2011 Esprit de Tablas Blanc
The Tablas Creek Vineyard 2011 Esprit de Tablas Blanc* 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 tropical notes.
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93 points; "pure, with lovely energy and mid-palate depth": Wine Advocate (May 2018)
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96 points; "full and honeyed": Decanter (Oct. 2015)
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92 points; "spicy, penetrating and pure": Tanzer's I.W.C (Dec. 2013)
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"a marvelous mix of spice, herb, yellow and green berries": Paul Gregutt (Oct. 2013)
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93 points; "beautifully clear, detailed and balanced": Wine Advocate (Aug. 2013)
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92-95 "full bodied, perfectly balanced". Rhone Report (June 2012)
Tasting Notes
The 2011 Esprit de Tablas Blanc is a classic Esprit Blanc, with aromatics dominated by non-fruit descriptors: mineral, sea spray, grilled bread and a hint of non-toasted oak. The mouth is dramatically rich and broad, with the vintage's acidity showing in the front palate, rich Roussanne in the mid-palate, and a hint of tannin from the Grenache Blanc on the long, nutty finish. A fascinating combination of rich and very dry. Still a baby, this is a serious white to age for up to 15 years or more.
Updated tasting notes from a July 2020 vertical tasting can be found on the Tablas Creek blog.
Technical Details
Appellation
- Paso Robles
Technical Notes
- 13.5% Alcohol
- 2400 Cases Produced
Blend
- 64% Roussanne
- 26% Grenache Blanc
- 10% Picpoul Blanc
Recipes & Pairings
Food Pairings
- Cooked shellfish (lobster, softshell crab, shrimp)
- Roasted or grilled vegetables (eggplant, asparagus, peppers)
- Foods cooked with garlic and olive oil
- Rich fish dishes (i.e., salmon, swordfish)
- Asian stir fry
Production Notes
*Curious about the new name of our signature blends? Please read about this change on our blog post.
The 2011 vintage was our second consecutive winter with healthy rainfall, but yields were dramatically reduced by two nights of frost on April 8th and 9th, impacting particularly early-sprouting grapes like Viognier and Grenache Blanc. Despite the low crop loads, ripening was slow due to a very cool summer, and harvest roughly three weeks later than normal, beginning in mid-September and not concluding until mid-November. Warm, sunny weather during harvest allowed the later-ripening varieties to reach full maturity. The long hangtime and low yields combined to produce fruit with notable richness balanced by higher than usual acidity, all at low alcohol levels. Our Roussanne was harvested between September 22nd and November 8th, Grenache Blanc between September 29th and October 20th, and Picpoul between October 19th and 27th.
The grapes for our Esprit de Tablas 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. The lots were selected and blended in April, and bottled in July 2012.