E. Guigal
Gigondas 2021
Gigondas
The last decade has brought vastly increased interest to Gigondas, as the quality potential has been increasingly recognized. The Guigals have been deeply involved in Gigondas for well over 50 years, and it brings them great pleasure to see the increasing interest and appreciation of the appellation. We consider Guigal’s Gigondas the “quiet storm” among their village wines. While they have been widely known for their Châteauneuf-du Pape also produced in the Southern Rhône, and they are increasingly important in Crozes-Hermitage in the North, the Gigondas is the wine that when poured jumps up and down and demands attention. It’s a wine of sheer pleasure, full of ripe fruit, and with a depth and even slightly brooding sense that comes from the important Mourvèdre component. Yet is has refinement, complexity, length, and has a terrific ability to age.
VINEYARD
The vineyards of Gigondas are planted on hillsides at the foot of Mont Ventoux, directly north-east of the town of Orange in the southern Rhône Valley. The dry, stony slopes produce substantial wines that are deep in color, with flavors of ripe summer fruits and savory herbs.
WINEMAKING
Guigal selects wines from small domaines to produce a blend which is true to the appellation, yet polished, refined, and capable of aging many years. The wines see a traditional lengthy maceration and two years of aging in oak foudres, of which 50% are new. The blend is 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvèdre.
VINTAGE
The 2021 vintage had weather challenges, namely frost and hail, but produced high-quality, fresh, structured wines with good acidity, despite lower yields and a late harvest.
TASTING NOTE
With an intense nose of stone fruit and savory garrigue, the wine proves to be generous and elegant, offering cranberry and cherry notes accented by clove and allspice. This is a wine we keep coming back to again and again!
FOOD PAIRING
Roasted turkey, aged cheeses
Color
Red
Blend %
70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre
Appellation
Gigondas
Alcohol
15%
Suggested Retail Price
$46.99
Reviews
Wine Spectator - October 16, 2025 "Smoldering incense and sweet red fruit introduce this ripe red, with a plush, glossy texture and elegance despite the ripeness. Mulberry and juniper detail the smoky, graphite-edged finish, which is firm and focused."
Wine Advocate - November 20, 2025 "The Guigal family crafted an elegant, attractive 2021 Gigondas that offers aromas of lilac, flowers, mulberries and dark berries. Medium- to full-bodied, sappy and suave, it’s enrobing, with a juicy core of fruit, sweet tannins and good depth at the core, concluding with a long, perfumed finish."
James Suckling - April 14, 2025 "Aromas of sweet cherries, raspberries and roasted meat. This driven, succulent and vivid Gigondas is medium-bodied with creamy tannins. Velvety texture with comforting fruit and a focused, flavorful and persistent finish."
Jeb Dunnuck - May 9, 2025 "Based on 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre, the 2021 Gigondas offers ripe red and black fruits, pepper, violets, minerality, and tons of Gigondas spice. Medium-bodied, supple, and pure, it has fine tannins and was brought up all in oak foudres for 36 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.
Saint Joseph Vignes de l’Hospice
Saint-Joseph
Guigal’s Vignes de l’Hospice is one of the finest sites in the Northern Rhone Valley. This steeply terraced vineyard used to be divided into three, but Guigal now owns majority of this parcel in order to restore perception of Saint-Joseph as an appellation of utmost quality. In fact, 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.
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.
