Set down a glass of sparkling Blanc de Noirs in the oak-dappled courtyard of a Willow Creek estate and you have already met Dilecta. Sparkling wine made from red grapes is rare anywhere in Paso Robles, and pouring it as a welcome is exactly the kind of warmth this family trades on. Dilecta was founded in 2011, and today it is run as a true mother-and-son partnership: Paloma Bilson, the instinctive blender at the heart of the house, and her son Andre Minassian. Together they make small-lot Rhone and Bordeaux blends in the cool, high, limestone-rich hills of the Willow Creek District.

A family of two, blending as one

Dilecta means lovely, and the name fits the spirit of the place. Founded in 2011, the winery is now owned and run by Paloma Bilson and her son Andre Minassian, a mother-son team whose roles complement each other. Paloma is described as the heart and soul of the operation, bringing an intuitive, almost instinctive approach to blending and a focus on the small nuances that distinguish one vintage from the next. Andre, born in 1993 with Armenian and Portuguese roots, grew up understanding wine as something inseparable from food, family, and the table.

That shared philosophy shows in how Dilecta presents itself. This is not a high-volume operation chasing scores. It is a small-lot, family-run house built around connection, craftsmanship, and storytelling, the kind of place where the people who poured your wine also blended it. The intimacy is the product as much as the wine is.

A glass of sparkling Blanc de Noirs in the courtyard is the welcome, and sparkling red-grape wine is rare anywhere in Paso.

Oak-studded slopes of Willow Creek

Dilecta’s estate sits in the Willow Creek District on the west side of Paso Robles, on slopes shaded by California oaks. This is the cool, high-bedrock core of the Paso west side, where elevations climb from roughly 960 feet toward 1,900 feet and the ground is built of calcareous Monterey-Formation loams and clay. It is the limestone heart of the region, and that stony, lean soil pushes vines to struggle in the best way, producing small, concentrated berries with firm structure and bright acidity.

The climate is Region II, cooler than the Paso valley floor, with marine air slipping through the Templeton Gap each evening to drop temperatures hard after a hot afternoon. That dramatic day-to-night swing is the secret behind the area’s best wines: the heat ripens flavor, while the cool nights lock in freshness. For both Rhone and Bordeaux grapes, and especially for a sparkling base wine that needs racy acidity, it is ideal ground.

The wines, glass by glass

The reds split between two traditions and do both well. The Rhone side leans on Syrah and Grenache, often blended together: expect dark plum and blackberry from the Syrah, lifted by Grenache’s bright raspberry and warm baking spice, with the savory, peppery edge that cool Willow Creek sites tend to deliver. The Bordeaux side runs bolder and more structured, built on Cabernet and its blending partners, with cassis, dark cherry, graphite, and the firm, fine-grained tannin that limestone country gives.

The showpiece is the sparkling Blanc de Noirs, a white sparkling wine made from red grapes that is genuinely uncommon in Paso. It is crisp and celebratory, with red-fruit lift, fine bubbles, and the kind of mouthwatering acidity that makes it a natural welcome pour. Across the range, the wines are made in small lots, so the lineup rewards the curious: this is a place to taste through and find the bottle that speaks to you.

What to pour Dilecta with

Match the wine’s structure to the plate. The Bordeaux blends carry firm tannin, and tannin binds to protein and fat, softening on the palate and letting the dark fruit shine. That makes the Cabernet-based wines superb with red-oak-grilled tri-tip, a dry-aged steak, or braised short ribs, where the fat tames the tannin and the wine’s graphite-and-cassis core stands up to the char. The Rhone Syrah-Grenache blends love roasted lamb, herbed sausage, and mushroom dishes, their pepper and red fruit echoing the seasoning. Keep chile heat in check, since alcohol amplifies capsaicin and can make a bold red taste hot and thin.

The sparkling Blanc de Noirs is the versatile one. Its high acidity cuts richness and scrubs the palate clean, which is why bubbles are magic with fried chicken, salty charcuterie, fresh oysters, and anything crisp and salty. Acid in the wine refreshes against oil and salt, resetting each bite. For a tailored pairing to a specific bottle or dish, run it through our wine pairing generator.

Visiting Dilecta Wines

Dilecta welcomes guests to its oak-studded estate in the Willow Creek District, on the limestone-rich west side of Paso Robles, where a glass of sparkling Blanc de Noirs in the courtyard often sets the tone. Because this is a small, family-run house focused on an intimate experience, plan to visit by reservation, and confirm current days and hours directly with the winery before you go. Come ready to taste across both the Rhone and Bordeaux sides of the lineup, and do not skip the sparkling, which is a local rarity. To build a full west-side day around your visit, our Paso Robles guide can help you map the surrounding wineries and districts.

Dilecta Wines: common questions