2023 Esprit de Tablas Blanc
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The Tablas Creek Vineyard 2023 Esprit de Tablas Blanc is our flagship white blend, chosen from the top lots of six white Rhone varieties 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, lush mouthfeel and bright acids. Picpoul Blanc adds pineapple brightness and saline minerality, Bourboulenc provides limestoney, citrusy lift, Picardan brings a little burst of acid, with mineral notes, and Clairette Blanche finishes with clean fruitiness and chalky minerality.
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97 points; "without a doubt one of the great white wines that you will taste on the West Coast": Owen Bargreen (Feb. 2025)
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94-96 points; "punchy, powerful and round in texture with a surprising elegance and understated quality.": Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Sep. 2024)
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94-96 points; "a gorgeous and mineral-driven Esprit de Tablas Blanc": Vinous (July 2024)
Tasting Notes
A nose equally poised between Roussanne and brighter notes, including kiwi, honeycomb, baked apple, lemongrass, and toasted pine nuts. On the palate, mouth-filling with flavors of quince and pear, rich texture, lovely acids, and notes of jasmine and salty minerals on the lingering finish.
Technical Details
Appellation
- Adelaida District Paso Robles
Technical Notes
- 12.5% Alcohol by Volume
- 2100 Cases Produced
Blend
- 48% Roussanne
- 22% Grenache Blanc
- 13% Picpoul Blanc
- 10% Bourboulenc
- 5% Picardan
- 2% Clairette Blanche
Certifications
Recipes & Pairings
Recipe Suggestions
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
The 2023 vintage began with our wettest-ever winter, replenishing ground water and delaying budbreak. It continued with our coolest growing season in more than a decade, which combined with the late start to produce a harvest roughly a month later than most recent years, beginning in mid-September and not concluding until mid-November. Warm, sunny weather starting in October allowed the later-ripening varieties to reach full maturity. The exceptionally long hangtime and gradual ripening combined to produce fruit with deep colors, remarkable intensity, and noteworthy vibrancy. We believe 2023 has all the hallmarks of a blockbuster year.
The grapes for our Esprit de Tablas Blanc were grown on our biodynamic and Regenerative Organic Certified™ estate vineyard.
The fruit was whole cluster pressed, and fermented with native yeasts. The Roussanne was fermented in oak of various sizes: 60-gallon oak barrels, 170-gallon demi-muids, and 1200-gallon foudres, about 10% new. The other varieties were fermented in a mix of neutral oak and stainless steel barrels. All the wines went through malolactic fermentation. The Esprit Blanc was selected from the vintage's best lots, blended, and returned to foudre in April 2024, aged an additional 8 months in foudre until its bottling in December 2024, then aged an additional 9 months in bottle before its release.