DAOU Soul of a Lion Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Full-bodied red wine crafted in a bold, luxurious, and structured Bordeaux-blend style, emphasizing mountain fruit concentration, profound complexity, and meticulous aging. · DAOU Vineyards, founded by brothers Georges and Daniel Daou, is a premier estate located in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles. Known for producing world-class Bordeaux-style blends and single-varietal Cabernet Sauvignons, the family-owned winery has achieved cult-like status and high critical acclaim, often compared to the finest First Growth Bordeaux and top-tier Napa Valley estates.
Vintage: 2019. The 2019 growing season in Paso Robles was characterized by ample winter rainfall followed by a mild, extended summer with very few extreme heat spikes. This allowed for even ripening, excellent hang-time, and exceptional retention of natural acidity alongside intense phenolic development, yielding an outstanding, highly rated vintage.
Type
Full-bodied red wine crafted in a bold, luxurious, and structured Bordeaux-blend style, emphasizing mountain fruit concentration, profound complexity, and meticulous aging.
Producer
DAOU Vineyards, founded by brothers Georges and Daniel Daou, is a premier estate located in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles. Known for producing world-class Bordeaux-style blends and single-varietal Cabernet Sauvignons, the family-owned winery has achieved cult-like status and high critical acclaim, often compared to the finest First Growth Bordeaux and top-tier Napa Valley estates.
Country
United States. California represents the vanguard of New World winemaking, combining pioneering viticultural techniques with diverse microclimates to produce wines that rival traditional Old World benchmarks while maintaining a distinctively expressive, fruit-forward American character.
Vintage
2019. The 2019 growing season in Paso Robles was characterized by ample winter rainfall followed by a mild, extended summer with very few extreme heat spikes. This allowed for even ripening, excellent hang-time, and exceptional retention of natural acidity alongside intense phenolic development, yielding an outstanding, highly rated vintage.
Region & Appellation
Adelaida District, Paso Robles AVA, San Luis Obispo County, California, USA. The Adelaida District is a prestigious sub-appellation known for its high elevation, steep mountain slopes, calcareous limestone soils, and significant diurnal temperature shifts, making it ideal for structured, complex red wines.
Grape Varieties
Primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, typically blended with small percentages of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. These classic Bordeaux varieties thrive in the calcareous soils and warm, sunny climate of the Adelaida District, offering deep color, firm structure, and layers of complex aromatics.
Color & Appearance
Deep, opaque ruby-purple core with a vibrant magenta rim, showing exceptional concentration, high viscosity, and slow-moving, stained legs that hint at the wine's rich extract and substantial body.
Aroma Profile
Intense and multi-layered bouquet featuring primary aromas of ripe black cherry, cassis, and blackberry, complemented by secondary notes of sweet vanilla, dark chocolate, and roasted espresso beans from French oak, alongside tertiary hints of graphite, crushed stone, dried sage, and subtle leather.
Tasting Notes
A powerful yet impeccably balanced wine with an expansive initial palate impression of concentrated dark fruits, evolving into a complex mid-palate of cassis, cocoa, and savory herbs. The finish is remarkably long, lingering with fine-grained tannins, vibrant minerality, and a persistent echo of dark chocolate and dark berries.
Flavor Profile
Dominated by rich flavors of black currant, blackberry preserves, and ripe plum, interwoven with savory nuances of pencil lead, crushed rock, sweet pipe tobacco, mocha, and subtle baking spices derived from extended barrel aging.
Body & Texture
Full-bodied with a luxurious, velvety mouthfeel and dense, seamless texture. The impressive concentration and extract are perfectly balanced by a firm yet refined structural framework, providing a coating sensation without feeling heavy.
Acidity & Tannins
Medium-high acidity provides a refreshing, vibrant lift that cuts through the wine's impressive richness. The tannins are abundant, ripe, and finely textured, offering a firm, age-worthy grip that melts harmoniously into the plush fruit profile.
Sweetness Level
Dry, with rich ripe fruit perception that gives a subtle impression of natural sweetness on the attack, countered completely by structured tannins and savory minerality on the bone-dry finish.
Alcohol Content
14.5% to 15.0% ABV, typical for top-tier Paso Robles mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, providing generous warmth, body, and aromatic lift without overwhelming the palate.
Aging & Oak
Aged for approximately 22 months in 100% new French oak barrels. This rigorous oak regimen imparts sophisticated notes of vanilla, toast, smoke, and fine baking spices while allowing the wine's robust mountain fruit and calcareous minerality to take center stage.
Food Pairings
Ideal pairings include prime dry-aged ribeye steak, roasted rack of lamb with rosemary and garlic crust, venison loin with a blackberry reduction, slow-braised short ribs, and hard aged cheeses like aged Gouda or Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Serving Suggestions
Serve at 60-65°F (15-18°C) in large Bordeaux crystal wine glasses. Decanting for 1 to 2 hours is strongly recommended to allow the aromatic layers to open and the tannins to soften. Best enjoyed in its prime drinking window.
Price Range
Estimated retail price is around $150 to $175 USD per bottle, positioning it as a luxury-tier collectible wine that offers exceptional value compared to similarly scored cult Napa Valley Cabernets.
Quality Assessment
Consistently rated between 95 and 98 points by major wine critics (including Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Jeb Dunnuck), this wine is considered a benchmark icon for Paso Robles and one of the finest Cabernet-based blends produced in California.
Production Methods
Hand-harvested in the cool early morning hours, meticulously sorted by hand and optical sorter, fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks with frequent pump-overs for optimal extraction, followed by native and inoculated malolactic fermentation and aging in new French oak.
Terroir
Grown on DAOU Mountain at elevations reaching up to 2,200 feet. The soils are predominantly calcareous clay and limestone, reminiscent of Bordeaux's Right Bank, providing excellent drainage, moisture retention, and a distinct mineral signature that defines the wine's character.
History & Heritage
Soul of a Lion is DAOU Vineyards' flagship wine, named as a heartfelt tribute to the brothers' father, Rachid Daou, whose courage and vision inspired the family to pioneer winemaking on DAOU Mountain after fleeing civil war in Lebanon.
Interesting Facts
DAOU Mountain was once described by legendary Napa winemaker André Tchelistcheff as a jewel of winemaking potential. Soul of a Lion has become a fixture in fine dining establishments worldwide and a sought-after collector's item among lovers of bold American red wines.
Cellaring Potential
Exceptional cellaring potential. While approachable with decanting now, it will continue to evolve, gain secondary complexity, and reach its peak maturity between 10 and 20 years from the vintage date, holding gracefully for decades under proper storage conditions.
Similar Wines
Comparable luxury California red blends and Cabernets include Opus One, Bond, Schrader, Caymus Special Selection, and DAOU Patrimony.