This is the 17th bottling of Tablas Creek’s varietal Mourvèdre, the fruit grown organically and biodynamically on the winery’s estate vineyard. About 140 cases were made in the 2020 vintage. The grapes were de-stemmed and fermented with ambient cultures in a large wood tank. The wine was pressed after three weeks and moved to 1,200-gallon foudres to finish fermentation. The lots were blended in the spring of 2021 and it was bottled in June 2022.
It’s ethereally light colored, more like French Pinot or Austrian Zweigelt than Spanish Monastrell (or southern Rhône Mourvèdre, for that matter). The aromatics suggest fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme) and licorice, plus red berry fruits. The palate is cleansing, with subtle tannins and flavors like tea, thyme, and blackberry. There’s a rocket of acidity at the finish.
The wine feels vivacious, gamine, energetic. A couple of years of bottle age may add some depth but I wouldn’t hold it much longer than that. And anyway it’s delicious now.
2020 Tablas Creek Vineyard Mourvèdre Adelaida District Paso Robles
13% ABV | $45 (sample)
Sounds delicious. Tablas is poorly distributed around me, and they don’t direct ship to Connecticut. It’s the one California winery I have tried to broadly sample without success.
That’s a pity. The wines are all great, and I applaud their farming and production practices. And Jason is one of the canniest, smartest, and kindest people I know in the industry.