Domaine Notre Dame des Pallières Gigondas “Les Mourres”

WHY WE LOVE IT

• Les Mourres is a cru site sitting in the shadows of the famed “dentilles,” vines here very old. The subsoil of limestone gravel, very poor, has the advantage of well-draining rainwater. (Fluvial alluvium of medium terraces dating from Riss Glacial Stage)

Varietal Composition: 80% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah

Elaboration: The selection of old vines is manually harvested, 80% of the grapes are then scraped. The grapes remain in vats for more than 30 days, during which, reassembly and shedding follow one another with a control of temperature (maximum 30 °C), then withdrawal and pressing of the marcs whose wine said “press” is spread, aging is done in concrete vats.

Tasting Notes: This wine is dressed in a beautiful purple robe with deep and brilliant reflections. Its nose exhales an aromatic bouquet and a great complexity, on notes of very ripe fruits such as blackberry and cherry, wrapped by an elegant folded key. The palate is perfectly balanced, both concentrated and delicate, on jammy fruit and spices. The finish is long, extending on straight tannins.

PRESS

2015 – 92 Wine Advocate | 91-93 Jeb Dunnuck

2016 – 93 Wine Advocate, Coup de Coeur in Guide Hachette

2017 – 91-92 Vinous | 93 Wine Advocate | 93 Jeb Dunnuck | 94 Wine Enthusiast “Editors’ Choice”

2018 – 91 Vinous | 92 Wine Advocate | 92 Wine Enthusiast | 92 Jeb Dunnuck

2019 – 92 Vinous | 93 Jeb Dunnuck

2020 – 93 Vinous

2021 – 90 Vinous | 90 Jeb Dunnuck

ABOUT THE WINERY

Domaine Notre Dame des Pallières is a very old family estate, whose name comes from a place of pilgrimage visited by the Provençal people in the middle ages who believed that the fountain on the property would protect them from the plague.

Claude Roux and his cousin Jean-Pierre have so many generations of Gigondas wine making experience in their family that they don’t know exactly how many of their relatives have been involved up to now – Antique writings suggest that this Domain existed in the 900’s.  Fortunately this tradition is continuing with Claude’s children, Isabelle and Julien, gradually taking over the day to day responsibilities of farming, production, and administration.

Vineyard holdings total 74 acres in Gigondas, Sablet, and Cotes du Rhone.

When asked about their methods they smile and explain that they are simply following the traditional methods of the family members that came before them.