A Roaring Cabernet Sauvignon: Soul of A Lion | DAOU Vineyards, Paso Robles, California

A thoughtful and constructed pathway

Brothers Daniel and Georges Daou come from a family of entrepreneurs hailing from Beirut, known, at the time, as the Paris of the Middle East… Their father, Joseph, transformed his father’s small carpentry business into one of the most successful furnishing companies in the entire Middle East.

During the summer of 1973, their happy life took a turn with the onset of the Lebanese Civil War. A rocket hit their neighborhood, causing grave injuries to the family. In 1975, Joseph and his wife, Marie, decided to move the family to France. They left everything behind. They lived in Paris and Cannes. Daniel and Georges were guided by their mother, who could sense the fervor of her sons and encouraged their dreams. And, they had one in common: wine, a revelation when being in the South of France, surrounded by vineyards and centuries of winemaking tradition.

The inseparable duo then moved to UC San Diego in the early 1980s and studied Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering. Following in their family’s entrepreneurial footsteps, they started their own company, DAOU Systems, a networking technology company that would revolutionize hospital computer systems. In 1998, after taking DAOU Systems public, Georges and Daniel sold the company. Their glass of life was now awaiting to be refilled….

Making a childhood dream a reality

Deep down, Daniel knew he was destined to be a winemaker. After making wine in his garage in rural San Diego (yes, another garage project; and now a 9 zero-dollar company!), tending to a one-acre vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon, and reading every book he could find about winemaking, it was time to start his own winery. He was deeply encouraged by his father, Joseph, and partnered with his brother, Georges.

After traveling the world for eight years in the quest of great terroirs, in 2007 the Daous found their sacred grail: the land of Paso Robles, California. If the area was, sadly, made famous by the death of actor James Dean in 1955 in a car accident, it is also home to great soil and perfect climate for Bordeaux varietals. Daniel likes to say, “Paso has the soils of Bordeaux and the climate of Napa.” 

Part of the Santa Lucia Mountains, DAOU Vineyards is perched on what is now called “DAOU Mountain.” It stands 14 miles away from the ocean at an elevation of 2,200 feet, in the Adelaida District on the west side of the Paso Robles AVA, with steep mountain slopes of up to fifty-six percent.

The elevation brings cool breezes that flow over from the ocean through the Templeton Gap in the Coastal Mountain Range, while keeping the vineyards above the clouds for year-round sun. The combination gives warm days and cool nights allowing the grapes to ripen in the sun and maintain their acidity during cool nights. Warm, temperate days and cool nights guarantee even ripening and vine balance every year.

Every vine on DAOU Mountain is touched by hand at least five times each year—hand-pruned, fruit dropped. All fruit in the Estate Collection is hand-picked, then sorted by cutting-edge optical technology. The wine is fermented with proprietary native yeast cultivated from the DAOU Vineyards and made from 100 percent free run juice. Each fermentation is managed with continual phenolic analysis, ensuring an exquisite mouthfeel in each wine. 

Daniel himself spends a large part of the day in the vineyard, attentive to every possibility for cultivating the purest expression of DAOU Mountain’s terroir. The terroir of DAOU Mountain yields harvests of fruit with extraordinary phenolics, small berries with intense flavors, aromas, and deep colors from a low skin-to-juice ratio.

A winery with a legacy

Video © DAOU Vineyards

Daniel and Georges acquired a property known as Hoffman Mountain Ranch. Even though the ranch was widely considered the birthplace of modern winemaking in Paso Robles, it had been abandoned for more than 30 years. They completely restored the original redwood winery, preserving a vital part of Paso Robles history. They totally replanted the grounds with new vines. That is how it rebirthed under “DAOU Mountain.“

Hoffman Mountain Ranch had been established in 1961 by a Beverly Hills cardiologist, Dr. Stanley Hoffman, who wanted to become a winemaker. He hired André Tchelistcheff, a Russian enologist who became America’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker, as a consultant. Tchelistcheff revolutionized Napa Valley wine making by concentrating on high-quality California Cabernet Sauvignon aged in small French oak barrels. Together, they developed the first gravity-flow winery in America and first commercial-scale winery in Paso Robles.

Read More: The Best Cabernet Sauvignon

All about Soul of a Lion Vintage 2021

The Estate Soul of a Lion is the crown jewel of DAOU Vineyards. It is a magnificent Left-Bank Bordeaux style Cabernet Sauvignon. It is named to honor the memory of Joseph Daou and his strong and powerful personality, and the unwavering courage and love he poured into his family. Through war and loss, the Daou family held onto each other and their faith in better days to come.

The fruit for Soul of a Lion is identified early and reverently tended through harvest. The berries are optically sorted to ensure pure fruit integrity, and the wine is made exclusively from free-run juice. During fermentation, Daniel employs proprietary phenolic management techniques to complement his own sensory expertise.

But before the fruit, there are the barrels, made of rare bois rosé French oak whose staves are seasoned in the elements for five years prior to coopering. The wine is then aged for nearly two years in these proprietary DAOU 5-Year barrels conceived by Daniel. Finally, it is held for extended bottle maturation prior to allocation — ensuring that each vintage has achieved perfection upon release. Daniel likes to call Soul of a Lion his masterwork.

Video © DAOU Vineyards

Technical & Tasting notes

Blend: 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot
Barrel Aged: 22 months in 100% new French oak
Price: $150
ABV: 14.9%

The 2021 growing season on DAOU Mountain was preceded by a dry winter, with only one large storm system that provided 10 inches of rainfall in February. A period of light rain in July also replenished the soil with much-needed moisture. While the summer season was marked by periodic heat waves, the weather cooled down by mid-August and remained that way through harvest, with maximum temperatures hovering in the 60s and 70s. This cooling trend allowed the fruit to enjoy exceptional hang time. In the end, there were low yields with small berries, providing for structured wines with the promise of excellent staying power.

The 2021 vintage displays remarkable intensity in the glass with dark, inky ruby-purple hues. Abundant fruit aromas of black cherry, blackberry, blueberry jam and black currant are interwoven with accents of baking spices, sage and graphite. A voluminous entry introduces sumptuous layers of chocolate-covered blueberry, tobacco, mocha, vanilla and toasted oak. The mouthfeel is concentrated and elegant, with round, vibrant tannins that carry into a commanding finish.

Vintage Release Party at Spire 73, Intercontinental Los Angeles

During the Soul of a Lion Vintage Release Party held at Spire 73, the tallest open-air in the Western hemisphere at Intercontinental Los Angeles, on August 19, 2024, I got to speak with Laura Reynolds, DAOU Vineyards’ ambassador. Watch the exclusive video interview below.

Read More: La Boucherie at Los Angeles Downtown Intercontinental, one of GAYOT’s Memorable Dinners of 2022.

The uniting bell

First you will be acquainted with the bell on the bottle. But, if you venture to the winery in Paso Robles, you will see it proudly standing over the tasting room in its own tower.

It was acquired by Daniel and Georges as a sign of unity to ring for special moments of DAOU Vineyards: the beginning of harvest, the end of harvest, and the wedding anniversary of their beloved parents.

This historical bell bears an illustrious pedigree. It was cast in 1740 in Santa Maria, Spain, where it hung in a monastery that made wine.

It has become the emblem of the winery.

DAOU LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL

When you visit DAOU Mountain, you immediately feel the energy and spirit of this special land.

Empowered by their childhood in Lebanese traditions of generous hospitality, family values, faith and love, Daniel and Georges are making life at DAOU Vineyards beautiful. For them, it is all about family and bringing people together with wine, therefore a tasting room and a wine club.

The Tasting Room

Uncork the joie de vivre with DAOU wines at the tasting room, which boasts quite a view. Indulge and pair the wines with chef Spencer Johnston’s cuisine.

The Tasting Room is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. by reservation only.
Tasting fee is $50 per person.

The Soul of a Lion Vertical Tasting
Join for a tasting with a singular focus of Soul of a Lion. In honor of the 10th anniversary of the inaugural 2010 vintage, a vertical tasting of the 2016, 2017, and 2018 vintages of Soul of a Lion is being presented for a limited time.
DAOU Experience $110.

DAOU Family Estates, 2777 Hidden Mountain Rd., Paso Robles, CA 93446 | 805-226-5460

“Every day we strive to create an experience as beautiful as these wines, ensuring that everyone who leaves here feels like family. There is nothing more important to us than human connection.” Georges Daou.

Become a DAOU Club Member

The last weekend of every month DAOU Mountain is reserved exclusively for DAOU Members. Members get to enjoy their complimentary Member’s tasting while being treated to a few extra delights, including special releases, library offerings, limited-edition merchandise, and exciting entertainment like the awe-inspiring “DAOU Air,” a precision formation flying aircraft team taking flight over DAOU Mountain.

Every year, DAOU Vineyards celebrate the new Soul of a Lion vintage at an exclusive Family Estate Soirée. It always happens on February 11th, as it is the date Daou family patriarch Joseph Daou married Marie Daou.

> For more information, visit DAOU Vineyards official website.

RELATED: Other DAOU Vineyards’ wines on GAYOT.com

• Patrimony, Caves des Lions 2019 on The Best Wines to Give as a Gift
• Patrimony, 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon on The Best Cabernet Sauvignon
• Daou, Discovery Rosé 2022 on The Best Dinner Party Wines

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