Tablas Creek Roussanne 2005

The 2005 Tablas Creek Vineyard Roussanne is Tablas Creek's fourth national release of its 100% Roussanne. The wine is exuberantly and elegantly in character of the Roussanne grape, with honey, honeysuckle, and pear aromatics, a rich, viscous mouthfeel with just a hint of oak, and a long, lingering finish.We use most of our Roussanne in our Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc each year. However, we often have some Roussanne lots in the cellar that are so powerfully characteristic of the varietal that we feel they would be too dominant in a blend. In these cases, we reserve a small quantity of this read more...powerful Roussanne for a single-varietal bottling.As with all our wines, our Roussanne grapes were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard.The 2005 vintage was one of nature's lucky breaks, with excellent quality and higher-than-normal yields. The wet winter of '04-'05 gave the grapevines ample groundwater, and a warm period in March got the vines off to an early May flowering. The summer was uniformly sunny but relatively cool, and harvest began (relatively late for us) in the 3rd week of September. The grapes spent nearly a month longer than normal on the vine, and the resulting wines were intensely mineral, with good structure and powerful aromatics. The Roussanne (unusually, our last varietal harvested) came in between September 26th and November 7th.The Roussanne grapes were whole cluster pressed, and fermented using native yeasts half in stainless steel and half in small French oak barrels. The wine was left on its lees for 6 months, and allowed to complete malolactic fermentation. After fermentation the wines were blended, and bottled in May 2006. The wines underwent only a light cold stabilization before bottling.The 2005 Roussanne is a vibrant expression of the Roussanne grape. Aromas of pear, honeysuckle and hazelnut and spice are followed by a wine of rich texture, honey, pear and lemon zest flavors, moderate acidity and a long minerally finish.    (hide)

October 2008

This Roussanne from Tablas Creek is a vibrant expression of the Roussanne grape. Aromas of pear, honeysuckle and hazelnut and spice are followed by a wine of rich texture, honey, pear and lemon zest flavors, moderate acidity and a long minerally finish.100% RoussanneFOOD PAIRINGSRich shellfish (lobster and crab)Sea BassMildly spicy foods (curries, gumbo)Stir-fries in garlic and olive oilSalmon

February 2009

The 2005 Tablas Creek Vineyard Roussanne is Tablas Creeks fourth national release of its 100% Roussanne. The wine is exuberantly and elegantly in character of the Roussanne grape, with honey, honeysuckle, and pear aromatics, a rich, viscous mouthfeel with just a hint of oak, and a long, lingering finish. We use most of our Roussanne in our Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc each year. However, we often have some Roussanne lots in the cellar that are so powerfully characteristic of the varietal that we feel they would be too dominant in a blend. In these cases, we reserve a small quantity of this powerful read more...Roussanne for a single-varietal bottling. As with all our wines, our Roussanne grapes were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard. The 2005 vintage was one of natures lucky breaks, with excellent quality and higher-than-normal yields. The wet winter of 04-05 gave the grapevines ample groundwater, and a warm period in March got the vines off to an early May flowering. The summer was uniformly sunny but relatively cool, and harvest began (relatively late for us) in the 3rd week of September. The grapes spent nearly a month longer than normal on the vine, and the resulting wines were intensely mineral, with good structure and powerful aromatics. The Roussanne (unusually, our last varietal harvested) came in between September 26th and November 7th. The Roussanne grapes were whole cluster pressed, and fermented using native yeasts half in stainless steel and half in small French oak barrels. The wine was left on its lees for 6 months, and allowed to complete malolactic fermentation. After fermentation the wines were blended, and bottled in May 2006. The wines underwent only a light cold stabilization before bottling. The 2005 Roussanne is a vibrant expression of the Roussanne grape. Aromas of pear, honeysuckle and hazelnut and spice are followed by a wine of rich texture, honey, pear and lemon zest flavors, moderate acidity and a long minerally finish.    (hide)

November 2009

an inspired re-interpretation of the classic Roussane varietal. Understated nose, complex body, a great companion to both meat and fish !

July 2009

The 2005 Tablas Creek Vineyard Roussanne is Tablas Creeks fourth national release of its 100% Roussanne. The wine is exuberantly and elegantly in character of the Roussanne grape, with honey, honeysuckle, and pear aromatics, a rich, viscous mouthfeel with just a hint of oak, and a long, lingering finish.We use most of our Roussanne in our Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc each year. However, we often have some Roussanne lots in the cellar that are so powerfully characteristic of the varietal that we feel they would be too dominant in a blend. In these cases, we reserve a small quantity of this powerful read more...Roussanne for a single-varietal bottling.As with all our wines, our Roussanne grapes were grown on our 120-acre certified organic estate vineyard.The 2005 vintage was one of natures lucky breaks, with excellent quality and higher-than-normal yields. The wet winter of 04-05 gave the grapevines ample groundwater, and a warm period in March got the vines off to an early May flowering. The summer was uniformly sunny but relatively cool, and harvest began (relatively late for us) in the 3rd week of September. The grapes spent nearly a month longer than normal on the vine, and the resulting wines were intensely mineral, with good structure and powerful aromatics. The Roussanne (unusually, our last varietal harvested) came in between September 26th and November 7th.The Roussanne grapes were whole cluster pressed, and fermented using native yeasts half in stainless steel and half in small French oak barrels. The wine was left on its lees for 6 months, and allowed to complete malolactic fermentation. After fermentation the wines were blended, and bottled in May 2006. The wines underwent only a light cold stabilization before bottling.The 2005 Roussanne is a vibrant expression of the Roussanne grape. Aromas of pear, honeysuckle and hazelnut and spice are followed by a wine of rich texture, honey, pear and lemon zest flavors, moderate acidity and a long minerally finish.    (hide)

August 2009

This is a delicate and elegant wine with subtle flavors of honey and apple. On the second day the 14.3% alcohol was a little too much.

August 2007