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2005 Antithesis Chardonnay
Production Notes
The 2005 Tablas Creek Vineyard Antithesis Chardonnay is Tablas Creek’s sixth bottling of this traditional Burgundian varietal. In the early 1990s, we imported all our Rhône varietal cuttings from France. At the same time, at the request of a Sonoma winery, we imported the highly regarded small-berry, low-vigor Chardonnay clone named “La Vineuse” and planted 1.5 acres to produce a small amount of bud wood for sale. Three years later, we got our first small crop of Chardonnay.
After tasting the grapes, we thought them so compelling that we made the “Antithesis” Chardonnay our first non-Rhône bottling, as well as our first single-varietal wine. We have continued to produce a small amount (50-250 cases) each year since.
Our Chardonnay grapes were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard.
Chardonnay thrives in our chalky clay soils (much like those of Burgundy), and the cool nights in Paso Robles serve to balance the warm, sunny days. We chose a terraced north-east facing block above our grapevine nursery for the Chardonnay.
The 2005 vintage was one of nature’s lucky breaks, with excellent quality and higher-than-normal yields. The wet winter of ’04–’05 gave the grapevines ample groundwater, and a warm period in March got the vines off to an early May flowering. The summer was uniformly sunny but relatively cool, and harvest began (relatively late for us) in the 3rd week of September, giving the grapes nearly a month longer than normal on the vine. The resulting wines were intensely mineral, with good structure and powerful aromatics. The Chardonnay, as usual our earliest-ripening varietal, was harvested in one day on September 23rd.
The Chardonnay grapes were whole cluster pressed, and fermented using native yeasts in 2- to 6-year-old barrels to preserve the wine’s varietal and mineral character. The wine went through full malolactic fermentation in barrel. It was bottled in May 2006.
Tasting Notes
The 2005 Antithesis is intensely Chardonnay in character: pale gold in color, with a nose of lemon, pear, and mineral, a rich palate of spiced pear, citrus and butter, balanced by fresh acidity, and a long, clean finish.
Reviews
[...more recent Tablas Creek press]
Recipe Suggestions
Food Pairings
- Chicken in cream sauce
- Light-fleshed fish
- Baked scallops
- Lobster with butter sauce
Not Available for Purchase
Blend
- 100% Chardonnay
Technical Notes
- 14.3% Alcohol by Volume
- 225 Cases Produced
Downloads
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February Featured Wine: 2009 Tannat
Each month, we feature a wine that we feel is showing particularly well, and offer that wine at a 10% discount. The 2009 Tannat is dark and smoky, rich with fruit yet powerfully structured. The Wine Advocate gave it 90-93 points and called it "absolutely fabulous...with an opulent, full-bodied personality graced with exquisite inner perfume". Read more » or order online »
On the Blog: Mapping out Tablas Creek's future
February 1, 2012
It's been a busy couple of years for us. We expanded our winery, launched the Patelin de Tablas wines, and dove into Biodynamics. But perhaps the biggest investment we've made in the long-term success of Tablas Creek is the purchase of the 150-acre parcel to our south. Read more »