98pts Wine Enthusiast

This bottling is a revelation, showing impressive density and darkness without veering anywhere near overripeness. Aromas of toasted blackberry, milk chocolate, violet and toasted wood entice the nose, drawing into a palate wrapped in chiseled tannins. Flavors are loaded with toasted walnut, espresso, chocolate cream and elegantly minty herb. The finish goes on forever. — Matt Kettmann

96pts Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Syrah Block B comes from a tiny parcel in the Paderewski Vineyard and was brought up in French oak mid-sized barrels and puncheons. It's another inky purple/plum-hued beauty from this estate offering a great nose of smoked black fruits, bacon fat, iron, peppery herbs, and graphite. This carries to a full-bodied Syrah with a focused, dense, powerful mouthfeel, building tannins, remarkable purity, and a great sense of freshness. I always find a singular, meaty, almost bloody quality in this wine, and the 2019 delivers it in spades. Give it a year or so in the cellar and enjoy over the following decade or more. 96+

95pts Decanter

The cooler, rainier microclimate of York Mountain lends a vitality of red cherry and raspberry flavours to this AVA just outside of Paso Robles. Sourced from sand and sandstone soils, it's a full-bodied but fine, finessed wine with a silkiness in mouthfeel and tannins. It's a little more delicate in fruit concentration, too, but refreshing, finishing on very fine charry tannins. (ALI)

95pts James Suckling

Spiced plums and dark cherries with chocolate, bark and dark licorice undertones. It’s broad and meaty but also very precise with a chiselled palate and a full body with a weightless, ethereal nature with tannins that melt in the mouth. Rich, layered and very dynamic with a lingering finish. Syrah. Drink or hold.

95pts Vinous

The 2019 Block B, a varietal Syrah, is peppery and floral in the glass with black raspberry and crushed ashen stone aromas. This is racy and sleek with energizing acidity and depths of mineral-tinged red and black fruits. It finishes with a staining of primary concentration offset by a flourish of citrus and violet florals, lingering long and spicy but only lightly tannic.

Winemaker Notes

Showing the long, cooler climate gifts of vintage 2019, Epoch’s Block B is brimming with savory, earthy, and spicey qualities from first pour, which open up with exposure to air in the glass and evolve into dark purple fruit, white flowers, black olives, and roasted meats. The wine shows velvety, flowing layers of fruit and earth on entry then extends out towards the finish with a growing tannin backbone. Although it’s delightful now, more will be revealed after some cellar aging.

About the Winery

Founded in 2004 by geologists, Bill and Liz Armstrong, Epoch has quickly developed a big reputation for handcrafted, small-production wines with abundant personalities. Under the careful care of Winemaker, Jordan Fiorentini, Epoch is committed to producing world-class wines from Rhône, Zinfandel, and Tempranillo varieties grown on their three west Paso Robles vineyards – Paderewski, Catapult, and York Mountain. Epoch’s Tasting Room and Winery are located on the storied York Mountain which was once home to the first bonded winery on the central coast. Preserving the rich history found on this property as well as Paderewski Vineyard, a sight once owned and cherished by the late Polish Prime Minister and pianist, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Epoch strives to carry on these legacies through their wines and the unique Epoch experience.
Through carefully managed, non-invasive farming, Epoch aims to bring the complex character of their vineyards into each bottle of wine they craft. All of Epoch's fruit comes from their three specific and unique sites: Paderewski, Catapult, and York Mountain Vineyards.