2023 Daou Vineyards Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles, USA
The market on this bottle
Wine-Searcher tracks this 2023 Daou Vineyards Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles across the open market. Their published U.S. low is $44.06 and the average is $50.74. Our slash is $30.00.
DAOU Vineyards • Paso Robles • 2023
2023 Daou Vineyards Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles, USA
The cooler year, with the mountain etched on the label.
James Suckling scored this 2023 Reserve 95 points, and Vinous scored it 93 points!
Ryan Montgomery tasted the 2023 in June 2026 and found a cooler year that still carries Paso. Blackcurrant, blackberry, and cassis come with graphite, cedar, black olive, and spice. The body is full, the tannins are fine, and the acidity stays bright. The blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, with Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.
Eric Guido, writing for Vinous in April 2026, opened on sweet herbs, olive, pine shavings, and dusty black currants. The textures are silken. Cola-toned red and black fruit, violet and lavender, sit over dark chocolate, and the finish stays long and balanced.
James Suckling tasted the cooler year, and Vinous tasted the herbs. Which one do you pour?
"The mountain is in the glass."
DAOU Mountain, above Paso Robles
Georges and Daniel Daou planted DAOU Mountain in the Adelaida District above Paso Robles. Daniel is the founder and the chief winemaker, and the estate dates from 2007.
The mountain sits near 2,200 feet, about 14 miles from the Pacific, on calcareous clay. André Tchelistcheff called that site a jewel of ecological elements. This Reserve takes fruit from that mountain and from select Paso Robles vineyards, and the appellation printed on the bottle is Paso Robles.
A cooler year that still tastes like Paso
The cooler 2023 still tastes like Paso. The blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, with Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, and the cream label carries a small red box with the year above the etched vineyard.
The etching is the mountain. The words under Cabernet Sauvignon are Paso Robles, which is the place this bottle claims.
Eighteen months in French oak
Daniel Daou makes the wine. The winery's published Reserve specification is 18 months in 50% new French oak.
That oak is the frame around the cooler fruit. Montgomery's bright acidity and Guido's long balance meet in the same glass.
Ribeye, and venison
Beef and venison are the plates for this Cabernet. A pan-seared ribeye gives the wine a browned crust and some fat. Venison loin is the leaner cut, and a blackberry sauce keeps the plate in the same dark register.
Pan-seared ribeye
A thick ribeye with a deep brown crust and a rosemary sprig.
Why it works: The Cabernet meets the crust and the fat. Beef is the plate listed beside this wine.
View Recipe for Pan-seared ribeye (opens in a new tab)
Venison loin
Sliced venison loin with a blackberry sauce.
Why it works: Venison is leaner than the ribeye. The dark berry sauce stays in the same register as the wine.
View Recipe for Venison loin (opens in a new tab)Take the bottle.
2023 Daou Vineyards Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles.
This bottle is only $30.
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