Printable Restaurant/Shelf Talker

REVIEWS
The Rhone Report (Nov. 2009)
Piedmont Post (Nov. 2009)
Food & Wine (Oct. 2009)
Wine Advocate (Aug. 2009)
Wine Enthusiast (Aug. 2009)
Wine Review Online (May 2009)
Wine Spectator (Mar. 2009)
Tanzer's IWC (Nov. 2008)
Wine Advocate (Jun. 2008)

The Tablas Creek Vineyard Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc 2007 is a blend of three estate-grown varietals, propagated from budwood cuttings from the Château de Beaucastel estate. Roussanne provides the core richness, minerality, and flavors of honey and spice, while Grenache Blanc adds green apple and anise flavors, a lush mouthfeel and bright acids. Picpoul Blanc completes the blend, adding a saline minerality and bright acids.

The 2007 vintage was shaped by the cold, dry winter preceding it. The lack of ground water produced small, intensely flavored berries, and a very light crop. Yields on some varietals were down as much as 30%. The light yields and the consistent, warm summer led to a relatively early harvest and wines with tremendous color and flavor intensity. Grenache Blanc was harvested between September 6th and Octobe 1st, Roussanne between September 6th and October 24th, and Picpoul Blanc in one day on October 2nd.

As with all our wines, the grapes for our Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard.

The fruit was whole cluster pressed, and fermented with native yeasts. The Roussanne was fermented in a balance of stainless steel fermenters, 60-gallon oak barrels, and one 1200-gallon foudre. The Grenache Blanc was fermented partially in stainless steel and also in one foudre, and the Picpoul Blanc was fermented in small neutral oak and stainless steel barrels. All the wines went through malolactic fermentation. After a very long fermentation, the varietals were blended and bottled in August 2008.

The 2007 Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc is a powerful expression of the 2007 vintage at Tablas Creek. It shows aromas of rose petals, candied lemon, honeycomb, white pepper, and sweet oak, rich Roussanne flavors of honey and sweet spice and long, dry, slightly tropical finish. It should drink well when young but will also reward time in bottle; we expect it to show beautifully for at least the next 8-10 years.

Updated tasting notes from a May 2009 vertical tasting can be found on the Tablas Creek blog.