Herman Story Wines

when you’ve heard from 2 friends «you must visit herman story» … and then another winery even recommended them while we were there … you know you have to visit. This place was great — the staff was fun and enthusiastic — they even gave us a quick tour of the facilities with no appointment. Their wines were all amazing — late bloomer, casual encounters & on the road were my top three … we left with late bloomer — not on the tasting menu, but worth trying … we also really liked tomboy — it was 100% viognier and described as «a white for red drinkers .» … it definitely was …

We had the most fun at this winery! The staff was amazing and gave us a full tour of the facilities and spent way more time than they needed to with our group. We left extremely satisfied and with plenty of wine in the trunk, as well as in our bellies! Gary and Metolius were the key to having a great night!!!

Very cool crew and fabulous boutique wines. Wish I had a job there!

Russell is the man. His wine is on point and he’s a great host. I look forward to visit Russell when I’m in the area.

One of the Best wines in Paso Robles, CA. Every single person who works their has a passion for making wine and exponential knowledge of their product. Russell and Chris were the highlight of my trip. I spent 6 hours with them bought so many wines. Truly the best in Business. LOVE everyone…

Good wines but a little young for my liking. The price point was a little high compared to other wines we had during our trip. Tasting fee of $ 15 a little high.

This is the type of place most people would drive right by. It’s downtown, in an industrial area next to a tire shop and an auto repair place, looks uninviting from the outside with its frosted window and narrow entrance, and hey, we are all looking for that vineyard experience for our tastings, right? Well, driving by would be a huge mistake. If you’re out to taste some of the best wine Paso has to offer, you have to make this stop number 1. Yeah, it’s that good.
I heard about it from a sommelier friend who said if I was even close to Paso to make sure I stopped here. Superb advice. We got there shortly after they opened and were greeted warmly with smiles and a couple wine glasses ready for the pours. They even tasted each wine before they poured to make sure they were in top form since a couple had been open over night. And wow, were they ever in top form! Amazing tastings! Each of the 5 wines was incredible! Starting with 2 100% Grenaches from different locales illustrated the difference the source can make in the hands of a truly skilled winemaker. Hard to pick a winner. Then on to the GSM and boom, another stellar offering. The cab blend and the 100% Syrah completed the tasting flight in a big way. I won’t soon forget these wines. There’s a reason that there is a waiting list to get into his wine club. So if you want to partake in Russell’s limited availability, spectacular wines, get to his tasting room. You won’t care that there’s no vineyard view.

Wine Masters Extraordinaire!!! Left on our own, we’d have never stumbled across this little gem. Fortunately, we’ve got our sommelier buddy to provide much needed guidance! He told us not to miss this winery and we’re smart enough to listen to him!
Very unassuming exterior in the more industrial section of Paso Robles next to a tire store. They purchase all their grapes from various vineyards in the area and work their own magic in much the same way a master chef puts together a 5 star meal. Small production so it’s tough to get their wines — they have a waiting list to join their wine club or you can snag a bottle in their tasting room.
We sampled 2 100% Grenache wines from 2012 & 2013 from different climate regions each put together from several different growers. They couldn’t have been more different, each unique and wonderful in their own right. Skill, indeed!
Then I sampled their 2013 Casual Encounters made with Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre & Tannat. We’d been sampling wine for days on the Central Coast & this wine was game over for me! I’d been rolling this around in my mouth for a bit and when it was gone all I could say was ‘WOW!’ The flavors were so complex and wonderful, every swirl bringing something new. The gentleman pouring said its his favorite, too. Russell, the winemaker, likens it to a blackberry covered bear crashing through your campsite picking up a taste of all the goodies you packed for the weekend.
The Cabernet and Syrah we sampled next were also stellar but I had a clear winner!

Gary was an awesome host for me and the wife yesterday. So glad we made this our first stop in Paso. This is a gem of a place that has high quality wines with the customer service to back it up. Chris gets some extra credit on this review as well. He was very responsive via email when we made an appointment and then had to keep updating as traffic was not cooperating with our time line. Some of the other locations did not even respond to voice or email to try and visit… this was a blessing as Gary pointed out some of his recommendations which we took in a heartbeat.
We actually got to see the Team working hard at bottling this year’s «Casual Encounters»…everyone was in good spirits and it really seemed like when Family and Friends are pitching in when someone is moving.
Russell’s invited to our home whenever he makes it back out to the Carolina’s…I have a truck and can help haul any amounts of wine you may need to deliver (will work for wine)
We really look forward to future experiences with your wine, we can’t go wrong when Herman Story wines are part of it!

This place is awesome. Such amazing wine and I’ve been to about 4 wineries in Paso Robles on this trip so far. The employees are so nice and funny. The tasting experience here is incredible!

I’m impressed! I was told from a good friend Kenny that if I was in Paso and I didn’t swing by Herman Story that we basically would not be friends anymore. Truth be told their wines kick some serious ass the tasting staff was awesome, Gary and his buddy were off the charts accommodating. My buddies are serious wine dorks, I can’t wait to break into a few of these stellar wines. Thanks to my buddy Kenny I am now a big supporter of this fun wine maker. Hats off boys I will swing by during Crush!!!

I arrived to Herman Story Wines through a recommendation from a good friend of mine. When I came in, I had very high expectations and I was glad that those expectations were met. I was quite impressed and I will be telling my friends and family about this place. This is why I gave the place a 5 out of a 5.
PROS: Delicious red wines. Excellent customer service. Cute venue. Personable. Affordable. Will be coming back here again and again. Interesting label names.
CONS: Not a big fan of their white wine. Entrance was difficult to find.

Attended the latest wine club pick-​up party with a group of girlfriends and had a blast. All the Herman Story from the those behind the scenes to the wine makers were great and really took care of all the guests at the party. The food was delicious, the band was great, and the tasty wine was flowing. Thanks to the whole gang for making the wine club pick-​up party a night to remember. The Men of Herman Story poster that we had autographed is the perfect bit of memorabilia from a fun filled night.

This little winery off he beaten path of Highway 101 and 13^th street has fast become my favorite of Paso. I have yet to try anything here that did not come in multiples. Hardest part is aging them a couple of years to do them true justice. Rich, complex, bold are the signatures here. This is a must-​hit place for sure. (Just opened an «On The Road» aged three years and it was sublime – well worth the wait).
If Syrahs and Grenaches are your thing, these are the ones that set the bar for all others. The Cab blend is just as fantastic.
On another note, I just tried his soon-​to-​be-​released Syrah with notes of coffee and rich thick blackberry. I begged Russ to sell me three. (Thanks Russ!!!)

I have been purchasing wine from Herman Story for 3 – 4 years now and I can tell you that Russell and team Herman Story never cease to amaze me.
The quality and complexity of their wines is consistently fantastic! The blends outstanding and unique!
I have shared these lovely wines with sommeliers and connoisseurs around the world (people that know a lot more than I do) and they also rave about Herman Story’s wine.
Russell P. From IS the Godfather of Paso Wine!
Don’t miss it.

They wine labels are fun and have a cool story behind them. The winery is located in an industrial area. The staff are friendly and knowledgable but most importantly the wines are fantastic!

Love Herman Story wines! BIG and full throttle and great people at a decent price !!! Go here at the end of the day because their wines will be the best you had all day

The tasting room is in an older retail building in an industrial area of Paso Robles. Not much parking other than street, and the tasting room itself is on the small side. All that being said, this is a must visit winery!
All of the staff, and I mean ALL, are fun to taste with and they all have a sense of humor. I has an absolute blast tasting here! Halfway through our flight, the wine maker, Russell ask if we wanted to take a tour! So we proceeded on an quick tour of the facilities. In the back there was a large bin full of Pinot Noir grapes, we were invited to grab one and taste.
All the wines are very good. What is interesting is he sources a lot of his grapes from the Santa Ynez area, it it is interesting to see how he crafts such a different end product from the wineries in that area. My favorite wines were the Late Bloomer (my vote for best wine label EVER, especially if you take to a really nice restaurant and have them open it) and the Nuts and Bolts Syrah.
If you are looking for a fun, unpretentious tasting where you might get a tour from the wine maker and learn something, then this is the place. Did I mention that they are dog friendly too?

Good (especially) red wines to be found here, in this small-​and-​simple tasting room, in the industrial part of town. It’s comfortable and cool within the dark walls and dim lighting.
The $ 10 tasting fee (waived with purchase) entitled us to 6 delicious tastings poured by a smiley, easy-​going guy. A fun, attention-​seeking dogs kept making its appearance from behind the counter.
Glad it was recommended to us, as we probably wouldn’t have stopped on our own. Fun wine names, tasty wines, enjoyable stop.

My wine club came here yesterday for some private tasting with the wine makers and we had so much fun! Not only did the winemakers let us try all their labels, they even did some barrel tastings of their special stock. They were really cool and laid back without any of the pretension that people often associate with wineries. The wine blends were amazing– try the Damn Good Wedding Wine if they have it.
Worth the short walk over.