Grenache Grand Tour at Tablas Creek
Tasted September 4, 2011 by Redguy with 609 views
Introduction
Tablas Creek put on this exploration of grenache noir in their cellar. All four vintages of their varietal grenache ('06-'09), three Cote de Tablas vintages ('99, '03, '06, with '06 poured from bottles under screw cap as well as cork), and four Perrin family grenache dominated wines were tasted. An excellent grenache friendly Moroccan chicken lunch was served after the tasting, with the wines available for retasting with food.
Flight 1 (11 notes)
Red
2006 Tablas Creek Grenache
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Light medium rusty red. Tast red berry, lightly spicy, fine tannic structure, medium+/high acidity. A touch of cherry cola on mid palate, soft dusty tannins on finish.
Red
2007 Tablas Creek Grenache
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Med/dark red core with lighter rim. Red twizzler nose. Big bright red fruits with red licorice, minerality on mid palate. Big medium grain tannins. Sweet fruit and white pepper on fiinish. Quite big and rich for a grenache - this needs cellar time and big food. Good length. 89 today
Red
2008 Tablas Creek Grenache
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
My favorite single varietal grenache from the tasting. Light rusty red. Sweet red fruits and flowers on nose. Med body but persistent flavors of red fruits and milk chocolate. Tight on mid palate and lightly tannic with a sweet but dry finish that shows a touch of white pepper. This will benefit from time but is excellent now. More appropriate representation of grenache than the '07.
Red
2009 Tablas Creek Grenache
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Explosive nose of sweet red fruits and smoked meats. Medium+ body. Spicy and intense. Big, rich, and rustic though brighter than the '07. Tannic and tight - somewhat unyielding but excellence is buried in there. Red fruits, cocoa powder, spices. Very good acidity and intensity. Lots of stuffing here and lots of potential. 89-92
Red
1999 Tablas Creek Petite Cuvée
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Throwing lots of sediment. Damp cellar aromas with old books, soy sauce, and moth balls. Fully mature with good red fruits, red and black licorice, and a dry leathery finish. Good tannins remain. A bit shallow on the mid palate but overall an excellent showing for this I thought.
Red
2003 Tablas Creek Côtes de Tablas
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Med. rusty red. Juicy red fruits, cherry cola, and a little smoked bbq spices. Good acidity. Med body with good depth and balance. Excellent - this is in its sweet spot right now. WOTT
Red
2006 Tablas Creek Côtes de Tablas
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Tasted the '06 both from screw cap and cork.
Screw cap: Sweet red fruits with a bit of funk initially. Sweet red fruits on palate with bright acidity and good minerality on mid palate. Bright, vibrant, sweet. 87ish
Cork: Sweet red fruits and spices on nose and palate with good depth to the mid palate (more than the screw version) and good length. My note says it could use a touch more acidity. 88
I find it interesting I noted "bright acidity" from the screw cap version and that it "could use a touch more" from the cork. I definitely preferred the version under cork though both seemed a bit sweet for me.
Red
2009 Famille Perrin / Perrin & Fils Côtes du Rhône Villages
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages
Dark purple/red with a magenta rim. Aromas of sweet red fruits and flowers with some menthol and spice. Pretty red fruits and spices. Lightly tannic. A pretty caramel laced finish with just a touch of bitterness to the tannins. Fruit forward and new worldish and a bit shallow though a good wine none the less.
Red
2009 Famille Perrin / Perrin & Fils Cairanne Peyre Blanche
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Cairanne
Dark purple red. Reserved nose of red fruits, herbs, and spices. Open on palate with bright clean fruits and spices. Creamy minerality on mid palate. Brambly notes on the finish with pretty fruits and spices - good length. No holes or weak spots - very pretty wine.
Red
2008 Château de Beaucastel Côtes du Rhône Coudoulet de Beaucastel
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Red fruits on nose with some smoked meats, underbrush, and funk. Cherry and pomegranite fruits with red licorice, smoked meats, and earthiness. Medium body with good acidity and good spiceness. Lacks some concentration and depth. Good, though as I've been drinking my '07's lately this was underwhelming in comparison.
Closing
All in all, a fun and enlightening day of tasting grenache based wines. Tasting the '06 Cote from under cork as well as screw cap and seeing peoples reactions was quite interesting. The Cote under cork had more depth of flavor and a rounder mouth feel while the screw cap version had brighter fruit and a more lively presence. By show of hands, it seemed that roughly 30-40% preferred the screw cap version with the rest in favor of the Cote under cork (count me as one).
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