritage / Bordeaux Blend
  • Merlot
  • Moscato
  • Muscat Canelli
  • Petite Sirah
  • Pinot Gris
  • Pinot Noir
  • Red Blend
  • Rhône Red Blend
  • Rosé
  • Roussanne
  • Sangiovese
  • Syrah
  • Tempranillo
  • Viognier
  • Zinfandel