A mystery wine was opened during our chilly December happy hour with our COVID wine tribe, warmed by the flames of their fire pit. We guessed New World, but couldn’t hone in on the varietal (not one we normally taste). It was revealed to be a Tannat, for which I have a fondness. I mean, it is a palindrome, after all – perhaps the only wine that is one.
We were first exposed to Tablas Creek wines at the MacArthur Beverages annual Red Barrel Tasting charity event in Washington, DC. When we couldn’t get to California to go wine tasting, MacArthur’s brought the wineries to us. Tablas Creek was one of the few Central Coast wines we could buy in its shop back then.
About Tablas Creek from its website: “Tablas Creek is a pioneer of California’s Rhone movement. Founded in 1989, it is the culmination of a friendship between two of the international wine community’s leading families dating back to 1967: the Perrin family of Chateau de Beaucastel and the Haas family of Vineyard Brands. After a four-year search, the partners chose Paso Robles, California, for its many similarities to the southern Rhone, and began the lengthy process of importing vine cuttings, building a grapevine nursery, and creating an estate vineyard from scratch.” Their blends include the flagship Esprit de Tablas red and Esprit de Tablas Blanc (modeled on the Chateau de Beaucastel red and white), the Cotes de Tablas red and Cotes de Tablas Blanc (a Californian take on Rhône classics), and Patelin de Tablas red and Patelin de Tablas Blanc (a “neighborhood” wine made from 8-12 of Paso Robles’ top Rhône-style vineyards).
2017 Tablas Creek Tannat, Adelaida District, Paso Robles AVA, 14.5% ABV, $40 (#204*)
About the 2017 Tannat: “The Tablas Creek Vineyard 2017 Tannat is Tablas Creek’s sixteenth bottling of this traditional varietal from South-West France, known principally in the Pyrenees foothills appellation of Madiran, but originally native to the Basque region. Tannat typically has intense fruit, spice, and tannins that produce wines capable of long aging.”
My Review: Leathery on the nose, New World on the palate, juicy and strong. We liked this wine. December 2020
You can buy this wine from the winery at the link above.
*Refers to wines tasted while Sheltering in Place on Sharon’s personal Facebook group “Sharon’s Central Coast (Monterey) Wine Blog” – including non-Central Coast wines.
Recent Comments