2001 Cote Rotie
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Tasting notes
An outstanding wine that has a classic feel, the 2001 Cote Rotie Brune et Blonde is medium-bodied, clean and classy on the palate, with ample sweet cherry and currant-styled fruits, spice box, dried flowers and hints of bacon fat and olive. Showing the vintage nicely, with juicy acidity and a fresh, lively feel, it too should be consumed over the coming 3 to 5 years. One of the reference point estates for top quality wines in the world today, the family run Guigal operation was created in 1946 by Etienne Guigal. Today, Etienne’s son, Marcel, and his son Philippe, are firmly in control here, and are without a doubt producing some of the most singular, sought after wines in the world. Due to the size of this tasting, I’ll keep my comments short, but the incredible quality coming from this operation is astounding, and a tasting here is always one of the highlights of any trip through the region. Furthermore, while a lot is said about the extended oak aging regime here, I don’t know anyone who tastes mature examples of these wines on a regular basis that still has any doubts about the genius going on here. In short, these single vineyard (and their blends as well) Cote Roties are some of the greatest wines money can buy. For this tasting (which, with the Guigals, is always a large one!), we focused on their Saint Joseph Vignes des Hospice release, and then three of their Cote Roties, starting with the classic Brune et Blonde, then the Chateau d’Ampuis, and finishing with their single vineyard La Mouline. Looking first at their Saint Joseph Vignes des Hospices release, it comes all from the incredibly steep (and picturesque) vineyard perched just above the town of Tournon. The exposure here (which is critical for Saint Joseph as the more southern facing the plot, the warmer the site is) is mostly east facing and the soils are pure granite (identical to the decomposed granite found in the Les Bessards lieu-dit on Hermitage Hills). Compared to the Saint Joseph lieu-dit, which has a slightly more southern exposure, harvest here is always 5-7 days later. Moving north to Côte Rôtie, the Guigal’s Brune et Blonde is their entry level release that comes from a mix of vineyards, most of which are estate. It drinks beautifully on release and has a solid 15-20 years of longevity in top vintages. Stepping up over the Brune et Blonde, the Cote Rotie Chateau d’Ampuis is named after the Chateau d’Ampuis estate (which lies in the town of Ampuis, right up along the Rhone River, and was purchased by the Guigal’s in 1995) and is a blend of their top estate vineyards. Coming from La Garde, Le Clos, Grande-Plantee, Pommiere, Pavillon, Le Moulin and La Viria, it spends close to four years in new French oak (handled just like the single vineyard releases) and there’s roughly 30,000 bottles produced in each vintage. While the single vineyard releases get all the buzz, this is isn’t far behind in quality, especially in recent vintages, and can represent an incredible value. We finished the tasting with a vertical of La Mouline. One of the three single vineyard Cote Roties produced, this cuvee comes all from the La Mouline lieu-dit that’s located in the more western (close to the middle actually) side of appellation. For simplicities sake, you could say it’s in the Cote Blonde part of the region, but in reality, Cote Rotie is much more complex and diverse. Due to its exposure, this vineyard is always the first of the three single vineyards to be harvest, and also contains some of the oldest vines on the estate. Fermented using pump overs (as opposed to punch downs for the La Torque and submersion cap on the La Landonne), it’s cofermented with varying degrees of Viognier, which in most vintages, ends up being around 10% of the blend. Like the Chateau d’Ampuis and the other two single vineyard releases, it sees close to four years in 100% new French oak, of which every trace integrates after a few years in bottle. It’s always the most approachable of the single vineyard releases, and is ready to drink at an earlier stage. For example, the 1999 La Mouline is gloriously mature, while the 1989 La Torque is still an infant. Nevertheless, as the 1978 reviewed here attests to, it has no problem evolving for decades (although I don’t recommend holding bottles that long). In short, this was a flight of Côte Rôties I’ll not forget anytime soon! Importer: Vintus Wines, Pleasantville, NY; tel. (914) 769-3000
Critic scores
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Seemingly in the middle of its drinking window, the 2001 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie exhibits a complex, slightly funky bouquet of black fruits, smoked bacon, cracked pepper, and subtle barnyard. Nuanced and complex, this improves markedly in the glass and gains both depth and richness on the nose, as well as sweetness to the fruit. Medium bodied on the palate, this overall elegant, complex wine sports solid acidity, ripe fruit, and a clean, focused finish. It should continue to drink well for another 5 to 8 years, if not longer.
(from the second bottling, in May of 2004) Deep red-ruby. Roasted raspberry and pepper on the nose; fruitier than the Hermitage. Elegantly styled and fruity, with sweet flavors of redcurrant, raspberry, bacon fat, licorice, leather and woodsmoke. Showing nicely today, but this also has the backbone to develop over the next decade or so. Finishes long and juicy, with tannins perfectly supported by the wine's mid-palate material.
Dark red. Strawberry, cherry, gunflint, pepper and flowers on the nose. Dense and fat but also bright, juicy and elegant, with noteworthy inner-mouth energy. Raspberry and spice flavors carry through to the lingering finish, which features sweet tannins.