Patelin de Tablas Blanc 2021 – Tablas Creek

To produce the Patelin de Tablas Blanc Tablas Creek, all varietals were whole bunch pressed and fermented in stainless steel tanks to preserve their bright and crisp aromatics. Only native yeasts were used. After fermentation, the wines were racked and blended, and bottled.

“Patelin” is French slang for “neighbourhood”. The “Patelin de Tablas” wines are produced from fruit sourced from numerous, small neighbouring vineyards that Tablas Creek know and respect. All of the sites were planted with cuttings from the Tablas Creek nursery and are farmed sustainably. The different parcels experience the cool coastal breezes of the Templeton Gap and high-altitude influence of El Palomar, as well as the warmer inland temperatures of the Estrella district. These sites provide structured, mineral-laced fruit and excellent acidity.

Tablas Creek was established in 1987 by two leading wine families: the Perrin family, founders of Château de Beaucastel, and the Haas family, owners of the US importer Vineyard Brands. After many years traveling the States together to promote the Perrin wines, Robert Haas and Jacques Perrin agreed that California’s Mediterranean climate was ideally suited to the Rhône’s native grape varieties and decided to establish their own estate. In 1989, they purchased a 50-hectare parcel in west Paso Robles, where the shallow, rocky and limestone-rich soils are based on the same geologic origins as the Beaucastel vineyards. Located twelve miles from the Pacific Ocean, the Tablas Creek Vineyard is named after the small creek which flows through the estate. The vineyards are on average 450 metres above sea level, where hot and sunny days are tempered by cool nights, resulting in fully ripe grapes with fresh acidity. Tablas Creek took the decision to import cuttings from the Beaucastel estate. They established their own nursery, with grafting facilities, to propagate their cuttings which were used to replant the estate vineyards. The sites are dry-farmed, and the estate has been certified organic since 2003 and biodynamic since 2017. Reinforcing the estate’s commitment to sustainability, Tablas Creek became the first winery to attain Regenerative Organic Certification in 2020. Their intention is to ensure the purest vineyard and vintage expression.