2010 Patelin de Tablas Blanc

Production Notes

The Tablas Creek Vineyard Patelin de Tablas Blanc is a blend of four white Rhône varietals: Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Roussanne, and Marsanne. The wine incorporates fruit from five top Rhone vineyards in Paso Robles, each vineyard selected for its quality. Like many white wines from the Southern Rhône, it is based on the crisp acids and rich mouthfeel of Grenache Blanc, with Viognier added for floral, tropical aromatics, and small additions of Roussanne and Marsanne for structure.

The sources for the Patelin de Tablas Blanc grapes are:

• Viognier from the biodynamically-farmed Chequera Vineyard in the cool Templeton Gap
• Tablas-clone Roussanne, Marsanne and Grenache Blanc from the Edward Sellers Vineyard in the Templeton Gap
• Tablas-clone Grenache Blanc from the Dawson’s Creek Vineyard in the limestone-rich El Pomar region of Templeton
• Tablas-clone Grenache Blanc from Catherine’s Vineyard in El Pomar
• Grenache Blanc from the Tablas Creek estate vineyard.

The 2010 vintage saw healthy rainfall after three years of drought. The ample early-season groundwater and a lack of spring frosts produced a good fruit set. A very cool summer delayed ripening by roughly three weeks, with harvest not beginning until mid-September and still less than half complete in mid-October. Warm, sunny weather between mid-October and mid-November allowed the later-ripening varieties to reach full maturity. The long hangtime and cool temperatures combined to produce fruit with intense flavors at low alcohol levels. The grapes were harvested from Edward Sellers Vineyard between September 24th and 30th, from Dawson’s Creek on September 28th, and from both Chequera and Catherine’s Vineyard on October 1st. The Grenache Blanc lots from Tablas Creek were harvested throughout October.

All varietals for the Patelin de Tablas Blanc were whole cluster pressed, and fermented in stainless steel to emphasize the clean crisp flavors and preserve the aromatics. Only native yeasts were used. After fermentation, the wines were racked and blended, and bottled in February 2011.

Vineyard Sources

• Edward Sellers Vineyard 30%
• Chequera Vineyard 29%
• Tablas Creek Vineyard 16%
• Catherine’s Vineyard 13%
• Dawson’s Creek Vineyard 12%

Tasting Notes

The 2010 Patelin de Tablas Blanc is a blend in the style of French Cotes du Rhone whites, with flavors of lemon and mineral, a hint of tropicality from the Viognier, and a long finish with surprising richness.

Reviews

• S.F. Chronicle "Top 100 of 2011" (Dec. 2011)
• 89 points: The Rhone Report (Dec. 2011)
• 89 points: Tanzer's IWC (Nov. 2011)
• 89 points: Wine Advocate (Aug. 2011)
• "Best Buy" & 89 points: Wine&Spirits (Aug. 2011)
• 93 points: Simple Hedonisms (Jun. 2011)
• "A smile-maker": Detroit News (Jun. 2011)
• "The Chronicle Recommends": S.F. Chronicle (Jun. 2011)
• "Exceptional": Dan Berger (Apr. 2011)

[...more recent Tablas Creek press]

Recipe Suggestions

• Mussels Mariniere
• Fish with Fennel

[...more recipes]

Food Pairings

• Seafood cooked with garlic and white wine
• Green salads with avocado and citrus dressing
• Lemon chicken
• Scallops
• Light-fleshed fish with tropical salsa

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