Last week, The Daily took a road trip to Paso Robles, California to check out the stunning Daou Vineyards for an unforgettable adventure. We left via luxury party bus from West Hollywood on Wednesday and brought along some of our favorite models, content creators, and wine lovers. Our special guests included Tessa Brooks, Blake Gray, Christina Caradona, Josie Canseco, Manasvi, Nick Champa, Darren Kennedy, Hunter Kohl, and Edward Antonyan.
And we’re off…
The adventure began when we arrived at the Allegerto Vineyard Resort, a stunning spot located on 20-acres, which features Tuscan-style architecture and museum-caliber artwork. Our guests were given their first official taste of Daou and then escorted to a gifting suite where they received wine bottle baskets as well as goodies from Cinq à Sept, Mackage, Moleskine, Hobo Bags, Dae Hair, Ellis Brooklyn,CoffeeFace Halara, and Hiro Clark.
With wine in hand, the group got a private tour of Allegreto and learned about the level of detail that makes this spot feel like you’ve been transported to Europe. Situated amid fertile vineyards, the resort features sprawling gardens, bocce ball courts, a spa, poolside cabanas, and first-rate dining. The resort is also just minutes away from the Daou Vineyard.
Christina Caradona in Cinq à Sept at Allegretto Vineyard Resort
The first excursion for the group was held at the Loading Chute Barn where our gang experienced a Country and Western themed night with a live band, line dancing, lasso lessons, and perhaps the biggest hit of the night, customized cowboy hats for all. The night included a sit-down dinner buffet and plenty of Daou.
Josie Canseco
Tessa Brooks
Edward Antonyan and Nick Champa
Christina Caradona
Helina Cartagena
Jenna Kujundzich, Helina Cartagena, Maeve Pesquera, and Allegra Amoroso
The next morning the group hopped back on the party bus to head to the Daou Vineyards where the red (wine) carpet was rolled out for us. Maeve Pesquera, senior vice president, strategy & business development at Daou, welcomed everyone and told the the inspiring story of how brothers, George Daou and Daniel Daou, founded the brand. The siblings were born in Beirut, Lebanon and moved to France after a turbulent time and an almost near death experience as children in their country. Through their courage and tenacity, they built a trauma bond as brothers and developed a close relationship that is maintained today. While living in France, they (particularly Daniel Daou) were bit by the wine bug. The brothers eventually ended up in California to attend college and pursue careers in tech. Their family eventually asked them to move back to France due to financial issues but the brothers asked their family to move to the States to seek the American dream. The brothers had big success in technology but Daniel never gave up his dream of being a winemaker. After they sold the tech company, the family pursued their dream and finally started a wine business. Eventually they landed in the Western mountains of Paso Robles due to the proximity of the ocean, elevation, soil, and climate, which made it the perfect place to make a world class Cabernet and Bordeaux. And the rest is history… (We say thank you, thank you, thank you!)
Getting back to our adventure… The first activity of the day was the group siting down on a long table with charcuterie and oysters to make their own blends of wine. Members of the Daou team explained how different blends go together and can be experimented. The gang mixed cab sav and cab franc and merlot and malbec to make their own unique blends.
Hunter Kohl, Eddie Roche, and Darren Kennedy
Nick Champa
Manasvi
Blake Gray
Darren Kennedy
After a delicious lunch of steak and scallops, the group then got an exclusive visit to the Daou Family Estates barrel room. This is where the wine goes to mature and we were given tastes of wine that came straight from the barrels. Heaven!
Nandini Vaid
A few hours later… Back at Daou Vineyards! A live band entertained our group during dinner and eventually fire performers showed up. The highlight of the night (beside a make your own S’mores bar) was a visit from local conservation ambassadors from Zoo to You. They brought along a baby kangaroo, laughing kookaburra, snake, frog, vulture, and armadillo.
Nick Champa
Hunter Kohl
On departure day, Daou held a pink themed rose’ brunch for the group at the Allegreto in their outdoor courtyard. Guests received bottles of Ellis Brooklyn perfume as a parting gift.
Perfect weather, perfect people, and perfect wine. No DAOU’bt about it!
Daily Daou Class of 2024
Manasvi in Cinq à Sept
Josie Cancesco in Cinq à Sept
Hats off to the extraordinary team at Daou for cultivating a dream excursion!
IMAGES: CAROLINE FISS/COURTESY
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