Tasting note
- Colour & appearance
- Slightly translucent purplish red with a subtle lightening towards the rim.
- Nose
- An aristocratic, cool opening: initially revealing smoky nuances, peat, hints of raw meat and damp undergrowth. With aeration, dark fruit notes emerge of boysenberries, juicy blackberries and ripe plums. Despite its ripeness, the aromatic profile remains taut and vibrant.
- Palate
- On the palate, the interplay between youthful firmness and velvety charm is captivating. The wine possesses a dense, succulent tannic structure and a sweet core of extract. A present, finely polished acidity and subtly creamy yeast notes intertwine with the dark fruit. Decanting perfectly reveals its silky texture and immense potential.
- Terroir & origin
- The Saint-Jean plot lies at around 350 metres’ altitude on the cool northern slopes of Mont Ventoux. Its stony clay soils date back to the Oligocene epoch. Together with the distinctly cool nights at this elevation, this terroir imparts a freshness and energy to the Syrah that is rare in the southern Rhône.
- Grape variety & vinification
- Pure Syrah from hand-harvested grapes. After 90% destemming, the 2020 vintage fermented for twelve days in concrete vats. This was followed by eleven months’ maturation in stainless steel and nine months’ bottle ageing. Philippe Gimel’s Ecocert-certified vineyard work eschews oak entirely to preserve the unadulterated fruit. Production is strictly limited to 2,037 bottles.
- Food recommendations
- Superb with entrecôte with anchovy butter and roasted vegetables, succulent porc rôti – roast pork with olive sauce, or boldly paired with grilled tuna steaks with savory, thyme and fennel seeds.
- Special features
- An uncompromising expression of Syrah: Philippe Gimel deliberately avoids wooden casks, allowing the grapes from this cool northern site to mature in concrete tanks. The result is an extraordinarily complex, purist interpretation of the variety with outstanding ageing potential.
