Tonight it’s a 2012 cabernet from California’s Paso Robles area that goes for $20 at Total Wine.
California’s 2012 vintage was supposedly excellent, so I keep picking up their 2012 reds as I find them. As I write this in October 2013, so far I’ve been disappointed. Obviously, the good stuff is still in oak barrels.
Paso Ranches smells sweet and very “stock, standard California” — and tastes the same way. Vanilla, red fruit, maybe some blueberry, too sweet for a cabernet, and no complexity. These characteristics are not what you expect in a $20 cabernet, especially when shopping at value leader Total Wine.
There is not anything terribly wrong with it, other than the price. But that’s enough for your Wineguider to declare Paso Ranches cabernet:
Not recommended.
Wineguider wine reviews 
Your palette is horrible. This wine is brimming with classic bright Paso Robles fruit. Your review deserves a fart into your mouth delivered by Venus Williams