Friday, January 10, 2025

Cellar Tour at Maison Guigal and Guigal Tasting at Château d’Ampuis, with Kim Conley - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours









Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller took place from October 13 - October 23. The tour started in Lyon and ended in Châteauneuf-du-Pap/ Avignon. There were 8 of us including Annette and me. 

The Rhône Valley is one of the oldest wine regions in France, and the second largest after Bordeaux. The Greeks introduced viticulture in the 4th century BC. Later the Romans came and brought viticulture to a different level. Since then the world has discovered Rhône wines and some of the most famous wines come from the Rhône Valley. The vineyards are located on both sides of the river. The Rhône Valley is divided into two distinctively different regions: the Northern Rhône and the Southern Rhône. 
 
For an overview see: Overview: Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller - Facebook Day-by-day Postings 
 
Following
 
 
The whole afternoon was taken up by Guigal with our host Kim Conley from California (who now runs the @Les Enfants de la Rhone wine bar in Condrieu with her French husband), first, doing a tour of the impressive winemaking facilities of Guigal in Ampuis, and, second, sitting in the garden of @Chateau d'Ampuis doing a tasting of high-end Guigal wines. 

Maison Guigal in Ampuis, Côte Rôtie, Northern Rhône

We had an intensive afternoon at the Guigal estate learning a lot about the Northern Rhône and the Côte Rôtie. I quote the Wine Spectator in an article of March 31, 2024: “The ascendance of Côte-Rôtie to the pantheon of the world’s most rarefied wines can be credited largely to Etienne, Marcel and Philippe Guigal. Today they own 10 percent of Côte-Rôtie’s vineyards, and their empire has expanded to many other Rhône regions.”

The Guigal Estate is a family business and was founded in 1946 by Etienne Guigal. Etienne Guigal worked at Vidal Fleury before establishing his own domaine. Much later in the 1980s Vidal Fleury was acquired by Guigal, but remains independently managed. 
 
Today Maison Guigal is run by Philippe Guigal, the third generation of the family who also is the head winemaker. Through carefully selected acquisitions Guigal grew and today the total vineyard holdings are around 120 acres of which half are in the Côte Rôtie. 
 
The estate also acquired the famous Château d’Ampuis, an important historic and oenological monument whose long history – an ancient fort built in the 12th century- is directly linked to the Côte-Rôtie appellation. The Château sits majestically on a hill surrounded by vineyards overlooking the Rhône river. 
 
With a current production of 6,5 million bottles Guigal is also the most important négociant in the Northern Rhône, although the majority of the purchased fruit comes from the Southern Rhône. 
 
Marcel Guigal, the second generation is credited with the biggest impact on the quality of the Northern Rhône wines when he introduced single vineyard cuvées from Côte Rôtie in the 1970s. Just think of the
legendary LaLa trio wines: La Mouline, La Turque, La Landonne which soon will become a LaLa quartet when a fourth cuvée will be bottled as announced in the above mentioned article of the Wine Spectator. 
 
La Maison Guigal has the rare  distinction of being a quality leader in both estate and négociant wines.
 
E. Guigal - wine-searcher

E. Guigal is one of the most notable wine producers in the Rhône Valley. It was founded in 1946 by Etienne Guigal in Ampuis – where the headquarters remain to this day – on the western banks of the Rhône river, a stone's throw from the famous sun-roasted slopes of the Côte Rôtie, and Guigal's flagship wines, the famous "LaLa"s: La Landonne, La Mouline and La Turque.

Guigal has a long history of winegrowing, and today the company hold plots throughout the nothern and southern Rhône and produces wines from classic northern Rhône and Mediterranean varieties including Grenache, Mourvèdre, Viognier and Roussanne, although the focus has always been on Syrah and the Côte Rôtie.

The company's sizeable holdings include the likes of Saint-Joseph, Hermitage, Gigondas, Condrieu and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and wines are made from each, often labeled simply by their appellation title – a format that runs into the more affordable Côtes du Rhône range (which can be found in red, white and rosé form).

Nonetheless, Guigal's most notable wines – La Landonne, La Turque and La Mouline – are all from the northern Rhône's Côte Rôtie, and are some of the most sought-after wines in the region. In fact, all three have had 100-point Robert Parker scores across multiple vintages.

La Mouline and La Turque are both Syrah – Viognier blends from vines with an age of up to 75 years old. Both spend around 42 months in new oak before release and are dense and aromatic.

La Landonne is 100 percent Syrah, from 40-year-old vines, and spends a similar amount of time in oak. A fourth Côte Rôtie wine, Château d'Ampuis, is named for an impressive historical estate in Ampuis acquired by Guigal in 1995 and, although part of the more stellar offerings of the producer, has yet to acquire the esteem of its three LaLa stablemates.

As well as a more formal dry offering, Guigal also makes a late-harvest dessert wine from Viognier in the Condrieu appellation. Dubbed Luminescence, this wine is only made in exceptional vintages, and has previously been the victim of theft: in the excellent 2015 vintage, a third of the grapes were harvested without the knowledge of the winemakers.

Cellar Tour
 




















Tasting
 













 
Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours - Postings on schiller-wine (Published and Forthcoming):
 

Arriving in Lyon: Saucisson Sec, Saint-Marcellin Cheese and a Bottle of Rhône Rouge at Le Broc'Bar for Dinner - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Sunday Morning Stroll on the St. Antoine Market on the Banks of the Soane River Market in Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Meet&Greet (+ Introduction to the Rhône Valley Region) at Grand Hôtel des Terreaux in Lyon and Guided Sightseeing Tour of Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

"Menu Tradition" at Grand Café des Négociants - Created in 1864 - in Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

At the Foot of the Hermitage Hill and Tasting at Maison M. Chapoutier in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch with a View of the Hermitage Hill at Brasserie Route N7 in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Quick Stop at Valrhona, the Famous Chocolate Producer, in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet, Croze-Hermitage, with Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Dinner at Restaurant Le Quai in Tain L’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Caveau Ferraton Père & Fils in Tain L’Heremitage, with Jerome Nuss - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Domaine Yves Cuilleron in Chavanay, Northern Rhône, with Thibaut Jager - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Next to Maison Guigal: Lunch at Le Bistro de Serine in Ampuis - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour at Maison Guigal and Guigal Tasting at Château d’Ampuis, with Kim Conley - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Focus on "Natural Wine": Meeting Alice Feiring at Le Moderne Wine Bar of Romane Vallon in Toulon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Cellar at Cave Sébastien Blachon in Saint-Jean de Muzols, Northern Rhône, with Sébastien Blachon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting from Barrel and from Bottle at Domaine Alain Graillot in Pont-de-l’Isère, Northern Rhône, with Maxime Graillot - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

High-end Wine Pairing Lunch at La Grand Table Maison Chabran, with Chef Louis Chabran and Legend Michel Chabran - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

High-end Tasting at Paul Jaboulet Aîné in Tain-l’Hermitage, Northern Rhône - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Domaine Alary in Cairanne, Southern Rhône, with Jean Etienne Alary and Senior Boss Denis Alary - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Tasting at Domaine Chaume-Arnaud in Vinsobres, Southern Rhône, with Valérie Chaume-Arnaud and Virginia Fréguin - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at Restaurant Le Mesclun in Séguret, with Artist Chef Christophe Bonzi - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting and Cellar Tour at Domaine Saint Gayan in Gigondas, Southern Rhône, with Owner/ Winemaker Christian-Yves Carré de Lusançay - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant Domaine de Cabasse, Séguret - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine des Pasquiers in Sablet, Southern Rhône, with Jean Claude, Philippe and Perrin Lambert - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Front-yard at Domaine La Ligière in Beaumes-de-Venise - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Restaurant Auberge Saint Roch in Beaumes-de-Venise, with the Husband and Wife Team Johann and Isabelle from Corsica - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Cellar at Domaine La Martinelle in Lafare, Ventoux, with Owner/ Winemaker Corinne Faravel - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Charcuterie and Cheese Dinner with Rosé Wines at Hôtel Le Mas de l’Oulivié, Les Baux de Provence - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Olive Trees Tour, Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Mas de Gourgonnier in Mouriès, Alpilles, with Owner/ Winemaker Eve Cartier - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Le Mas Teulière in Maussane-les-Alpilles - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Van Gogh and the Romans: Sightseeing in Arles - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch with a View at Restaurant Les Terrasses at the Pont du Gard - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Avignon - Town of the Popes: Guided Tour of the Palace of the Popes and of Pont Saint-Bénézet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Light Dinner in Avignon at the Palace of the Popes - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine du Pègau in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Owner/ Winemaker Laurence Féraud and Winemaker Andreas Lenzenwöger (from Austria) - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Pairing Lunch at Vignobles Alain Jaume, Domaine Grand Veneur in Courthézon, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Hélène Jaume and Chef Axel Thomas - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Berthet-Rayne in Courthézon, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Owner/ Winemaker Laure Berthet-Rayne (Laure Capeau) - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Light Dinner in the old part of Avignon near "Les Halles", the Central Food Market - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Bottleing and Tasting at Château de Ségriès in Lirac, with Owner/ Winemaker Henri de Lanzac - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting Château de Beaucastel Wines at Boutique Famille Perrin in the Village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at La Mule du Pape in the Center of  Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Château Gigognan in Sorgues, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Head Winemaker Jenna Le Lay - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Michelin-star level Wine-pairing Dinner at Hôtellerie du Château des Fines Roches in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Chef Hugo Loridan-Fombonnet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

 

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