2002 Côtes de Tablas

Production Notes

The Tablas Creek Vineyard Côtes de Tablas is a blend of four estate-grown Rhône varietals: Grenache Syrah, Mourvèdre and Counoise. Like most wines of the Southern Rhône, it is a blend of varietals, featuring the fruitiness of Grenache balanced by the meatiness of Mourvèdre and the spice and structure of Syrah. The 2002 Côtes de Tablas is Tablas Creek’s third release of its Côtes de Tablas red blend, made in the style of a full-throttle Côtes du Rhône.

The grapes for our Côtes de Tablas were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard.

The 2002 vintage was tremendous: warm and sunny, with cool nights that prolonged the hangtime of the grapes. The warmth and long hangtime led to grapes that were concentrated, rich, and ripe, but with good balance as well as ripeness. Our first lots of Syrah came in on September 10th, followed by Counoise on September 17th, and Grenache and Mourvèdre both on September 24th. The beautiful fall weather allowed us to bring in fruit when it was at peak ripeness, and allow other blocks to continue to mature. The harvest continued through October, with the last lot of Mourvèdre safely in the cellar on October 28th.

All varietals were fermented in stainless steel with the use of native yeasts: the Syrah in open-top fermenters, punched down manually, and the other varietals in closed fermenters with pump-over aeration. After pressing, the wines were racked, blended, aged for a year in 1200-gallon French oak foudres, and then bottled in June 2004. The wines underwent only a light filtration before bottling.

Tasting Notes

The 2002 Côtes de Tablas is a rich, spicy wine, with a juicy, meaty nose of rare steak, pepper and blueberry. The flavors are juicy and rich, with ripe tannins and a finish laced with licorice.

Updated tasting notes from a September 2011 tasting can be found on the Tablas Creek blog.

Reviews

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Recipe Suggestions

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Food Pairings

  • Grilled steaks
  • Pastas with meat sauces
  • Rich beef stews
  • Spicy sausages
Cotes de Tablas

Not Available for Purchase

Blend

  • 45% Grenache
  • 22% Syrah
  • 21% Mourvèdre
  • 12% Counoise

Technical Notes

  • 14.2% Alcohol by Volume
  • 3500 Cases Produced

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Upcoming Events

Celebrate Paso Robles Wine Festival with Tablas Creek

Join us for the Paso Robles Wine Community's biggest celebration! We'll pour Esprit de Beaucastel at Friday's Reserve Event and a range of new releases at Saturday's Grand Tasting. And all weekend we'll have special wines open at the winery and will be taking tours to visit our herd of sheep, alpacas and donkeys. Sunday 11am to 1:30pm enjoy Chef Jacob Lovejoy's small plates, free with a tasting. Details & more events »

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