It is my pleasure to share the brilliant wines of Paso Robles legend Tablas Creek. Founded by Jean-Pierre and François Perrin and Robert Haas on what was formerly an former alfalfa farm they struck gold planting vines on limestone soils in the Adelaida Hills. They saw immense potential to produce wines with stony minerality. From the beginning they focused on Rhône-style wines made organically. The first plantings took place in 1994 and the first Tablas Creek Vineyard wines produced in 1997. The winery has been an incredible success since that time, reaching worldwide acclaim particularly for their Rhone style red and white blends. I remember first tasting these beautiful wines more than twenty years ago.
I love visiting this historic Paso site. Earlier in the year I tasted with CEO Jason Haas who has incredible knowledge about the wines, region and estate vineyard. I am totally blown away with the 2023 Tablas Creek ‘Espirit de Tablas’ Red Wine (OB, 96) which needs a lot of air now but is a thrilling, highly complex wine to consume even in its bright, tension-filled youth Learn more about these outstanding wines at https://tablascreek.com Here are the outstanding new wines by Tablas Creek.
2024 Tablas Creek ‘Patelin de Tablas Blanc’ White Wine- This edition of ‘Patelin de Tablas Blanc’ is mostly Grenache Blanc (40%) and Viognier (29%). This is vibrant and juicy with pear and starfruit flavors alongside racy minerality on the palate. Drink 2025-2030- 91
2024 Tablas Creek ‘Cotes de Tablas Blanc’ White Wine- The outstanding 2024 Tablas Creek ‘Cotes de Tablas Blanc’ White Wine is 41% Viognier and 26% Marsanne with smaller portions Grenache Blanc, Picardin and Clairette Blanche. This is round and generous, laden with tension. Orange zest and Key lime combine with suggestions of white peach and nutty underpinnings on the palate. Drink 2025-2033- 93
2024 Tablas Creek ‘Alouette’ Grenache- The 2024 Tablas Creek ‘Alouette’ Grenache is a unique, chillable Grenache that tastes terrific at a warmer temperature as well. Candied red fruits and cranberry notes combine with shades of exotic spice and stony soils on the palate. Delicious and tart, with lovely citrus fruit rounding things out, enjoy now. Drink 2025-2032- 92
2023 Tablas Creek Syrah- The seriously good 2023 Tablas Creek Syrah shows off white pepper and iodine on the nose alongside beef brisket and mountain huckleberry on the nose. The palate is fresh and lithe with a great vein of tension. Medium-bodied dark and red fruits greet you alongside wild herbs on the palate. Drink 2025-2033- 93
2023 Tablas Creek Mourvedre- A leaner and more linear version of this varietal, the 2023 Tablas Creek Mourvedre offers considerable flavor complexity rather than flavor density. A killer melange of red and dark fruits greet you on the palate, alongside shades of Hoisin sauce and blood orange zest that produce a fabulous mouth-watering effect. While personally I would prefer a touch more weight, you can’t argue with the personality and beautiful range performed here. Drink 2025-2033- 94
2023 Tablas Creek ‘Espirit de Tablas’ Red Wine- Another stunning edition of this wine, the 2023 ‘Espirit de Tablas’ combines 33% Mourvèdre (compared to 40% in 2022) and 31% Syrah (compared to 22% in 2022) alongside 26% Grenache and small parts Cinsault, Vaccarese and Counoise. The heady aromatics entice as herbs de Provence, orange peel, white pepper dusted beef, and shades of oyster sauce all parade on the nose. The palate is fresh and rich with a terrific sense of texture and underlying verve. This might not be the most dense or heady edition of this wine, but the flavor complexity and freshness makes this simply irresistible to enjoy right now. Simply put, the novelty is astonishingly good as there might not be another wine quite like this in the world. Be sure to give this about an hour in the decanter if savoring now. Drink 2025-2040- 96