The new releases from Tablas Creek Vineyard include 3 white wines from the 2015 vintage, 1 white wine from the 2014 vintage, and 1 red wine from the 2014 vintage.

As usual the wines are really lovely and very good values. Tablas Creek Vineyard continues to produce amazingly good and very consistent wines. And, the excellence of Tablas Creek Vineyard wines has not gone unnoticed. Recently in a list of the 101 best wineries in America, Tablas Creek Vineyard was named the number one winery by The Daily Meal where I am on the wine nominating panel and The Underground Wineletter is a regular contributor.  The Daily Meal has awarded Tablas Creek Vineyard its highest award twice: Winery of the Year 2015 and #1 Winery in America 2015 (to read the article click here).

The 2015 vintage was the fourth year of the drought and yields were down from the effects of the drought and the cool weather during the flowering in May. Yields were down as much as 50% in some early ripening varieties while yields of later ripening varieties were closer to normal. The 2015 wines show intensity with a lot of perfume and a nice underlying crispness that gives a wonderful balance. The 2014 vintage was the third year of the drought and a warm spring resulted in the earliest harvest ever with wines that are concentrated and balanced.

I tasted the new releases over several nights with different kinds of foods. They all showed beautifully and were a pleasure to drink. Below are my notes on these outstanding new releases. Don’t miss them!

2015 Tablas Creek Vineyard Grenache Blanc
Made with 100% Grenache Blanc this is Tablas Creek’s 13^th bottling of this varietal. Most of the estate grown Grenache Blanc is used in their proprietary blends and there were only 600 cases of this wine made.
Light yellow in color with a faint golden hue it has a gorgeous floral perfume with faint hints of melon and a subtle spiciness. A seductive and very appealing wine with a nice underlying crispness this has lots of early appeal and is a great wine to accompany a wide variety of dishes – Outstanding.   $30

2015 Tablas Creek Vineyard Patelin de Tablas Blanc
This wine is made from fruit grown on 9 different  vineyards in Paso Robles and is comprised of four varietals:  56% Grenache Blanc, 23% Viognier, 12% Roussanne, and 9% Marsanne. The production totaled  2920 cases.
Light yellow in color this wine has a lovely floral perfume with faint hints of pear and melon showing a citrus tinge. It is very finesseful with lovely fruit showing citrus, melon, and pear nuances with balanced crispness and a nice finish – Outstanding.   $25

2015 Tablas Creek Vineyard Côtes de Tablas Blanc
Made from four Rhone varietals grown on the Tablas Creek Estate this wine is comprised of 26% Viognier, 25% Grenache Blanc, 25% Marsanne, and 24% Roussanne. The production was 1550 cases.
Light yellow in color with a faint golden hue this wine has a subtle floral perfume with exotic nuances suggesting lychee and melon. Rounded and very elegant with suggestions of peach and melon and an underlying citrus tinge this is another wine with great early appeal – Outstanding.  $30

2014 Tablas Creek Vineyard Esprit de Tablas Blanc
This wine is a blend of estate grown varietals.  Roussanne comprises 73% of the blend with 23% Grenache Blanc and 5% Picpoul Blanc. There were 1850 cases produced.
This is a really lovely wine that is very enjoyable now and should age gracefully for several years. It has a light yellow color with a faint golden hue and a subtle floral citrus perfume with hints of pear. Rounded and flavorful with suggestions of apple and pear there is also a nice crispness on the finish that adds to the appeal – Outstanding Plus.    $45

2014 Tablas Creek Vineyard Mourvèdre
This is Tablas Creek Vineyard’s 11^th varietal bottling of Mourvèdre and only 295 cases were produced. Each year most of the Mourvèdre is used in the Esprit de Tablas.
This wine is a real tour de force with great intensity and lushness. It is dark in color with a deep perfume that is very faintly smoky and spicy with plum and blackberry fruit and a tinge of chocolate. On the palate the wine is very flavorful with a myriad of black fruits again accented by faint nuances of smoke and chocolate.  Rounded with just a trace of tannin underneath the fruit, this is a wonderful wine that gives a lot of pleasure now, but will repay aging over several years to become even more harmonious and complex – Outstanding/Outstanding Plus Potential.   $40