2011 Gigondas, Domaine du Clos des Tourelles, Famille Perrin, Rhône

2011 Gigondas, Domaine du Clos des Tourelles, Famille Perrin, Rhône

Product: 20111145546
 
2011 Gigondas, Domaine du Clos des Tourelles, Famille Perrin, Rhône

Buying options

Available by the case In Bond. Pricing excludes duty and VAT, which must be paid separately before delivery. Storage charges apply.
You can place a bid for this wine on BBX

Description

Clos des Tourelles is the only remaining Clos in Gigondas and has a history that goes back to the mid-1600s. Produced with 95% Grenache and a noticeable dollop of oak, the full bodied rich tannic palate is lifted by fresh menthol. It will need a few years to open up properly. This is the Perrin’s second vintage of this wine and I expect we will hear more about it in the future.
Fine Wine Team

The old winery has nearly been completely restored, its eponymous monastic towers giving the village a renewed identity, the large new foudres bestowing upon the wine the best possible up-bringing. 80% is Grenache and the balance is shared between the usual suspects. Blackberry, bay and laurel are evidenced; sui generis and yet wonderfully refined, this is the style which will allow Gigondas, before too long, to rival Châteauneuf-du-Pape as the top village in the region.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer

The adoption of new nomenclature, complete with smart new crested labels, runs deeper than skilful marketing, reflecting as it does the fact that the Perrins are more than merely an up-market négociant. The partnerships cultivated are far more than that and actual ownership now extends to an impressive three hundred hectares, each one afforded the same oraganic treatment as at Beaucastel itself. The increased emphasis on the villages of Vinsobres and, in particular, Gigondas, has helped to elevate the reputations of both greatly.

wine at a glance

Delivery and quality guarantee

Critics reviews

Wine Advocate94/100
Two wines that blew me away were the old vine Gigondas cuvees! The 2011 Gigondas Domaine du Clos des Tourelles shows shocking depth and concentration in the vintage, with full-bodied power, beautiful ripeness and sweet tannin. Showing plenty of cedar, spice and meaty dark fruits, it is one serious Gigondas to drink over the coming decade or more. Drink now-2023.
Jeb Dunnuck - 31/10/2013 Read more
Robert Parker88-90/100
The 2011 Gigondas Clos des Tourelles, which is mostly Grenache but shows unmistakable crushed chalk minerality, is dense ruby/purple, backward, full and tannic. The structure of this wine suggests forgetting it for at least another 2-3 years, and drinking it over the following decade or more.

As I said last year, the Perrin family is a large one indeed, with brothers Jean-Pierre and Francois sitting at the top of the hierarchy and their four sons, Mathieu, Pierre, Thomas and Marc increasingly taking charge of their negociant business and their extensive estates throughout Southern Rhone. Now controlling over 1200 acres, as well as having a network of contracts, this operation is the equivalent of a major Southern Rhone train operating at high speed. Moreover, they are doing some incredible work in all price ranges. Other 2011s that the Perrin boys have produced include the following wines, which were very good across the board, especially for 2011s. In particular, readers need to take a hard look at their estate in Vinsobres, which is making the finest wines of that appellation, and more recently, what they are doing in Gigondas with the estate they purchased there, Clos des Tourelles. These are special wines. There are now three cuvees of Gigondas from the Perrins - the Gigondas La Gille, the Gigondas Vieilles Vignes and the Gigondas Clos des Tourelles. All three merit serious attention. Tasting the 2010s, which were all set to go into bottle right after my visit, certainly shows that this vintage is impressive, although I'm not sure that Marc and Pierre Perrin haven't done as good a job with their selections in 2011. Three cuvees of Gigondas look to all have outstanding potential and will probably be in bottle by the time this report is published.
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #204, Dec 2012
Read more

About this WINE

La Famille Perrin

La Famille Perrin

The Domaine Perrin is a négociant brand created in 1997 by François Perrin and his brother Jean-Pierre, Pierre's father, and since 1999 run by Pierre. The Perrin family are owners of the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape estate Château de Beaucastel.

As with the wines at Beaucastel, the Domaine Perrin wines are impeccably made and reflect the true nature of the terroir from which they come. The wines made are all from the neighbouring Southern Rhône appellations to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, such as Vacqueyras and Gigondas. The reds are based on Grenache, but with other Rhône grape varieties, such as Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault.

The Perrins are one of the most reliable wine families in the Rhône valley, truly a name to look out for.

Find out more
Gigondas

Gigondas

Gigondas has been renowned for the quality of its wines since Roman times, although it was not really until it was classified as a Côtes du Rhône Villages in 1966 that it began to realise its potential.  It achieved AC status in 1971 and today produces some of the finest, most underrated and under-priced wines in the Rhône valley; although, for the last two of these at least, probably not for much longer.

Gigondas' 1,200-hectare of rugged vineyards are located east of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, beneath the famous mountains of Dentelles de Montmirail. Gigondas produces sumptuous, plummy reds with a good structure and a sprinkle of pepper. It is similar to (if a touch less slick than) good Châteauneuf-du-Pape which, at its best, it can challenge and even surpass.

Made with a maximum of 80 percent Grenache, combined with at least 15 percent Syrah and/or Mourvèdre, the rest can be made of any of the varieties authorized for Côtes du Rhône – apart from Carignan. The wines can normally be broached after two to three years, while the best repay ageing for 10 years or more. The region also produces dry, Grenache-dominated rosés which are good but can sometimes lack a little vitality.

Recommended Producer: La Bastide St VincentDomaine Montirius

Find out more
Southern Rhône Blend

Southern Rhône Blend

The vast majority of wines from the Southern Rhône are blends. There are 5 main black varieties, although others are used and the most famous wine of the region, Châteauneuf du Pape, can be made from as many as 13 different varieties. Grenache is the most important grape in the southern Rhône - it contributes alcohol, warmth and gentle juicy fruit and is an ideal base wine in the blend. Plantings of Syrah in the southern Rhône have risen dramatically in the last decade and it is an increasingly important component in blends. It rarely attains the heights that it does in the North but adds colour, backbone, tannins and soft ripe fruit to the blend.

The much-maligned Carignan has been on the retreat recently but is still included in many blends - the best old vines can add colour, body and spicy fruits. Cinsault is also backtracking but, if yields are restricted, can produce moderately well-coloured wines adding pleasant-light fruit to red and rosé blends. Finally, Mourvèdre, a grape from Bandol on the Mediterranean coast, has recently become an increasingly significant component of Southern Rhône blends - it often struggles to ripen fully but can add acidity, ripe spicy berry fruits and hints of tobacco to blends.

Find out more