2023 Saint Damien Gigondas La Louisiane Organic, Rhone Valley

Lastly, the 2023 Gigondas La Louisiane comes from a single lieu-dit on the lower plain, just beside the estate. It has a pretty perfume of red and black fruits, spring flowers, crushed stone, and rose petals. These all carry to an incredibly pure, elegant, medium to full-bodied Gigondas that has fine tannins and a great finish.

93-95 points jebdunnuck.com

Domaine Saint Damien Gigondas La Louisiane Organic is one of the Rhône Valley’s most characterful expressions of Grenache, a cuvée that sits alongside Les Souteyrades at the very top of Saint Damien’s range. The domaine, run by Joel and Romain Saurel, farms their vineyards organically, with a focus on old-vine parcels that deliver wines of depth, authenticity and age-worthiness.

The La Louisiane cuvée comes from a single site just below the village of Gigondas, planted mainly to Grenache (often upwards of 80%) with small amounts of Mourvèdre, Syrah, and Cinsault. Many of the Grenache vines here are over 70 years old. The soils are a mix of clay-limestone with plenty of large stones (galets roulés), which retain heat during the day and release it at night, ensuring full ripening. The vineyard has been certified organic, and the farming enhances both fruit purity and site transparency.

Winemaking is deliberately traditional: hand harvesting, fermentation with native yeasts, and ageing in large neutral oak foudres. The aim is to craft a wine that speaks clearly of Gigondas’ garrigue-scented terroir. The result is a wine that is at once generous and structured: deep ruby in colour, with aromas of ripe black cherry, plum and kirsch layered with thyme, rosemary, lavender, pepper and licorice. The palate is rich and full-bodied yet lifted by freshness, showing ripe fruit woven with savoury herbs, mineral notes, and firm but polished tannins. It has the balance and concentration to age for 10–15 years, developing complexity in bottle with notes of leather, truffle and spice.

Food pairings match its robust but refined profile: lamb shoulder with rosemary and garlic, beef daube Provençale, venison with juniper, or game birds with wild mushrooms. For a vegetarian pairing, try eggplant caponata or lentils braised with root vegetables and herbs.