2014 Tablas Creek Esprit de Tablas
Buying options
Tasting notes
Blend of three estate-grown varieties ( 72% Roussanne, 23% Grenache Blanc, 5% Picpoul Blanc) , propagated from budwood cuttings from the Ch de Beaucastel estate in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. ‘Roussanne provides the core richness, minerality and flavours of honey and spice, while Grenache Blanc adds green apple and anise flavours, a lush mouthfeel and bright acids. Picpoul Blanc completes the blend, adding a saline minerality and tropical notes.’ Quite rich and polished. Satin-smooth and scented with a beginning, middle and end. Real grip on the finish. Convincingly expressive of Roussanne. Lots to chew on. I’m surprised it’s as fresh as it is considering the age. Was it horribly chewy in youth? (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Richard Hemming MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Even more red fruit than their Côtes de Tablas, with the same kind of baked earth and garrigue character you find in the southern Rhône. Chunky, rich and substantial with loads of charm and complexity. (RH)
Vivid ruby-red. Expansive, spice-accented aromas of red and blue fruit liqueur, Asian spices and candied flowers are lifted by a minerally nuance. Silky, broad and alluringly sweet in the mouth, offering sappy black raspberry, boysenberry and lavender pastille flavors that become more energetic with air. In a seamless, elegant style. A refreshing jolt of minerality adds focus and cut to the impressively long, youthfully tannic finish.
A blend of 40% Mourvèdre, 35% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 5% Counoise, the 2014 Esprit de Tablas has a medium garnet-purple color and opens with fragrant dried roses, Ceylon tea and tobacco leaf notes over a core of black cherries, anise and black earth, plus a touch of underbrush. Medium to full-bodied with a firm frame of chewy tannins and lively acid, it offers a solid, muscular core of earthy flavors and a long finish with some pepper notes coming through. 4,000 cases were made.