—Sweet, sticky dessert wines can make a great accompaniment to holiday dessert selections. After tasting several Paso Robles dessert wines, these are our top recommendations.

Serve them after your holiday meal with a dessert or as dessert. They also pair wonderfully with cheeses. These wines make perfect holiday gifts from Paso Robles. Enjoy!

Top local dessert wine recommendations

Bianchi 2020 Syrah P1 — $41
A port-style dessert wine made 100% from grapes grown in Paso Robles and fortified with neutral grape spirits. This “ruby” style is named after its youthful bright color which is deep purple out of the glass. Aromas of caramel, nuts, and wood spice are followed by spice and chocolate with smooth plum and sweet grape shortly behind.

Brecon Estate 2017 Late Harvest Gewurztraminer — $44
This 100% newly released gewurztraminer has ginger, madras, and cloves with intense floral aromatics to treasure. Lychee, pineapple, and nutty almond overtones add complexity. Only 97 cases were produced. It makes a great holiday gift or dessert for holiday celebrations.

Broken Earth Winery Ragpickers Dream — $28
Made from four traditional Portuguese varietals: Touriga Nacional, Tinta Cao, Sousao, and Tinta Roriz, this dessert wine perfectly balances ripe berries with a silky smooth finish. This port is sure to complement a multitude of desserts but is divine enough to be enjoyed on its own.

Four Sisters Ranch 2020 Late Harvest Cabernet Sauvignon — $24
The wine is delicate and sweet, but with the complexity of Cabernet Sauvignon. Pairs well with a cheese course, such as blue cheese or aged cheddar.

PasoPort Winery Angelica White Port — $50
This unique dessert wine contains a proprietary blend of verdelho, muscat blanc, and old vine, dry-farmed chenin blanc. Its barrel-aged components date back to 2003. Its first impressions are aromatic and alluring, with perfumed scents of orange essence, hyacinth, and lilac. The flavors are pure and redolent of honeysuckle, white peach, tangerine, and crème brulee. The finish lasts, creating a memorable tasting experience that can’t be satisfied with just a single sip.

Riverstar 2016 Angelita — $25
An inky, dark purple fortified Touriga Nacional, Tinto Cao and Souza dessert wine with balanced sweetness. It offers delicious flavors of berry, plum and chocolate. It’s a perfect holiday port-style wine, named for the family matriarch of the winery. 18.5% alcohol. It is a great value in this category.

Tobin James 2017 James Gang Reserve Port — $28
The port-style dessert wine is rich and full-bodied. It was aged two years and then fortified with brandy. Flavors are full of dark chocolate-covered cherry, a rush of red fruit with nutty tones meeting chocolate. It will pair well with dark chocolate truffles, an apple crisp, or salted caramels. It’s also delicious with a variety of rich cheeses. 20% alcohol.

Twin Coyotes Stowaway Dessert Wine — $38
Stow this port-style wine away for an evening in front of the fireplace. It’s a delightful blend of merlot and three traditional port grapes: Touriga Nacional, Tinta Cao, and Souzão, and fortified with brandy. This silky smooth wine makes a beautiful gift and a self-indulgent pleasure.

Victor Hugo Winery 2019 Modo Dessert Malbec — $32
This is a rich and intense dessert wine with deep aromas of unsweetened chocolate and notes of dark roast coffee and cassis. It has rich, lingering tannins complimented by spicy oak and an extended rich finish.

Vina Robles 2012 Segredo — $32
Segredo ( Portuguese for secret) is a limited-production, fortified red dessert wine inspired by traditional ports. The unique “secret” is the use of petite sirah which lends itself to producing age-worthy wines with layers of richness.

Vista Del Rey 2018 Barbera Dessert Wine — $30
Winemaker Dave King took a little barbera and made a dessert wine in a port style. The result is a superb and sticky dessert wine. It tastes like dark berries, dark chocolate, and spices. It is 19 percent alcohol and comes in a 375ml bottle. This was one of our favorites.

See more Paso Robles wine recommendations

• Best local sparkling wines
• Best local rosé wines
• Best local white wines
• Best local Pinot Noir
• Best local zinfandel wines
• Best local Rhone-style red wines and red blends
• Best cabernet, Bordeaux-style, and red wines
• Best local dessert wines

Publisher’s note: For the ninth year in a row we thought it would be a great idea to recommend local wines for the holidays. Once again, we received an amazing amount of participation from our local wineries. Over the last two weeks, we received more than 100 entries. There were many solid, well-made wines to recommend. We have created several lists of top local wines into categories. The recommended wines above are in alphabetical order.