“This winery must be counted among the handful of great producers of Gigondas.” - Josh Raynolds, Vinous

A Gigondas tasting is only for the brave and if there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that wine merchants are as tough as nails. Lucia survived on the mean streets of Putney and I’m straight outta Chiswick. So, when it comes to tasting full-bodied, tannic Gigondas, who ya gonna call?

Normally, when we taste Gigondas, the wine gets a quick swirl in the mouth (before it can do too much damage to our tooth enamel), and is then expelled into the nearest spittoon, but something most unusual happened when we tasted this Gigondas. Reader, we swallowed it. It was glorious! It had an exotic perfume and a weightlessness on the palate that was more aligned to a Pinot Noir than a Grenache/Mourvedre/Syrah blend, which could be attributed to the winemaker, Benjamin Gras, having done a stage at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti!

The wine is mellow and supple and so very easy to drink, yet still a faithful incarnation of Gigondas, with flavours of orange rind, sweet cherry, leather, rosehip and sweet spices from the bazaar. There is so much finesse allied to a layered complexity, that I am tempted to compare it to Chateau Rayas, as it breaks the Gigondas mould in the same way that Rayas did with Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Absolutely delicious and within the context of the best southern Rhone reds, incredible value. 14.5% alc. 18 months in Stockinger barrels and clay amphora. Drink now-2030.

Biodynamically-farmed. Organic.

Press review:

Vinous: "Brilliant ruby. Intensely perfumed, mineral- and spice-driven aromas of ripe red and blue fruit and potpourri show sharp definition; suggestions of woodsmoke and incense build in the glass. Shows outstanding depth as well as energy on the palate, offering powerful raspberry, kirsch and floral pastille flavours and a strong note of exotic spices. It finishes with an alluring sweetness and harmonious tannins that lend shape to a wonderfully long, spice- and floral-accented finish." (95-96) points