Sometimes, wine people find themselves in a strange new part of the world.  They look around.  They regard the ground at their feet.  They sense the air and temperature.  And they say to themselves (or to whoever happens to be close by), “Wouldn’t this be a great place to grow (insert grape name here).”

The Tablas Creek Winery

That’s exactly what happened to Francois and Jean-Pierre Perrin, best known for their landmark Château de Beaucastel winery in the southern Rhône.  Along with Robert Haas, the founder of Vineyard Brands, they stood on some ground in west Paso Robles and regarded the limestone in the soil.  They studied the temperature variations and rainfall numbers in that place about 11 miles from the Pacific and concluded that it would be a jolly dandy place to plant Rhône varietals and produce Châteauneuf du Pape style wines.  So they set about doing just that.  It took years.

The Vineyard

First, they named the place Tablas Creek, for the small stream that runs through the property.  They imported vines from their French estate, and, after waiting through a three-year agricultural quarantine, they planted a wide selection of the varietals used in their heritage red and white Rhône blends.  It so happens that in Châteauneuf du Pape, winemakers can legally use up to 13 different grapes in the traditional blend.  (I memorized them once, but then I got a life).  So the Perrins showed up in Paso Robles and started to plant their 120 acres with Grenache Blanc, Grenache Noir, Syrah, Mourvedre, Picpoul, Counoise, Roussanne, Marsanne, and the other obscure varietals so important to the historic CNDP recipes.  Since 1997, they’ve been fermenting with native yeasts, blending their brains out, producing truly traditional red and white blends under the name of Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel.  By 2010, almost all the land will be under vine, and it’s all certified organic.

Wine Spectator #50 Wine of the Year

Aside from perhaps Champagne, Châteauneuf du Pape is one of the most complex wines to produce.  While 13 varietals are legally permitted, most winemakers don’t use them all.  But even so, you’re growing at least five or six kinds of red grapes, and another 5 or 6 whites, harvesting them and vinifying them separately, then blending and aging them for a year or more.  It’s work.

This whole blending thing sort of divides the wine world into two camps:  those who do it and those who don’t.  Many winemakers are justifiably proud of their “100% Cabernet Sauvignon” or 100% this or that, and many of them are fabulous…authentic expressions of a classic grape.  But we all know the kind of miracles blending can produce when the people down there in Margaux or Pauillac throw together some Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot, and maybe a little Malbec.  Châteauneuf du Pape is like that.

Hand harvesting

In fact, I had a kind of blending epiphany a few years back at a seminar with Ed Sbragia of Beringer.  We tasted through the five single-vineyard wines he uses in making Beringer Private Reserve, then tasted the final product.  Boing!  There were flavors in the blend that did not appear in any of the individual wines.  Some kind of synergy happens in the blending process, and the whole becomes greater than the sum of the parts.

That’s what Tablas Creek does.  For them, blending creates balance, complexity, richness, and a whole bunch of other very desirable characteristics.  It also produces wines that pair well with a wide variety of foods.

So, at the Grand Tasting, you’ll have the opportunity to sample a bit of French tradition (and winemaking expertise) in some uniquely American red and white wines.  Just come to the Tablas Creek table and hold out your glass.