2016 Viognier
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The 2016 Tablas Creek Vineyard Viognier is our seventh bottling, and our first since 2013, of the Rhone's best-known white grape. The Viognier grape, known more from the northern Rhone than the area around Chateauneuf du Pape, sprouts first of all our grapes, making it the most prone to frost, but was spared in 2016 and thrived in the year's warm days and cool nights.
Tasting Notes
The 2016 Viognier shows a characteristic nose of peaches, mint, coconut and tangerine. Essence of stone fruit on the palate, more nectarine in its restraint than the cling peaches many Viogniers exhibit. Good richness but still light on its feet, with the peaches and cream on the finish undercut by a welcome touch of citrus pith. Drink in the next five years.
Technical Details
Appellation
- Adelaida District Paso Robles
Technical Notes
- 12.9% Alcohol by Volume
- 175 Cases Produced
Blend
- 100% Viognier
Recipes & Pairings
Recipe Suggestions
Food Pairings
- White fishes with tropical salsa
- Spicy Asian preparations of fish or chicken
- Garlicky shellfish
- Green salads with citrus dressing
Production Notes
Our Viognier grapes were grown on our certified organic estate vineyard.
We use most of our Viognier in our Côtes de Tablas Blanc each year. However, in 2016, we were so pleased by our Viognier lots that we reserved a small quantity of Viognier for a single-varietal bottling
The 2016 vintage, while still marked by drought, saw better rainfall than the four previous years, and the vineyard showed good health through most of the growing season. That season started with a very early budbreak and continued warm weather spurred our earliest-ever beginning to harvest, on August 18th. But beginning mid-August, three cool weeks slowed the ripening for all but our earliest grapes, and allowed them to reach flavor and phenolic maturity with slightly above-average hang time. Yields were better than 2015: at 2.97 tons/acre, right at our 10-year average. The resulting vintage shows excellent concentration but also remarkable vibrancy, with electric acids framing appealing juiciness. Our Viognier was harvested between August 18th and September 5th.
The Viognier grapes were whole cluster pressed and fermented in stainless steel tanks using native yeasts, then blended and bottled in June 2017.