Gigondas Tradition, Gour de Chaulé 2021

Domaine Gour de Chaulé, a historic estate dating back to the 19th century, is now led by the dynamic Paul Fumoso, who has taken over from his mother Stéphanie. Spanning 10 hectares across 24 parcels in Gigondas, the domaine benefits from diverse soils, with 70% on the appellation’s high slopes, where sandy 'safre' soils lend finesse and ageing potential. Working organically for over 15 years (certified in 2020), Paul has embraced biodiversity and meticulous vineyard management, replacing syrah and mourvèdre with carignan, counoise, and cinsault to complement the estate’s 90% grenache-based wines.

In the cellar, Paul's approach focuses on gentle extraction, whole-bunch fermentation (20-60% depending on ripeness), and ageing in foudres and cement tanks. The wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered after 14-18 months, showcasing finesse and elegance in a region known for power. With his energy and vision, Paul is shaping Gour de Chaulé into one of the Rhône Valley’s standout domaines.

This comes from 24 parcels around the village, 70% from the hillsides and principally sandy soils (see profile) that confer a lot of finesse to the wine, and 30% from down the hill (around Santa Duc) on red clay that brings generosity and depth. With 30% whole bunches in 2021, it was vinified in cement, aged for 18 months (two-thirds in cement tanks and one-third in old foudres), then bottled unfined and unfiltered. There is a touch of reduction on the nose that soon wafts away – reduction is key for Paul who seeks to enhance a delicate 'touché de bouche', and one of the reasons why he much prefers cement to oak barrels. As ever, his touch is spot on – the nose is floral, herbal, and spicy with red fruits to the fore, the extraction is pitch-perfect with great balance and finesse, much more than you would expect from a Gigondas, and the fruit has a very pure and lifted quality. For drinking now to 2030.

Producer   Roucas Toumba

Origin Vacqueyras Vaucluse, Rhone, France

Grapes 90% Grenache, 10% Mouvedre,Cinsault, Carignan, Mouvedre, Counoise

Vintage 2021

Alcohol 13.5% ABV

Style Full body red

Bottle size 750ml 

Winemaking Manual harvested, 2/3 destemmed, fermented separately with indigenous yeast in cement vessels, matured in 2/3 cement and the rest in old foudres for a minimum of 18 months. Unfiltred 

Notes Organic