Domaine les Pallieres Gigondas Racines 2017
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Winemaker Notes
“Les Racines”, a cuvée made with grapes from the estate’s oldest vines, has the velvet, depth and harmony that defines old grenache when cultivated in refined terroirs. It has very high ageing potential, as balance is the main factor. “Les Racines”, a cuvée made with grapes from the estate’s oldest vines, has the velvet, depth and harmony that defines old grenache when cultivated in refined terroirs. It has very high ageing potential, as balance is the main factor.
Blend: 80% Grenache, 8% Syrah, 7% Cinsault, 5% Clairette
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Despite being riper and more concentrated than the Terrasse du Diable bottling, the 2017 Gigondas Les Racines shares a similarly edgy structure. Potent raspberry fruit is delivered on a full-bodied, richly textured palate that finishes crisp and a bit jagged. Give it a couple of years in the cellar, and it should be fine for drinking over the next 10 years. Range: 93-95 points
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James Suckling
Aromas of cassis, garrigue and redcurrants and wild raspberries. Grenache drives the palate in a long, linear and very focused style. Dense, but delicate, with a fresh and juicy, raspberry-pastry finish. The vines are 80+ years old. Striking power and focus. Drink or hold.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Gigondas Les Racines offers a slightly darker color as well as a more powerful, black fruited style. Currants, sous bois, loamy earth, black olives, and loads of spice flow to a powerful, structured wine that shows the sunny, sexy, opulent, yet weightless style of the vintage brilliantly. It's another winner from this estate. Range: 93-95
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Wine Spectator
This has a dark and winey profile, with steeped fig and black currant fruit, tightly wrapped in sage, licorice root, roasted apple wood and gunpowder tea flavors. The long finish unwinds slowly, so bank on some cellaring here. Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Clairette. Best from 2023 through 2032.
Other Vintages
2021- Vinous
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Dunnuck
Jeb
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Suckling
James - Vinous
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Dunnuck
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Suckling
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Jeb
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Jeb
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James -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Spectator
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Suckling
James -
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Robert
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Parker
Robert -
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Spirits
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Domaine Les Pallières is undeniably one of the greatest, longest-running properties of the Southern Rhône—outside the village of Gigondas, woven into the foothills of the beautiful and brooding Dentelles de Montmirail. The domaine had been a continuously running farm within the same family since the fifteenth century! Les Pallières was once a famous domaine with wines of impeccable character, yet the property had slowly fallen into disrepair. Two great frosts of the twentieth century had killed off many of the olive and fruit trees, and both the winery and the vineyards were badly in need of repairs. By 1998, the Roux brothers wanted to make a change. With no future successors to take their place, they decided to sell.
The Brunier brothers, Daniel and Frédéric, of the famed Vieux Télégraphe in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, were rising stars in the Southern Rhône at the time, having distinguished themselves time and time again with world class wines. A casual discussion over lunch at Chez Panisse between Daniel and Kermit Lynch, the Brunier’s longtime American importer, spontaneously turned into a game plan to revive the faded jewel—Les Pallières. Though the competition to buy the domaine was fierce with very reputable names in the mix, the Roux brothers finally decided to sell to the Bruniers and Kermit. After decades of neglect, Pallières’ renaissance had begun.
A focus on the terroir and its potential soon led to a clear, new direction. The vineyards range from 250-400 meters in altitude, with varying proportions of sand and clay interwoven with limestone scree descending from the Dentelles. Terraces were built and reinforced, allowing for better water retention. A new winery was built to receive the harvested parcels individually in gravity-fed tanks. The many lieux-dits, once blended into one cuvée of Gigondas, have been separated into two, starting with the 2007 vintage, in an effort to best express two remarkable personalities. Cuvée “Terrasse du Diable,” encompasses the low-yielding vines from the higher altitudes that express great structure and intense minerality. Cuvée “Les Racines” showcases the vineyard parcels surrounding the winery—the origin of the domaine with the oldest vines—with the emphasis on freshness and extravagant cornucopian fruit.
Domaine Les Pallières has become a partnership among friends, a real meeting of the minds—a creative collaboration of three leading, passionate experts on the wines of the Rhône.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
The Southern Rhône region of Gigondas extends northwest from the notably jagged wall of mountains called the Dentelles di Montmirail, whose highest point climbs to about 2,600 feet. The region and its wines have much in common with the neighboring Chateauneuf-du-Pape except that the vineyards of Gigondas exist at higher elevation and its soils, comprised mainly of crumbled limestone from the Dentelles, often produce a more dense and robust Grenache-based red wine.
The region has a history of fine winemaking, extending back to Roman times. But by the 20th century, Gigondas was merely lumped into the less distinct zone of Côtes du Rhône Villages. However, it was first among these satellite villages to earn its own appellation, which occurred in 1971.
Gigondas reds must be between 50 to 100% Grenache with Syrah and Mourvèdre comprising the bulk of the remainder of the blend. They tend express rustic flavors and aromas of wild blackberry, raspberry, fig, plum, as well as juniper, dried herbs, anise, smoke and river rock. The best are bold but balanced, and finish with impressively sexy and velvety tannins.
The Gigondas appellation also produces rosé but no white wines.