2006 Gigondas Les Hautes Garriges Cuvee Prestige

Dark crimson. The 2005 label which serves on this barrel sample says 15%. Rather smudgy, confused nose. Very juicy front palate attack with lift. There seems to be enough aromatic interest here to lift the alcoholic mass and make an interesting whole – though the finish is still pretty hot! (JR)

The luxury cuvee is called Les Hautes Garrigues, named after the plateau of head-pruned old vines this comes from. A blend of 80% Grenache, 15% Mourvedre, and the rest Syrah and Cinsault aged in barrique, this has been a fabulous wine. (The 1989 is just hitting full stride.) The 2006 is sumptuous, with a dense purple color, beautiful opulence, fresh fruit, good acidity, and fabulous depth and richness. Why can’t the majority of producers in Gigondas hit such heights as consistently as Yves Gras does? Give this wine 2-3 years of bottle age and drink it over the following two decades. Yves Gras, one of the more charismatic figures of the Rhone Valley, has his own small, high-quality negociant business, and most of the wines merit serious consideration. He has hit a gem with the whites from Sablet, a village that is regarded by insiders as one of the finest sources for dry whites in the southern Rhone. Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 832-9083

A burly, structured vintage for this cuvee, the 2006 Domaine Santa Duc Gigondas Prestige des Hautes Garrigues delivers a brooding, dense bouquet of smoked black fruits, cherry liqueur, black licorice, balsam, and roasted Provencal herbs to go with a full-bodied, concentrated, yet well proportioned and balanced palate. Still youthful, and even slightly backwards, with edgy acidity, excellent mid-palate depth, and no shortage of tannin, it needs another 2-3 years in the cellar, and will have upwards of a decade of prime drinking thereafter. In short, it is an old school, age-worth Gigondas that deserves a place in the cellar.