2013 Tablas Creek Esprit de Tablas
Community Tasting Note
tward Likes this wine:
Saturday, February 27, 2016 - This was enjoyable, but I wish my experience measured up to the other reviews to date. This never really evolved beyond good to very good, with dark fruits dominating and no real layering or complexity, especially in the nose. Had over a couple of nights (a glass left the last night).
Post a Comment / View tward's profile1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue (3,652 views)
5 comments have been posted
Post a Comment
/ View tward's profile
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue (3,652 views)
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue (3,652 views)
Comment posted by wilypod:
3/1/2016 7:44:00 PM - My note applied to a 2013 Esprit from a 375 ml bottle, in which wines develop more quickly. I also found that it showed much better served at around 60-62 F.
For me, Tablas Creek Reds have very different aromatic and flavor profiles from other Rhone blends made in the area, due to negligible use of new oak to impart spice and vanilla, apparently no whole clusters, and scrupulously controlled fermentation temps. The aromas are more elusive and the flavors suggest fresh grapes, mineral salts, and savory, coniferous scents. TCV techniques seem to showcase the white varieties with more excitement than the reds. I've only caught onto and warmed up to these Tablas traits in the last year. TCV reds come at one more like Baez than Streisand.
Comment posted by tward:
3/1/2016 9:49:00 PM - Thanks, interesting that yours was a half bottle. I've been a member at Tablas for about 10 years, so I'm really familiar with their style and their vintages. I'll have several opportunities to revisit this '13 EdT and I've seen some of their past vintages really blossom. (The Esprit Blancs can yield incredible results with age.)
Comment posted by wilypod:
3/2/2016 7:01:00 AM - You have much greater familiarity with Tablas than do I. My first Tablas was a Patelin red tasted in 2012, which made me think what is all the fuss about. Then the whites re-opened my mind. Finally I have had some really delicious reds.
I'd value your reaction to the 2013 En Gobelet, which I found very appealing already. Of course, when one gets smitten with a winery (great blog and website and outreach), it creates benevolence to the wines themselves.
Comment posted by tward:
3/5/2016 4:06:00 PM - Very well stated. I'm pretty sure the Patelins are meant to compete at the generic Cotes du Rhone to Villages level and so that's where I benchmark them. That is actually a difficult place to play for the reds, because decent to good CdRs are often available just north of $10, especially with the weak euro, which is more likely to transmit to the U.S. retail price for the volume, lower end wines. For whites, it's a different story, difficult in my experience to find anything good under $20 (or much higher), so if a Patelin Blanc is really nice and presents the varietals well, there's much less competition.
Comment posted by tward:
3/5/2016 4:09:00 PM - As for that En Goblet, I've only got the one club shipment bottle. Who knows when I'll open that one - I surely don't!