Domaine Pierre Gaillard

Appellation: Côte Rotie

Region: Northern Rhône

Country: France

Color: Red

Varietal(s): 90% Syrah, 10% Viognier

About The Producer

Pierre Gaillard is considered to be one of France’s top wine producers in the Northern Rhone, whose business is centered in the medieval town of Malleval. His first acquisition was a parcel of land in the St Joseph appellation, “Le Clos de Cuminaille”.

Terroir & Vineyard Practices:

Gaillard’s Côte Rôtie comes from 5 hectares on the hillsides near Ampuis. The vines face south and southwest on Cote Brune and Cote Blonde. All the fruit is harvested by hand with a strict selection so that only the ripest berries make it into the final blend.

Tasting Notes

This aromatic and enchantingly textured Côte Rôtie is a traditional blend of 90% Syrah and 10% Viognier. It has smoky aromas with a mid-palate freshness and a fleshy fruitiness. The Viognier comes from a parcel at Fongeant on the Côte Blonde. It not only stabilizes the wine’s color, but it adds the beloved high-toned aromatics. Côte Rôtie is wine that demands patience. It is dark, almost black, with a sold tannic backbone that will add complexity and length with time. It will start to reveal it’s earthy, leathery flavors as it develops with age.

Vinification

The winemaking is carried out according to traditional Côte-Rôtie techniques. Hand-harvested and sorted. Total destemming. Cold maceration before and after fermentation. The fermenting must is both cap-punched and pumped over to ensure the good extraction of tannins and aromatics. Malolactic fermentation is carried out in oak barrels. Each parcel is vinified separately then blended. Aged 18 months in fine oak barrels (50% new) with oxygenation every 4 months. Ageing potential 10-15 years.