TN: 2004 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel

Paul_L_i_n · February 10, 2009, 6:31am

2004 Tablas Creek Esprit de Beaucastel - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (2/6/2009)
Dinner at Gulfstream. This bottle seemed a bit off to me, for it does not jibe with my recollection of it. Earthy and rustic notes of spiced raspberries, blackberries, red clay, animale and cheese rind. A little one-dimensional and flabby on the palate. Still drinkable and enjoyable with food though. (85 pts.)

ToddFrench · February 10, 2009, 6:37am

Forgive me, as I am not a doctoral/PhD candidate in literature, but what is ‘animale’ as a sensory item?

Paul_L_i_n · February 10, 2009, 6:46am

from a sensory point of view, animale is similar to sauvage.

ToddFrench · February 10, 2009, 6:49am

So, ‘wild’? Rustic?

Cris_Whetstone · February 10, 2009, 6:49am

I can’t wait to see Todd’s reply to THAT!

Paul_L_i_n · February 10, 2009, 7:11am

according to appellationamerica.com:

Mourvedre’s better qualities shape the meaty wines it produces, with considerable tannin, deep color, jammy blackberry characteristics, and frequently a herbal, almost sage-like characteristic that the French refer to as “animale”.

according to slate.com:

Mourvèdre does not suit everyone’s taste. More to the point, its smell can be a turn-off: One of the grape’s signature aromas is a certain gaminess—what the French call animale. Some people, confronted with this distinctive odor, will wonder what fell into the grass and died.

so yes, a rustic, gamey, wild animal-like character is connoted by the term.