The 2009 Cotes de Tablas is soft, silky and beautifully perfumed. Sweet red fruit, flowers and spices flow from this graceful, supple wine. This is an excellent choice for near-term drinking. In 2009 the blend is 43% Grenache, 24% Syrah, 18% Counoise and 15% Mourvedre. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2014. Tablas Creek was founded as a partnership between Chateau de Beaucastel in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Robert Haas, owner of Beaucastel’s US importer, Vineyard Brands. Tablas Creek is one of the pioneers for Rhone varieties in Paso Robles, not just for the quality of the wines, but just as importantly for creating a nursery of clones from Beaucastel cuttings that are now used widely throughout the region. The estate currently has about 105 acres under vine. Tablas Creek works with indigenous yeasts and favors large, neutral oak barrels and casks for aging. Vintage 2009 was the third in a series of drought years for the estate, which along with a severe spring frost reduced yields dramatically to less than 1.85 tons per acre. The wines, though, are striking. Vintage 2010 could not have been more different. There was no spring frost. Instead the estate received a whopping 44 inches of rain. A cold summer led to a late harvest that started during the second half of October and lasted until early November. Readers will find a broad range of compelling bottles across all price ranges. As an aside, Tablas Creek is one of the highest-quality estates in California that has the facilities and capacity to receive visitors.Tel. (805) 237-1231; www.tablascreek.com

The 2008 Cotes de Tablas has already been bottled. This California Cote du Rhone look-alike, made from 42% Grenache, 21% Syrah, 20% Counoise (which must be an all-time high for that varietal in a Rhone Ranger blend), and 17% Mourvedre, displays the earthier side of Rhone Rangers. Spicy, dark berries intermixed with underbrush, forest floor, pepper, and soy are followed by a medium-bodied, earthy wine in contrast to the more fruit-driven 2007. Drink it over the next 3-4 years. Robert Haas, the iconic French wine importer, who was one of the first to bring estate-bottled French wines into the United States, continues to go from strength to strength at Tablas Creek. His partner remains the Perrin family of Chateau Beaucastel in Chateauneuf du Pape. They have had three tiny vintages in a row, all producing very small yields, but the quality of their 2007s is the best in the history of the winery, and 2008 is certainly a strong vintage as well. These are wonderful, food-friendly wines with considerable complexity. While they do some varietal naming, the strength of Tablas Creek is their extraordinary Rhone Ranger blends, whether white or red. The 2009 vintage turned out to be an even smaller crop than 2008 and 2007 as a result of spring frost.Tel. (805) 237-1231; Fax (805) 237-1314