Experience Spring Wildflower Tours with Ancient Peaks Winery

by Amanda Wittstrom-Higgins

The renewing spirit of spring is always reflected in the vineyard. The skeletal vines of winter come alive with fresh green shoots, and in later spring, little “flower” clusters begin to appear. During this flowering stage, the process of pollination and fertilization sets the crop for the coming vintage.

At our estate Margarita Vineyard on the historic Santa Margarita Ranch, the real springtime flower show is found in the surrounding hills and meadows, where more than 30 different species of wildflowers have been identified.

For this reason, we offer our Ancient Peaks Winery Spring Wildflower Tours every Saturday in April from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., departing from the Ancient Peaks tasting room in Santa Margarita.

These guided tours include a gourmet boxed lunch and a Central Coast Wildflower Book, and they conclude with a sampling of Ancient Peaks wines at the tasting room. The cost is $40 per person ($30 for Ancient Peaks wine club members), all inclusive.

Santa Margarita Ranch spans more than 14,000 acres of mostly open space across numerous habitats, elevations and soil types. Our sustainable ranching and winegrowing practices have accelerated the restoration of native flora in the surrounding landscape.

The result is a striking blend of wildflowers and other intriguing plants. Indian paintbrush, lupin, buttercups, Johnny jump-ups and poppies are among the flowers that flourish at the ranch. The pink-red Indian warrior also abounds, feeding on the abundant chaparral. Another interesting find on the ranch is soap weed, a fibrous plant Native Americans used as a natural soap. They also dried it out to make rope. The ranch was home to indigenous peoples for more than 10,000 years and currently offers visitors a glimpse into what life was like in this untouched part of the world.

Don’t expect to see waves and waves of color on our tours—our landscape is too diverse for that. Our tours are more educational in nature. Yes, you will see plenty of pretty flowers, and since our guide is a local horticulture major at Cal Poly and a local horticultural fanatic, you will also be exposed to flowers and plants that you wouldn’t notice at first glance. 
 
The past winter in Paso Robles and across coastal California was unusually dry, but we’ve been blessed with a few March rainstorms that have greened up the hills and boosted the wildflower season. I hope you can come out and see the show with us.

Amanda Wittstrom-Higgins is a fourth-generation Paso Robles native with deep family roots in local agriculture and ranching. As the vice president of sales and marketing for Ancient Peaks Winery, Amanda oversees the national distribution and direct sales of Ancient Peaks wines, as well as the winery tasting room and visitor experience.

 

Small, Undiscovered Wineries in Paso Robles

by Coy Barnes

Looking forward to holiday gatherings, it might be nice to think about bringing a wine from a winery that has yet to be discovered. 

Paso Robles is well known for its powerhouse boutique wineries such as Tablas Creek, Terry Hoage Vineyards, and Booker Wines.  Each of those wineries currently has a tasting room where you can visit and taste some of their wines.  However, there are many tiny wineries that exist under the radar that are making high quality small lot wines here in Paso Robles that don’t have tasting rooms. 

A few examples of great wines come from producers such as Twin Coyotes, St. Hillaire, Del Real, Sharp's Hill, and Clesi, among others.  You can bet that the friends and family gathered around the holiday buffet will be impressed if you pull out a bottle of Chateau Lettau Rockstar, especially when you tell them you got it from Ron himself. 

People who appreciate great wine can find them from the unknown unheralded wineries in this region.   So if you’re looking for the next cult Syrah, Rhone blend,