Tobin James Revisited

For those of you who are members of Tobin James' epic wine club, the James Gang, I'm sure you're well versed in the traditions and rituals of Tobin James. But for those, like me, who are not lucky enough to be part of the James Gang, I think it might be time to consider joining. Why? you might ask...are the wines the most delicious on planet Earth? Is Tobin James a tiny producer that's hard to find? Are they trophy wines that will impress all my snobby friends? No. No. And no. The real reason to join the Tobin wine club is the parties. The over-the-top, giant, raging parties.


Since I moved to Paso I've heard legend of the parties Toby throws at the winery but I never really understood until I finally went to one. These parties are unbelievable. I was expecting maybe a couple hundred people to show up...no no, there were 1,500 people! I had imagined wood-fired pizza from the oven they have outside the tasting room...They were certainly using the outdoor pizza to its capacity but on top of that there were at least 4 different caterers serving portions of an array of courses from Kobe beef hot dogs to fresh oysters. Of course I expected there to be wine. I figured they would open the tasting room and then have a few servers walking around to refill glasses...the tasting room was indeed open plus a fleet of pourers that walked around topping off any glass that was less than full. And that was on top of the hundreds of wine bottles that were already open and placed all over the dozens of tables that had been set up beforehand.

So...there were guests, hundreds of them actually. There was food from all over the area. There was beer and wine. On top of that, there was also a reggae band, Resination (http://www.resinationmusic.com/) that got even the least outgoing party-goers grooving in their seats. Tobin James covers every base at their parties and that loud and upbeat feeling that you experience on a normal day in the tasting room is amplified to an extreme...a crazy, over-the-top, and really fun extreme.

If you ever get a chance, definitely go. And take a limo!!

**Images from Tobin James website, http://www.tobinjames.com/. And the band website for Resination, www.resinationmusic.com**

Vina Robles

I decided to go to Vina Robles (www.vinarobles.com) because I kept hearing about this Swiss-owned huge, beautiful, new tasting room near Robert Hall on 46 East. Despite all that I’d heard in passing, when I finally made it out there I was floored. The tasting room is huge, beautiful, and very new.

The building that houses the tasting room is a sort-of U shaped, high-ceilinged, stone extravaganza with crazy glass-looking art covering the walls. The tasting room bar area is only half of the bottom of the U shape while the wing of the building that comes off the tasting room is full of very expensive and classy tasting room paraphernalia. And when I say “very expensive and classy” I mean Dean and Deluca cooking supplies alongside bookshelves of coffee table-type food and wine books. My personal favorite area of the shopping portion of the building is the table dedicated to all things Swiss. Need a Swiss watch? Head to Vina Robles. A Swiss Army Knife? Definitely at the Vina Robles tasting room.

So the tasting room is very grand and modern and it plus the souvenir area fills about half of the U shaped building. I asked the tasting room attendants if the rest of the building was the winery and I was told that the remaining portion of the building would be a restaurant that would accompany a non-existent, future bed-and-breakfast. So clearly Vina Robles has some large-scale plans for their 46 East property. But those plans do not appear to include an on-site winery. That seemed a bit strange because clearly the Swiss owner is pumping some serious money into the hospitality side of things at Vina Robles…but what about the wine-making side? At this point I have to admit, I can’t recall much about the wines because I was so overwhelmed by the ambiance but clearly they weren’t standing out as either crazy delicious or awful. The wines are passable and it will be interesting to see how this site progresses.

*All photos are taken from the Vina Robles website: www.vinarobles.com*

Tobin James

When I think of wine tasting I think of rolling hills and vines and beautiful sunny people and dogs and bottles of wine. I do not think of a saloon. Or pizza. Or a raucous crowd. This said, I was a little surprised by the decor of the Tobin James tasting room. I was also surprised by the size of the space. And I was especially surprised by the dozens of loud people having a raging good time.

Tobin James is actually one of the older wine establishments in Paso. Toby knew Gary Eberle before Eberle wines existed and he's been a staple in the wine community ever since.

When you walk in to Tobin James you'll see the antique bar top straight ahead (apparently brought in from Missouri). Upon entering, on one side you'll be flanked by an island surrounded by tasters and on the other side you'll pass multiple racks of Tommy Bahamas short-sleeved button-up shirts. It's quite a scene!

After fighting my way through the crowd, I sidled up to the bar and was promptly greeted by a very friendly man behind the bar. The pouring service was efficient but not rushed and the everyone stationed around the island was having a grand ol' time. At one point I was offered a fresh piece of pizza--I have no idea where it came from or who gave it to me but it was delicious.

I've always heard legend of the Tobin James tasting room and the winery's rabid 17,000 person wine club, the "James Gang". Before going myself I didn't think it sounded relaxing or enjoyable at all. And it's not relaxing! But it's actually completely enjoyable. It's a place where they're doing their own thing their own way: Tobin James wines are much more affordable than many other options in Paso and they're not bad. And Tobin James is catering to a different crowd...bus loads of people come in and are not only welcomed, but the tasting room is actually set up to accommodate larger groups effectively. I feel like this is a place that's hooking new wine drinkers and making it a fun experience rather than a pretentious experience. This tasting room won't be the place to bring a wine collector but for any regular wine-drinking person this is a fun stop that offers a different kind of wine experience.

*Photos from Tobin James website: www.tobinjames.com*