E. Guigal
Saint-Joseph Vignes de l'Hospice 2023
Saint-Joseph
Guigal’s Vignes de l’Hospice is one of the finest sites in the Northern Rhone Valley. Guigal now owns the majority of this steeply terraced vineyard. Guigal is often asked when they will produce a fourth “LaLa,” and their response is that their fourth single vineyard phenomenon of the Northern Rhone is already being produced: the Vignes de l’Hospice.
VINEYARD
This 100% Syrah wine is sourced from an extremely steep vineyard planted in granite originating from a similar geologic formation as the famed Bessards slopes of Hermitage across the river. The vines average between 20-80 years old. Since acquiring the land, the Guigals have worked tirelessly to preserve the walls of the vineyard and to carry on the history and tradition of this land as a beacon of quality.
WINEMAKING
Vinified in the same fashion as their Côte Rôtie crus and Ermitage Ex Voto, this wine ferments in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats with traditional pumpovers. The wine is then aged for 30 months in 100% new oak barrels, clarified by racking only, and bottled unfiltered.
VINTAGE
The 2023 Northern Rhône vintage was marked by a cool, wet spring, an intense heatwave in August, and torrential downpours in September. The challenging weather caused mildew pressure, especially in regions like Cornas and Côte-Rôtie, while the heatwave stressed vines. However, the rains in September helped the vines recover. Despite these hurdles, the vintage shows promise, with wines demonstrating finesse, balance, and a classic expression of the region's terroirs, highlighting both challenges and quality.
TASTING NOTE
This wine’s complex aromas are dominated by black fruit and a delicate oak sensation. The round and elegant tannins of the powerful palate characterize this unique wine, with all the finesse of its appellation and the strength of its neighbor Hermita
FOOD PAIRING
Cacio e Pepe, Mushroom risotto
Color
Red
Blend %
100% Syrah
Appellation
Saint-Joseph
Alcohol
13.5%
Suggested Retail Price
$153
Reviews
Jeb Dunnuck - May 9, 2025 "Coming from a picturesque, steep, granitic hillside just behind the village of Tournon, the 2023 Saint Joseph Vignes De L'Hospice shows a touch of reduction as well as darker fruits, violets, and crushed stone aromatics. Medium to full-bodied, with wonderful purity and serious structure, it has beautiful balance and gorgeous overall character. Aged in 100% new oak for 30 months."
Trade Materials
Other Wines by this Producer
Côte-Rôtie La Reynarde
Côte-Rôtie
From a steep Côte Brune vineyard planted in 2010 to honor the birth of Philippe Guigal’s twin sons, La Reynarde is 100% Syrah grown on granite, schist and iron-rich clay. In style, it sits between La Turque and La Landonne, showing a lifted and exotic floral character that differentiates it from the other LaLa’s, with a superbly precise density and length.
Côte-Rôtie La Landonne
Côte-Rôtie
One of the three “LaLa” wines that Guigal produces and are the most collectible wines of the Rhone Valley, La Landonne is a remarkable expression of terroir. And for good reason, La Landonne is situated on one of the steepest vineyards of the Côte Brune, a 45 degree slope that remarkably requires harvesters to start picking from the bottom of the vineyard and work their way up, placing grape bunches in bins that are set on sleds and dragged up the hill. Along with its position at the northern end of the Côte Brune and the fact it is the last vineyard to ripen, La Landonne is the mirror of the feminine and voluptuous La Mouline: it is a wine of driving power, defined by its dark fruit and structure. The first vintage Guigal produced was in 1978, after being planted in 1975 at the time of Philippe Guigal’s birth.
Côte-Rôtie La Turque
Côte-Rôtie
Of the three famous single-vineyard “LaLas” that Guigal produces and are the most collectible wines of the Rhone Valley, La Turque is the newest. This vineyard produced outstanding wines in the first half of the 20th century, but then was not used for wine production for nearly 50 years. The Guigals acquired the vineyard and re-planted it in 1980 and 1981, based on Etienne Guigal’s memory of the quality of the wines it once produced. The first vintage appeared in 1985. In both position and style, it sits between La Mouline and La Landonne: the complex soils lend an exotic character to La Turque, and its concentration and elegance exhibit the virility of the Côte Brune with the subtlety and femininity of the Côte Blonde.
Côte-Rôtie La Mouline
Côte-Rôtie
First planted by the Romans 2,500 years ago, La Mouline is the oldest and most famous vineyard of Cote-Rotie, and Guigal’s single vineyard bottling of La Mouline in the 1960s set off a quality revolution throughout the Rhone Valley. The stunning amphitheater is the most complex plot in Cote-Rotie due to its extremely steep slopes with expositions in every direction. Of the three famous “LaLas” that Guigal produces and are the most collectible wines of the Rhone Valley, La Mouline was the first and is the only one on the Cote Blonde, and its signature is an unbelievable exoticism, an irresistibly and unique lifted floral, black fruit, earthy, spicy perfume, its coiled power always in balance, seemingly endless.
Ermitage Ex Voto Rouge
Hermitage
Ermitage Ex-Voto represents the fulfillment of a longtime dream of Marcel Guigal’s to own vineyard land on the hill of Hermitage. Through the purchase of the de Vallouit and J. L. Grippat domaines in 2000, Guigal acquired four exceptional vineyard parcels on this legendary site. The 2001 vintage was the first release of this estate-bottled Hermitage red and white. The quality of the intense old-vine fruit is quite special, but given the Guigal’s already strong work in Hermitage, they decided to only release an Ex-Voto red or white when the wine is utterly exceptional and clearly superior to their appellation bottlings.
Ermitage Ex Voto Blanc
Hermitage
Ermitage Ex-Voto represents the fulfillment of a longtime dream of Marcel Guigal’s to own vineyard land on the hill of Hermitage. Through the purchase of the de Vallouit and J. L. Grippat domaines in 2000, Guigal acquired four exceptional vineyard parcels on this legendary site. The 2001 vintage was the first release of this estate-bottled Hermitage red and white. The quality of the intense old-vine fruit is quite special, but given the Guigal’s already strong work in Hermitage, they decided to only release an Ex-Voto red or white when the wine is utterly exceptional and clearly superior to their appellation bottlings.
Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc
Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Guigal produces an intensely concentrated, inviting and complex Châteauneuf-du-Pape that is almost unique to the region today. Their passion for Châteauneuf, the leading appellation of the Southern Rhône, runs as deeply as that for their home sites in the Northern Rhône. The combination of working with top fruit that has perfect ripeness, along with their extraordinary patience in the cellar, results in rich and full, yet savory, spicy, seamless and balanced wines. Wines to enjoy immediately but capable of aging, and, above all, wines that leave you wanting more.
Hermitage Blanc
Hermitage
Whites make up a small percentage of production in the Rhône, under 2%, but white wines are a little bit of a secret specialty at Guigal and today comprise 25% of their production. And for good reason, as the whites of the Northern Rhône are true discovery wines, immensely appealing and complex. They specifically display an expressiveness and brightness while also capturing the warmth of the area. Even more of a discovery is Hermitage Blanc, one of the least-known yet most intriguing wines of the Rhône Valley and in the small 309 acre Hermitage AOC.
Hermitage
Hermitage
Hermitage is one of France’s most spectacular and famous appellations, producing small quantities of extraordinarily intense and ageworthy red wine and tiny amounts of dry white. The entire vineyard consists of 309 acres planted on a single granite hillside on the banks of the Rhône. The Hermitage Rouge is the example of a racy wine, that manages to remain seductive.
