The Data

Country   USA

Appellation   Adelaida District

Varietal   Mourvedre

Retail Price   $55

ABV   13%

Score   4.5 Stars/97 points

In the Glass

Brilliant, deep ruby color.

The aromatics are intense, offering scents of black plum and dried fruits with supporting notes of black tea, forest floor, and slate.

The palate confirms the nose delivering a black fruit-driven core with flavors of blackberry, tapenade, five spice, and pomegranate. The finish is long and lingering with chewy tannins and tart black fruits.

Medium to full-bodied and perfectly balanced with a meaty 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 — among them a lovely varietal, Mourvedre. What could be cooler?

Value Grade

At $55 a bottle it's not a bargain hunter's Rhône Ranger of choice but this is one of the most delicious varietal Mourvedre wines that we have experienced. Just 515 cases made.

Analysis

The 2021 Tablas Creek Vineyard Mourvédre is Tablas Creek’s eighteenth varietal bottling of Mourvedre and it is our favorite thus far. Tablas Creek uses a majority of their Mourvedre in their great Esprit de Tablas but luckily they reserve a bit for this single varietal bottling. The 2021 vintage began after a chilly and dry winter. The cool temperature resulted in 25% less fruit with small berries. The growing season was ideal with a hot stretch followed by cooler days. Small quantities and superb conditions provided intense fruit with generous natural acidity — a potential stellar vintage. All of the grapes for this wine were grown in Tablas Creek's certified organic and biodynamic estate vineyard. The fruit was destemmed and fermented with native yeasts in large wooden vessels and then fermentation was completed in 1200-gallon foudres. The various Mourvedre lots were blended in spring 2022 and then aged another year in foudres before being bottled in April 2023.

How to Enjoy

Drink now or better yet hold for a decade or more in the cellar. This nicely balanced and complex wine is great at the table pairing well with grilled marinated pork, game stews, beef Rendang or even bittersweet chocolate.