varietal: 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot
appellation: Paso Robles
vintage: 2018
alcohol: 15%
ta:0.55 g/100ml
ph:3.75
Vineyard Details: Our vineyards have decades-old vines planted in calcium rich and high pH soils whose dramatic complexity are derived from epochs of continental plate activity that contribute to the end- result of low-yielding, perfectly balanced fruit. Sixty- eight percent of this year’s fruit comes from block 48 and 49 in the hills at Santa Margarita Ranch and thirty-two percent comes from the Paso Robles Willow Creek District.
Winemaker Notes: Exceptionally complex nose with layers of leather, spice, black currant, nutmeg, and blackberry. Rich flavors of plum, black cherry, black olive, and Oolong tea. Dense and deep, this wine will continue to open up for hours, revealing complex aromas and flavors for those patient enough to decant. A serious wine that will evolve as the night goes on.
Maturation: The Margarita Vineyard and the Willow Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, along with the Petit Verdot, were kept in separate barrel lots for eighteen months, at which point the wines were racked out of barrel, blended, and put back to barrel for another six months to “marry”. We utilized around forty percent brand new French oak barrels comprised primarily of Nevers oak along with some Vosges/ Tronçais blends. The barrels were three-year air dried with medium-plus toast along with untoasted heads for mouthfeel.