The Tablas Creek Vineyard 2020 Vaccarese is our second varietal bottling of this rare Chateauneuf-du-Pape grape, propagated from budwood cuttings from the Château de Beaucastel estate.

Vaccarese is a little-known blending grape from the south of France; at less than 30 acres planted in France in 2016 it is one of Chateauneuf du Pape's rarest, and the two-thirds of an acre that we planted here in Paso Robles is California's first. But it's already shown tremendous potential, earning a spot in our 2020 Esprit de Tablas in just its fourth leaf.

TASTING NOTES: The 2020 Vaccarese has a nose with both lush and cool elements: black raspberry fruit, juniper, and iodine. In the mouth, tangy black cherry and plum fruit, sweet licorice spice, a graphite-like minerality and firm tannins to maintain control. The finish is long, with salty minerality and black fruit framed by tannic structure.