Ancient Peaks Cabernet Sauvignon 2020, Santa Margarita Ranch, Paso Robles, California

Cabernet Sauvignon is the longtime flagship wine of Ancient Peaks, helping drive the emergence of Paso Robles as a world-class region for this classic Bordeaux variety. At our estate Margarita Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon achieves both ripeness and balance amid one of the region’s coolest, longest growing seasons, all while drawing natural complexity from the vineyard’s uniquely complex soils. This wine comes from four distinct Cabernet Sauvignon blocks at Margarita Vineyard. Winemaking: After gentle destemming, the must was cold soaked for 48 hours prior to fermentation for a gentle extraction of color and flavor. After fermentation, the wine was racked to a combination of French and American oak barrels, where it aged for 18 months prior to blending and bottling. An inclusion of Merlot from Margarita Vineyard contributed dark berry dimension and mid-palate weight, while a dash of Cabernet Franc brought aromatic lift. Finally, a dash of Petite Sirah was included in the final blend for enhancd color and structure. Tasting notes: The 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon opens with heady aromas of black raspberry, cherry, sage and tobacco leaf. A juicy, mouth filling texture reveals seamless layers of currant, cherry, blueberry, dark plum and black olive with trailing hints of mocha, mineral and eucalyptus. Suggestions of vanilla bean join soft tannins on a smooth, rounded finish. 2020 composition: 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Malbec, 6% Petite Sirah, 3% Syrah.