DAOU is a passion project of brothers Daniel and Georges Daou, born in Lebanon but resided in France after fleeing the civil war at a young age. They then both set out to pursue the American Dream, moving to the US and starting a hospital computer system company. With a passion for winemaking acquired in France, the brothers sold the company and decided to start a winery.
DAOU winery was founded after the brothers came across the ‘DAOU Mountain’, the perfect spot for cultivating grapes, considered a ‘jewel of ecological elements’. The mountain is based on calcareous clay soil at 650-670m with very steep slopes, receiving warm temperatures in the summer with a large diurnal range.
Based halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, Paso Robles AVA is home to 200 wineries due to its ideal climate, soils and terroir. It contains 11 sub-AVAs and showcases some outstanding Bordeaux varietals.
Science and winemaking
José Alberto Santos presenting the wines
José Alberto Santos explained how Daniel’s engineering background finds its way into the winemaking through ‘wine phenolics’. These have been developed to make quality objective, to measure sensorial aspects, such as texture and roundness, and use these to monitor the life of the wines. This provides a numerical way to ensure all their wines are consistently of the highest quality.
DAOU also uses an optical sorter to sort grapes, with a high-resolution camera able to recognise grapes of the wrong colour and reject these from the selection using a mechanised air system. This delivers great quality and is used in the Reserve and Estate wines.
The brothers also developed their own native yeast named D20, which was developed from their own grapes which they shipped to laboratories in Italy. This gives their wines a distinctive flavour and is used across much of the selection. As the D20 naturally increases acidity, acidification of the wines is rarely necessary.
For their barrels, they use pink French oak aged for up to five years and finished with Daniel’s custom toasting. These are particularly good at producing wines with fresh fruit aromas, as well as wines with good structure and mouthfeel.
Tasting the wines
2022 Willow Creek District Reserve Chardonnay
Offered as an aperitif upon arrival, this Chardonnay is sourced from a cooler area near the coast but is incredibly ripe due to the hot year. This was nicely balanced with fruit and minerality with some creamy malolactic notes with noticeable oaky vanilla from the 50% new oak barrels used for fermentation.
DAOU Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
This is the top selling wine in the $20-$30 range in the US, reflected by its rounded and easy-to-drink style. It is fruity and slightly herbaceous, smoky with a medium body. It has a sweet sensation yet no residual sugar, ripeness showing from the 10-day heatwave experienced during the 2022 growing season.
DAOU Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
This is sourced from fruit from all the sub-AVAs of Paso Robles. This spends 18 months ageing in oak giving it notes of vanilla and cedar. It is fruity, particularly showcasing dark fruits such as blackberry and black cherry. The hot year reflects the fruit-forward nature of this wine.
The Soul of a Lion range is considered the crown jewel of DAOU and showcases the Cabernet Sauvignon founded on the DAOU Mountain.
Soul of a Lion 2022
Every vintage this wine is made from a minimum 75% Cabernet Sauvignon with then varying levels of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. This wine showcases more minerality alongside the dark fruits and is 14.7% ABV.
Soul of a Lion 2020
This vintage was the driest year and experienced heat events leading to a higher alcohol level of 15.2%. It is soft and fruity, bold and full-bodied alongside some smoky minerality.
Soul of a Lion 2018
This was a cooler vintage and is slightly more herbaceous on the nose compared to the other two. It is nicely balanced with some notes of red cherry, vanilla and coconut from the oak.
Surprise pour
Finishing on a high, we were treated to a surprise pour of DAOU’s prestigious Patrimony Cabernet Sauvignon 2017, produced as a legacy to Daniel’s children. This wine is the result of the highest quality barrels of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes which were kept to bottle separately. It is described as a ‘bull wearing heels’ - powerful and fiery, whilst remaining elegant and delicate.
José Alberto Santos hosted a wonderful evening, and it was great to learn about the history and scientific background of DAOU winery, with Paso Robles certainly challenging the big names of Napa and Sonoma with exceptional wines.
