While I’m tempted to begin with the fascinating story and growing hype behind today’s wine, I can’t resist diving into the contents of the bottle: Simply put, this is one of the most seductive, savage, soil-driven examples of Gigondas I’ve ever encountered.
Anyone who doesn’t immediately fall in love with this bottle might consider avoiding Gigondas altogether, because this is truly as good as it gets! It’s also a stupendous value, given how closely it resembles a certain very famous, very rare wine from Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It’s hard to fathom how prices continue soaring into the multiple $100s per-bottle just 90 minutes north in Cornas and Côte-Rôtie—not to mention 30 minutes south in Châteauneuf—while $39 still gets you today’s hand-crafted, truly epic Gigondas from the superlative 2015 vintage. I can’t explain it, but I’m not complaining, either! This bottle will shine on your dinner table in the near term, and I promise it will only grow more savory, layered, and compelling with another 7-10 years of cellar age. It truly does it all. So, if you haven’t recently explored this, one of the Rhône Valley’s most historic and beloved appellations, let today’s wine be your triumphant return to Gigondas!
[**PLEASE NOTE: today’s wine will ship from California the week of Monday, April 8. Limit 12 bottles per customer.]
Anyone with their finger on the pulse of the Rhône Valley is probably already familiar with the story behind this fascinating property. If not, let me summarize: Domaine du Gour de Chaulé began producing wine in Gigondas in 1900. Across the last century, three generations of female owner/farmer/winemakers have earned the estate’s current status as an elite destination for handmade, devoutly classic Gigondas driven by perfumed, old-vine Grenache. In top restaurants in Europe and the US, it’s not uncommon for this to be the only Gigondas on the wine list, and the explanation is simple: While many other producers in this area continue down the rabbit hole of over-ripe, 100% destemmed, modernist “show wines,” Gour de Chaulé holds steadfast to a firmly traditional approach and deeply classic house style. These are wines built for the table and cellar, drawing energy from the distinctive soils of Gigondas, which contain significant concentrations of limestone along with alluvial sand and gravel.
Gour de Chaulé organically farms 10 hectares of Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah, and Cinsault, with vine age averaging 65 years old. All fruit is harvested by hand and fermented in whole clusters (an increasingly rare practice in this region). Granddaughter Stephanie ferments the wines in tank before racking into neutral French oak foudre for 18 months, before racking back into tank for an addition year-plus in tank before bottling. There is no new oak, filtering, or fining at Gour de Chaulé. They keep it old school! The cépage (blend) of this bottling is 80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre, and its combination of high-toned aromatics, energy, and silken texture will have you thinking of none other than Château Rayas (that “certain” Châteauneuf legend I hinted at above).
In the celebrated 2015 vintage, the result of this overtly traditional approach is a Gigondas of incomparable terroir character, seductive fruit, and depth. The first glass overflows with chewy, meaty red and black fruit, rustic but perfectly integrated tannins, and a warm gust of wild herbs and dried flowers. I can’t stress it enough: this is a perfect snapshot of the classic Gigondas terroir, and a deeply satisfying expression of the Southern Rhône. I urge you to enjoy this wine as I did: Decant for 45 minutes and serve in large Bordeaux stems alongside a platter of slow-roasted pork shoulder, boiled and buttered potatoes, and a spring salad dressed with a tangy, shallot-heavy Dijon mustard vinaigrette. Slowly savoring today’s wine alongside this rustic, understated feast was like vacationing in Southern France for a few hours—and I want to go back again tonight! Still, anyone with a little room left in their March wine budget should also reserve a handful of bottles for the cellar. We’ll be talking about the 2015 vintage for years to come and you won’t regret cellaring today’s bottle.
Bon appétit!
