Page 107 - San Luis Obispo Visitors Guide - Summer 2025

slovisitorsguide.com SUMMER 2025 107
Wine Tasting
HANDCRAFTED BOUTIQUE WINES
even Angels Cellars
Open Fri-Sun 12-5 and by appointment
2985 Anderson Rd., Paso Robles off the 46 West
805.835.4054 SevenAngelsCellars.com
New
Location!
Bruce Hansen and the wine roadshow
that put Paso Robles on the map
There was a time back in the
1990s when few people outside
of the area knew about Paso Robles
wine. “So a bunch of us decided
to take our wines on the road
and introduce them to the rest of
the country,” said Bruce Hansen,
founder and winemaker of Hansen
Vineyards. “We picked an area,
found someplace where we could
pour wine like a hotel or some
event, loaded the wine in the trunk
of the car, and off we’d go.”
The group made three or four
trips a year between 2003 and
2009 to locations in California, Las
Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas, and the
East Coast. “Sometimes we flew,
but most of the time we drove,”
Bruce said.
Rich Hartnberger, founder and
winemaker of Midnight Cellars,
Doug Kruse of Jack Creek Cellars,
Danny Panico of Dover Canyon
Winery, and Joe Barton of Grey
Wolf Barton Family Wines, came
immediately to Bruce’s mind when
talking about the wine roadshow.
Rich Hartenberger reports,
“These trips were critical to spread
the word. Paso was virtually
unknown back then, and people
were very open to learning about
this new, exciting wine region!” He
adds, “Of course, Justin Baldwin,
Tobin James, Gary Eberle, and Art
Norman, among many others, led
the way for all of us newcomers.”
Building wineries and creating
wine
Traveling for wine was noth-
ing new to Bruce. Before starting
Hansen Vineyards, he made a
living building winery and vineyard
buildings. “I must have built around
500 different buildings for wineries
from California up into Oregon,” he
said. “Yes. I built everything here,
too, from our home to the Cab
House, and the rest.”
Bruce Hansen’s personal history
with winemaking goes back to his
childhood in Michigan. “Dad made
wine at home and I helped him,
which didn’t make Mom happy,” he
reports. As an adult, he picked up
winemaking tips and lessons from
the various winemakers he worked
with when constructing their win-
ery buildings.
The friendships he made dur-
ing his construction years helped
launch Hansen Vineyards & Win-
ery. When the time came for him
to make wine, he bought a former
almond orchard in 1992. After
ripping out the old trees, he started
planting rootstock, which has be-
come 30 acres of 10 to 20-year-old
vines growing mostly cabernet sau-
vignon grapes. Hansen Vineyards
2001 Cabernet Sauvignon was his
first release.
“I had some great mentors,”
said Bruce as he listed off names
including Gary Eberle, Craig Reed,
now at Castoro Cellars, Alan Kinne,
‘We loaded our
wine in the trunk
of the car, and off
we went’
Owner and winemaker Bruce Hansen pouring for a barrel tasting.