TablasCreekVnyd PicpoulBlanc AdelaidaDist/PasoRobles (12.8%; EB) 2017: Light gold color; quite fragrant stony/chalky/perfumed talc some floral/apple blossom/appley slight waxy very attractive nose; fairly tart/tangy slight metallic rather rich some floral/apple blossom fairly bright/zippy flavor; very long somewhat stony/chalky/perfumed talc bit tangy/metallic appley/apple blossom/floral finish; a bit like a Picpoul de Pinet w/ same stony/chalky character but speaks w/ a Calif accent; quite a lovely white at a great price. $23.15 (VIN)
A wee BloodyPulpit:
Picpoul means “lip stinger” because of the high acidity it usually displays in Picpoul de Pinet. This is far better than any of the Picpoul de Pinet I’ve had unless you value typicity over tasty/good-drinking wine.
This was the TCV August Special and reflects my 30% VINsider discount. The TCV monthly specials oftentimes are usually great deals.
Tom
Thanks for the tasting note Tom. I’m a huge fan of all the Tablas offerings, though truth be told, more impressed with their whites. Bummed to get shut out on Grenache Blanc this year. Hard to beat the price vs. quality on their VINsider “wine of the month”.
Yup, Steve…my group orders about 10-12 cs a year from TCV. Good values.
The Fall shipment goes out in a month. Will have the '17 GrenacheBlanc in it.
Tom
THIS sounds more like fidelity to type in a CA Picpoul!!*
I have been a wee bit surprised that nobody raised a ruckus over the fact that most domestic Picpoul wines do not reflect the same characteristics as Picpoul de Pinet. Then again, the more I have read about the lands of the “lip stinger”, the more I realize how varied the geography is.
Hey, I am not complaining: wine grapes from Europe are inevitibly going to taste different than those grown in the USA. To my limited understanding, no vineyards in this country are located in a an environment that perfectly mimics the marshlands of the Southern Pinet vine-lands of the Herault.
I was thinking back to other domestic Picpoul wines I have seen recently, and the Bonny Doon “Beeswax Vineyard” Picpoul Arroyo Seco AVA struck me as an unusual place for the variety’s cultivation…
“…‘Beeswax Vineyard’ is owned by the Silva family who also runs Poppy Wines. It was established in 2000 and has 24 acres of organically farmed wine grapes with blocks of Pinot Noir, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and Picpoul Blanc. This tiny vineyard is in the Salinas Valley toward the southern end of the AVA and is nestled into the Santa Lucia foothills.”
“This wine was mouthwatering and bright, with a light straw yellow color. You get minerals, ocean and a floral note when you stick your nose in the glass and then tart green apple and stone fruit pits in your mouth. There is in the background this little bit of beeswax. It is a lovely and subtle wine…”_
The Renkens also have a second Picpoul entry with several links on their website:
I have noticed that, besides the “Beeswax Vineyard” and Tablas Creek’s plantings of Picpoul, there are vines in the “Snow Vineyard” of Sonoma Valley (Edith & Ida Wines), Paso Robles’ “Luna Matta Vineyard” (Broc Cellars), “Hall Ranch Vineyard” in Paso (Bending Branch Winery in TX), “Old Oak Vineyard” in Paso (Lone Madrone), possibly the Ramona Valley (Eagle’s Nest Winery), as well as “Rene and Maria Haug’s vineyard”(?) in Rutherford, Napa Valley ( Forlorn Hope)!!!
thanks for the note Tom!
I’ve had a few bottles of this and find it a little more “rounded/fat” than previous vintages. I didn’t get the searing acid that i like.
It was/is still a very good bottle and price with discount.
I have a Paix Sur Terre to compare and open soon (like their Ugni Blanc)
As the OP was focused on the winery responsible for the importation of this grape variety into the US, it seems only appropriate for me to give Tablas Creek a little coverage!
“We did not import Picpoul with our initial eight varieties in 1989. After the original eight were established in the vineyard, we decided that the consistent sun and long growing season at Tablas Creek might prove to be well-suited to varietals that in France are lean and high in acidity. Picpoul, with its reputation for sharp acidity, was the first of these high-acid whites that we brought into quarantine, and was in fact the first supplemental varietal we brought in of any sort. It was released from quarantine in 1998, and we spent the next two years propagating and grafting it. We planted approximately one acre of Picpoul in 2000, and received our first significant harvest in 2003. It has been such a success that we grafted over a small Roussanne block to Picpoul in the winter of 2005, and got our first harvest from that new acreage in the fall of 2008. These two blocks together are just under 2 acres, roughly 5% of our white Rhone acreage.”
"We have found that, in California, Picpoul maintains its bright acidity, but also develops an appealing tropical lushness. It is quite rich in the mouth, with an exceptionally long finish. When we have enough fruit, we bottle Picpoul Blanc as a single varietal, and the wine shows a rich nose of pear, pineapple and spice. In the mouth, buttery flavors of pineapple and orange are balanced by crisp acids, and the long, rich finish shows flavors of piña colada.
“Although French Picpouls are not typically thought to age, the richer California versions seem to be better able to handle some time in bottle.”
I have become quite a fan of the TC Rhone white in the last few years. I find them ideal for warm summer days. So far I have had mostly the Patelin de Tablas, with a few bottles of the Blanc Clairette Blanche and Grenache Blanc added this year. I will try to source some of the Picopul blanc next year.
