Tablas Creek Vineyard Esprit de Tablas 2017

“Brilliant violet. Ripe red/blue fruits, potpourri, incense and baking spices on the deeply perfumed, expansive nose. Coats the palate with sweet boysenberry, black raspberry and floral pastille flavors sharpened by building mineral and white pepper flourishes. Shows the richness of the vintage but comes off lively and delivers strong floral thrust on an extremely long, gently tannic finish. 40% Mourvèdre, 35% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 5% Counoise. Drinking window: 2023-2033. 95 points

The recently bottled, newly released 2019 white wines here are definitely promising but still tightly wound, so by all means give them some air if you’re planning on opening them any time over the coming months. On the heels of the mostly brawny 2017s, the red wines of 2018 show brighter fruit personalities and greater tension, with more graceful tannin profiles. I suspect that they will appeal to readers who favor a more elegant, call it Old World, Paso Robles style and that they’ll also be approachable on the young side. Regardless of vintage, Tablas Creek produces distinctly elegant wines that are deceptively age-worthy, so don’t bet against these 2018s drinking well way beyond my projected drinking windows.”

Josh Raynolds, Vinous (12/20)