Winemaker Notes
The 2021 Pearl Cabernet Sauvignon is a blockbuster wine that shows the full potential of Cabernet Sauvignon grown at Margarita Vineyard. Scents of violets, blackberry and black currant reveal hints of loam, olive, coffee and graphite. The palate is beautifully weighted, delivering flavors of raspberry and black fruit with subtle accents of mint, mocha and peppercorn. The finish is sleek, fresh and stacked with bold yet polished tannins that promise longevity in the bottle.
Blend: 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
Clean and lush aromas of black cherry and blackberry pick up a savory pecan note on the nose of this top-shelf Cab from a producer that essentially occupies this entire appellation. The palate amps up the savory side, showing black tea and roasted coffee flavors that give depth to the dark fruit and light mint core.
-
James Suckling
Leather and crushed violets provide layered counterpoints to currants and boysenberries. A beam of tense, tealike tannins, long and balanced, is carried by a classic undertow of cedar and cigar humidor, promising a solid evolution in the cellar. Drink or hold.
We are a family-owned winery specializing in estate-grown wines from Margarita Vineyard, the southernmost vineyard in the Paso Robles appellation on California’s Central Coast.
Just look at a map of Paso Robles wineries and at the very southern tip you will find our Vineyard. Here, amid the rugged Santa Lucia mountain range just 14 miles from the Pacific Ocean, Margarita Vineyard stands alone as the only vineyard in its vicinity, and thus the only vineyard to benefit from the extraordinary growing conditions of the area. Margarita Vineyard resides in the historic Santa Margarita Ranch, which was first planted to vines by Franciscan missionaries in 1774.
Ancient Peaks and Margarita Vineyard are owned by three longtime local winegrowing families—the Filipponis, Rossis and Wittstroms—who are actively involved in the daily operations of the vineyard and winery. Ancient Peaks wines are crafted under the guidance of Mike Sinor, a local winemaking veteran and one of the highest-rated winemakers on the Central Coast.
Ancient Peaks implements numerous sustainable viticultural practices to ensure natural quality in their wines while protecting the rich, native environment surrounding the Margarita Vineyard. Their practices have earned SIP (Sustainability in Practice) Certification for Margarita Vineyard, the leading standard for viticultural sustainability.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
Composed of steep mountain slopes of ancient Salinas River origins at 900 to 1,400 feet in elevation, Santa Margarita Ranch is in the southern portion of the greater Paso Robles AVA.