As a person of vision and as a mentor, there is perhaps no one in France more respected, indeed revered, than Gérard Gauby. Less than 25 years ago he began his journey of re-defining the world view of the Roussillon. His underlying conviction has always been to work in concert with nature, and then all else will fall into place – that the soil will take care of its vine, if the soil is tended right. As an example, in 2003 – a hot dry year, when everyone else’s yields were down, at Domaine Gauby they were up 30% over 2002 (albeit up to only 20hl/ha, because Gérard Gauby’s yields are always low). While his kinship with the soil has never changed, Gauby has undergone an evolution in his winemaking. In the nineties, his style was for extracted tannic wines. The last few years he has sought (and achieved) much more balance, concentration and finesse in his wines, i.e. they are even greater than before. Indeed Gérard told me that with his growing technique and yield, he could make the most massively extracted wines imaginable; instead he opts for taking this concentration and making beautiful wines. From the Les Calcinaires –a vibrant, medium-bodied wine, both in white and in the red, to the Vieilles Vignes – richer and more complex white and red, to the Muntada (one of the great wines of France), from predominantly a single parcel of Syrah, these wines are for serious sommeliers, and consumers who want to experience the pinnacle of bio-dynamic wines.

 

 

                                                        .......Peter Weygandt

Technical information:

Assemblage for : Calcinaire Blanc, Calcinaire Rouge, Vieilles Vignes Blanc, Vieilles Vignes Rouge, Muntada