2023 Patelin de Tablas Rouge, Tablas Creek

• Style: Southern Rhône Red Blend
• Taste: Black fruit, savoury spice, plum-skin acidity, smoky depth
• Food: Stews & Braises; BBQ & Grilled Dishes; Roast Dinners; Beef & Steak
• Occasion: Sunday Lunch; Date Night
• Serve: Bone Dry, 13.5% ABV, Paso Robles

In the Glass — Tasting Notes

A coolish 2023 vintage gifted the later-ripening Mourvèdre time to build colour and intensity without overripening, delivering a Syrah-led blend (45%) with Grenache and Mourvèdre. Savoury black-pepper bite, liquorice backbone and a whisper of smoky oolong tea mark the palate; plum-skin acidity cuts clean through the dark fruit, keeping this wine food-friendly and alive rather than heavy. At 13.5% alcohol, it sits comfortably — serious enough for roasted duck or braised short ribs, approachable enough for charcuterie.

The Winery — Tablas Creek

Founded in 1987 by the Perrin family (proprietors of Château de Beaucastel in the Southern Rhône) and American wine merchants, Tablas Creek recognised that California's Mediterranean climate could nurture classical Rhône varieties. The team imported cuttings from Beaucastel and established their own nursery to propagate stock for replanting. The estate has been certified organic since 2003 and biodynamic since 2017; in 2020 it became the first winery to attain Regenerative Organic Certification. This Patelin de Tablas sources fruit from a network of small neighbouring vineyards across the region, each planted with cuttings from the estate's nursery and farmed to its standards. The blend was fermented in oak and stainless steel, then rested in large oak vessels for six months — a measured approach that lets the fruit speak without heavy oak imprint.

At Your Table — Food Pairing & Serving

Neither overblown nor thin, this wine rewards slow food: roasted duck, braised beef or lamb work beautifully, as do stews, grilled dishes and roast dinners. The cool coastal breezes of the Templeton Gap and higher elevations of El Palomar temper the inland warmth, delivering the mineral structure and bright acidity that define the finest examples of Paso Robles fruit. Organic and vegan, it's equally at home at a Sunday lunch table or intimate date night. Explore more of our curated United States selection and discover how Paso Robles continues to rival established Rhône regions — and find similar depth in our Full Bodied Red Wine portfolio.