Tasting the wines in the spring 2010 wine club shipment
February 12, 2010
Each spring and fall, we send out six wines to the members of our VINsider Wine Club. With each shipment we include a little update from our wine club director, an order form, and, of course, production and tasting notes for the six wines in the club shipment. As these wines are typically unreleased, most of them do not yet have a Web page, and for me it's often one of my first opportunities to taste these wines after bottling. It's always exciting, and the rest of the staff typically joins me as we see, in effect, what's next. I thought it would be fun to share what I found.
In the order in which we'll be pouring them at our March 6th club shipment tasting event:
GRENACHE BLANC 2008
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Production notes: Grenache Blanc continues shine in California’s Central Coast. Most of our production goes into our Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc each year, but in 2008 we reserved a small (565 case) lot for our wine club. It had a very long fermentation (in a mix of stainless steel and foudre) that didn’t finish until nearly a year after harvest. It was bottled in September 2009.
- Tasting notes: A clean nose of mineral, green apple, grapefruit and pear, with flavors that begin bright with lemon and lime, then broaden in the mid-palate before re-tightening on the finish with a lingering character of green apple skin and wet rocks. Drink in the next two to three years.
- Press: Tanzer's I.W.C. 89 points (11/09)
- Quantity Produced: 565 cases
- List Price: $27 VINsider Price: $21.60
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/grenacheblanc08.shtml
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Production notes: 2008’s relatively cool growing season produced wines of medium body, tremendous elegance, and expressive varietal character. The 2008 Roussanne was fermented 40% in oak (mostly old, neutral barrels), 20% in foudre, and 40% in stainless steel. The wine was blended in July and bottled in September 2009.
- Tasting notes: An expressive nose of beeswax, lacquered wood, and white flowers, with a powerful spiciness emerging with air. The mouth is juicy yet still restrained, with flavors of peaches and cream. The finish is more mineral, very clean, with almond, pear, honey and chamomile notes. Enjoy now or over the next 4-6 years.
- Press: Parker 90-92 (8/09); Tanzer's IWC 90 (11/09)
- Quantity Produced: 720 cases
- List Price: $27 VINsider Price: $21.60
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/roussanne08.shtml
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Production notes: The 2009 Rosé reflects the generally tiny crop in 2009, and the particular shortage of Mourvèdre. We were worried that given the extreme concentration of the Mourvèdre, using as much as we typically do (60% in most vintages) would produce a wine too dark and structured. So, we reduced the Mourvèdre to 46% and increased Grenache (39%) and Counoise (15%). We left the grapes on their skins for just under two days before drawing off the juice and completing the fermentation in stainless steel. The wine was bottled in January 2010.
- Tasting notes: Cranberry in color, with an explosive nose of sour cherry, cranberry, Christmas spices and orange zest. The mouth is incredibly juicy with flavors of maraschino cherry, sour strawberry and apple. Mouth-watering acidity on the long, dry finish cleans up the wine's richness. Drink now through the end of 2011.
- Quantity Produced: 640 cases
- List Price: $27.00 VINsider Price: $21.60
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/rose09.shtml
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Production notes: The 2007 Grenache, like the 2007 vintage, is big yet balanced, with powerful aromas and flavors, and should benefit from short-term cellaring. The wine was blended in June 2008, aged in foudre, and bottled in March 2009. 10% Syrah gives the wine firmness and a touch of mineral on the finish.
- Tasting notes: A powerful nose of mint, boysenberry, and licorice. Vibrantly fruity on the palate with unusually dark tones for Grenache: black cherry, blueberry and black raspberry, followed by a long finish with some chalky tannins that cut the wine’s richness. We suggest you hold this wine for 1-2 years and drink for the next decade.
- Press: Parker 92 (8/09), Wine Spectator 92 (12/09)
- Quantity Produced: 750 cases
- List Price: $35 VINsider Price: $28
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/grenache07.shtml
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Production notes: The powerful 2007 vintage produced our most intense Syrah ever. Aged in a combination of 1200-gallon foudres and small new Dargaud & Jaegle 60-gallon pieces, we blend our Syrah for a balance of fruit, mineral, and spice, and add 10% Grenache for its signature acidity and openness. The wine was blended in August 2008, aged in a single foudre and bottled in March 2009.
- Tasting notes: A deep, dark nose of ink, soy and iodine, with a little oak and black fruit sneaking through. The mouth shows mineral, blackberry, iron and spice, with beautiful tannins and length. This is a wine for the long term; hold for 3-5 years, and then drink for another fifteen.
- Press: Parker 92 (8/09); Tanzer’s IWC 91 (11/09)
- Quantity Produced: 685 cases
- List Price: $35 VINsider Price: $28
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/syrah07.shtml
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Production notes: The 2007 Panoplie is a wine of incredible lushness and power. As always, Panoplie is selected from lots in the cellar chosen for their balance, richness, and concentration. The components (60% Mourvèdre, 30% Grenache, and 10% Syrah) were blended in July 2008 and aged in foudre before bottling in July of 2009.
- Tasting notes: Dense purple-red in color. A dark, meaty nose with aromas of sweet earth, plums and nutmeg. Explosive in the mouth, with flavors of currant, plum, cocoa powder and red licorice, finishing drier and powerfully tannic. Hold, if possible, until 2015, and drink for two decades after that.
- Press: Parker 96-98 (8/09); Tanzer's IWC 95 (11/09)
- Quantity Produced: 540 cases
- List Price: $95 VINsider Price: $76
- More at http://www.tablascreek.com/panoplie07.shtml
More details on the shipment are available online for anyone interested: http://www.tablascreek.com/wineclub_news.html. A few final thoughts are below.
First, these 2007's are built for the long haul. I wouldn't touch the Syrah for several years, and the Grenache seems to me to be likely to benefit from a year or two of aging. Surprisingly, it was the Panoplie, of the three, that was the most giving right now. That's one of the things that we love about Mourvedre: it has loads of chewy tannin and can be aged beautifully, but doesn't have the hardness when young that most similarly-structured varietals have.
Second, I'm really coming to love the elegance of the 2008's. The 2008 whites show medium body, sparkling acidities, very pretty fruit flavors and spot-on varietal character. I think that the wines are already showing beautifully, even with varieties like Roussanne that are typically structure-bound at this age. I'm not sure I'd recommend laying these whites down (though their exquisite balance suggests they could be) but for drinking right now I'm not sure we've ever made a more appealing vintage.