Made from 100% Mourvedre, the sweet, funky, exotic 2005 Sacre Rouge reveals abundant quantities of chocolaty, kinky, blue and black fruits intermixed with notions of game and earth. While some will find it somewhat strange, it is an impressive, well-balanced effort.Readers would be hard pressed to find more French-like wines in the Paso Robles corridor than those produced by Tablas Creek. This is a partnership between renowned importer Robert Haas (Vineyard Brands), one of the pioneers of estate-bottled French wines, and Francois Perrin, one of the owners of Chateau Beaucastel in Chateauneuf du Pape. Haas and Perrin run a serious vineyard operation with vines planted on the steep hillsides in pure limestone soils, not far from the Pacific Ocean. All of these cuvees possess distinctive personalities, good acids, and striking minerality. Even though they make very good single varietal wines, I still believe their strength lies in their sensational blends. That said, my two favorite dry whites, other than the blended wines, are their Chablis-like, unwooded Antithesis Chardonnay and the tank-fermented and aged, exquisite Vermentino. The 2005 red wines have all been bottled. I tasted a handful of 2007 reds, which appears to be a superb vintage for Tablas Creek. (Production was down 15% for the red wine varietals and 30% for the whites, thus giving everything an extra degree of concentration.)Tel. (805) 237-1231; Fax (805) 237-1314

Tablas Creek produces two Vin de Paille cuvees. Made from 100% Mourvedre, the 2003 Vin de Paille Sacre Rouge offers dynamite notes of blueberries, tree bark, chocolate, and mocha along with excellent structure and power. It would be an exhilarating wine to drink with chocolate-based desserts. It’s hard to know how long these wines will live.Tel. 805-237-1231; Fax 805-237-1314