The Data

Country   USA

Appellation   Paso Robles

Varietal   White Blend

Retail Price   $25

ABV   13%

Score   4.5 Stars/95 points

In the Glass

Brilliant, medium gold/green color.

The nose is moderately intense offering scents of spring flowers and nectarine with supporting notes of citrus zest, pear, and quince.

The palate confirms the nose delivering a ripe orchard fruits-driven core with flavors of white peach, orange peel, slate, and salt. The finish is long and lingering with complex citrus accents.

Medium-bodied and perfectly balanced with a vibrant yet generous texture.

Cool Factor

Tablas Creek is a unique winery in California seamlessly marrying Old World and New World winemaking and setting the standard for Rhône varietals in California. What could be cooler?

Value Grade

Selling at $25 a bottle this California-made and Rhône-inspired white checks all of the boxes for accessibility, complexity, and pure hedonistic pleasure. It's a bargain in our book.

Analysis

This complex and delicious white is a careful blend of five varietals: 38% Grenache Blanc, 24% Roussanne, 18% Viognier, 13% Marsanne, and 7% Clairette Blanche. This represents the lowest percentage of Grenache Blanc in the blend among the five vintage of Patelin de Tablas that we have reviewed. This wine was among a trio of 2019 whites from Tablas Creek that we tasted in the fall of 2020. Immediately we were remarking how these wines were the best ever among the winery's white varietals/blends — a very high standard. All varietals for the Patelin Blanc were whole-cluster pressed and fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel tanks to preserve the fresh and crisp fruit flavors. After fermentation the wines were racked, then blended and bottled in August 2020.

How to Enjoy

The Patelin de Tablas needs nothing but a glass being the perfect aperitif while pairing beautifully with citrus accented poultry and seafood — especially prawns and scallops.