🍇 Where Wine Takes You – Episode Highlights 🌊🐎

In this coastal-meets-cowboy episode of Where Wine Takes You, Adam heads west, all the way to the waterline, for a conversation about tasting rooms by the ocean and how proximity to the Pacific changes the wine experience.

First up, Soren Christensen, winemaker for Hearst Ranch Winery, shares what it is like pouring wine across the street from Hearst Castle in San Simeon. With 25 Paso harvests under his belt, including time at Hope Family Wines and Alta Colina, Soren talks about legacy, instinct, and crafting wines worthy of the Hearst name. From Rhône varieties to Bordeaux blends, and even a run-in with ranch longhorns, Soren brings grounded Paso wisdom with an ocean view.

Then meet Dirk Neumann, owner and winemaker of Absolution Cellars in Morro Bay. A second-career winemaker who packed up South Florida and moved west without a master plan, Dirk now produces limited-production, single-vineyard wines from across the Central Coast. His tasting room on the Morro Bay Embarcadero offers albariño, tempranillo, tribiano, and more, often with sea otters floating by outside the patio. It is Old World philosophy, New World creativity, and a whole lot of coastal energy.

Later in the show, Adam connects with Tami Rodman and Ashley Hallinan of the Pacific Coast Cutting Horse Association. From lightning-fast turns to “cow sense,” they break down the adrenaline and heritage behind the sport of cutting. The 2026 PCCHA Trainers Gold Club Roundup runs March 3 through 8, a major event showcasing elite horses, riders, and more than one million dollars in purses across premier competitions.

This episode explores what happens when wine meets water and when Western heritage meets modern Paso culture.

Hearst Ranch Winery

Absolution Cellars

Hope Family Wines Installs Major Rooftop Solar Array

Robert Hall Winery Marks One-Year Anniversary of Regenerative “One Block Challenge”

Celebration of Life for Jake Beckett of Peachy Canyon Winery

Pacific Coast Cutting Horse Association

Paso Wine Fest returns May 15 through 17.

🎟️ Win a pair of tickets at

🎯 Plan your next Paso Robles getaway at travelpaso.com

🎵 Original music by Moonshiner Collective

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