This is the first vintage and first wine under the Saxum label. It is a blend of 92% Syrah, 5% Grenache and 3% Mourvedre. 14.8% abv.
My personal view of extended barrel age wines is that they take more time to be ready to drink than regular aged wines. This one is from what might be a slightly lighter vintage, but held true. It is a blend of 58% Syrah, 28% Mourvedre, 11% Grenache, and 3% Viognier. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with black raspberries, plums, black cherries, spice, roasted meats, and slight black olive. Great texture. On the palate, this is tight but with air has black raspberries, black cherries with underlying roasted meat and herbs. A bit of black pepper comes out with air.
This is 95% Grenache. Ruby/purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with black cherries, cherries, char and floral notes. Medium to full bodied. Light tannins. Great texture. On the palate, this has lovely black cherry fruit, some cherries and spice. Nice finish. This seems to be about at peak at this point. It should drink well for another five to eight years, but won't get better. Nice on its own, this will be better with food. A nice wine with beef stew.
Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. This is a blend of 43% Grenache, 43% Syrah and 14% Mataro. It comes in at 15.6% abv, but it is not noticeable on the wine. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. There is a bit of volatile acidity on the nose but it was not bothersome. Lots of black cherry fruit with black raspberries and white pepper. Strong acidity. On the palate, black cherries, and some black raspberries. Complex and deep. Long finish. This is drinking well now and should continue for another ten to fifteen years. Great on its own, this would be nice with ribs off th
This is a blend of 56% Grenache, 13% Petite Sirah, 10% Syrah, 9% Mataro, 7% Zinfandel and 5% Tempranillo. The bottle lists 15.7% abv but it is not noticeable on the wine. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is great with black cherries, black raspberries, gravel, and black pepper. Great backbone of acidity. On the palate, though young, this is showing a nice complexity. Medium tannins. Black cherries and black raspberries with underlying char and gravel. Long finish. Delicious. This may still improve a bit but is drinking great now and should continue for another twe
Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with plums, black pepper, and black cherries. Full bodied. Lovely texture. On the palate, plums and cherries with slight char. Clean. Good balance. Long finish. This is young and showing ripe fruit. It is drinking well but may improve with a few more years of cellaring. Drink over the next ten to twelve years. it will work well with braised meats.
This is a blend of 30% Grenache, 30% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah, 10% Counoise, and the rest is the other permitted varietals. At age 22, it is showing some age and a bit past prime. This bottle had been bought on release and well cellared. Ruby/brown in color, clear and bright. The nose has cherries, dried cherries, soy/umami, and spice. Medium bodied. There are some drying tannins left. Better on the palate. Complex with layers of dried and fresh cherries. Good balance. Nice finish.
This is a blend of 70% old Grenache, 15% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah, 5% other allowed grapes. Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright. It was interesting to drink this side by side with the Gigondas. The CdP is a much bigger and more complex wine (and more expensive). The nose has black cherries, cherries, spice, smoke and black pepper. Medium to full bodied. Good balance. On the palate, this is delicious. Open and drinking well but with depth and complexity. Flavors of black cherries, plums and spice with light tannins. This is drinking well on its own and will work well wi
This is a blend of 70% Grenache, 20 % Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre. In many ways, Gigondas has been thought of as Chateauneuf du Pape's little brother and for Guigal, that is an apt comparison. Drunk side by side, this seemed lighter and easier although similar. Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright. The nose has black cherries and spice and a hint of anise. Medium bodied. Good acidity. On the palate, black cherries and cherry fruit with a bit of spice on the finish. Nice finish. This will work better with food that on its own. Cassoulet is a classic match. Drink over t
The Guigal Cotes du Rhone is consistently one of the best values in wine. This is the red, but they also make white and rose. It is a blend of 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, and 10% Mourvèdre. Purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is dusty, slight earthiness with black cherries and black raspberries. Medium to full bodied. Very tasty. Nice texture. This drinks easy but it also has some stuffing. On the palate, light tannins with black raspberries and black cherries. Well balanced. Amazingly, they make 4.5 million bottles of this wine and keep the quality
