2023 Muscardin
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The Tablas Creek Vineyard 2023 Muscardin is our first varietal bottling of this rare Chateauneuf-du-Pape grape, propagated from budwood cuttings from the Château de Beaucastel estate.
Muscardin represents our fourteenth and final varietal bottling from the Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape collection. Barely planted in France at fewer than 50 acres, it is traditionally added to blends because, according to Baron Le Roi of Chateau Fortia, "it gives a freshness on the palate and helps the wine to achieve elegance." On its own, it makes a lovely floral, herby, pale red with notes of pomegranate and aromatic bitters.
Tasting Notes
A nose of aromatic bitters and Aperol, spice cabinet and potpourri. On the palate, like cherry Jolly Rancher, but fully dry with fresh green herbs and a nice saltiness on the finish. Memorable and fun.
Technical Details
Appellation
- Adelaida District Paso Robles
Technical Notes
- 13.0% Alcohol by Volume
- 21 Cases Produced
Blend
- 100% Muscardin
Certifications
Recipes & Pairings
Recipe Suggestions
Food Pairings
- Dried sausages
- Salty cheeses
- Santa Maria tri tip
- Coq au vin
Production Notes
Muscardin is a little-known blending grape from the Rhone Valley; in 2009 there were just 11 hectares (27 acres) in Chateauneuf du Pape, less than that in the rest of the Rhone, and none anywhere else. Its combination of relatively low vigor, pale color, and sprawling growth appears to have been three strikes against it in the 20th Century, but its elegance, spice, and low alcohol have encouraged a small revival of interest in it in recent years. The quarter-acre that we grafted into the vineyard here in Paso Robles in 2019 is California's first. Muscardin is a large-berried grape that produces wines with pale color, good acidity, and a spicy, floral, herby complexity.
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 Muscardin grapes were grown on our Regenerative Organic Certified™ and biodynamic estate vineyard.
The fruit was destemmed and fermented on the skins for two weeks in a 1-ton microfermenter, punched down twice daily. Only native yeasts were used. After two weeks, the berries were pressed and this was combined with the free-run juice into a single neutral oak barrel, where it was aged until its bottling in April 2025.