2018 Paper Planes Hidden Track Grenache Russian River Valley 750 ml

Lovers of satiny, elegant reds take note. Grenache is a rising single-variety superstar in California, and the 2018 Paper Planes Hidden Track shows the grape in all its energetic, graceful glory. 

Boasting silky tannins and earthy spice tones, his 2018 hails from a single vineyard in the celebrated Russian River Valley. The region might be best known for its Pinot Noirs, but savvy winemakers and wine lover know that the region’s signature fog and cool hillsides can elicit just as much complexity, elegance, and vibrancy in Grenache. 

This wine is proof. It’s so enchanting that our wine team called it one of the best pure Grenaches they’ve tried, with cherry, tobacco, cardamom, and red-rose tones that float ethereally on soft tannins over a lingering finish. Wine Enthusiast agreed, saying “this intriguing red sings in balanced contrast and deliciousness.”

Grenache has spent decades as the backbone of famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Priorat wines, yet hasn’t always enjoyed similar prestige in the New World. But as Wine Spectator put it, the variety is “one of the most exciting and enticing wines to emerge in California in the past decade, capable of stardom.” That was in 2010. Today, the quality of California Grenache wines has skyrocketed—and Paper Planes captures that deliciously. 

2018 was a steady, pick-at-your-leisure kind of year. Grapes ripened slowly, developing complexity and yielding wines of “incredible top-tier quality,” according to Jeb Dunnuck. Paper Planes’ Grenache enjoyed two more weeks of hangtime than in 2017. The result, after a semi-carbonic maceration, is bright, layered, and endlessly enjoyable.