To celebrate the launch of my store's new website, I decided to open up a bottle I had been aging. I can be hesitant to go into my secret stash, because it can be like opening Pandora's box. After a minute debating which one to choose I went with E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie Brune et Blonde from 1999. Given the year I knew I wanted to open this bottle first before opening some of my 2007 vintages. French wine labels make it difficult for me to recognize what is actually in the bottle at first glance. Compared to a California wine label, they are tricky. French labels include the region, the appellation and the vineyard, and usually leave out the grape varietal.
For this bottle, E. Guigal is the winery, the Rhone Valley is the region in France, Côte-Rôtie is the specific appellation and Brune et Blonde is the vineyard. E. Guigal is the largest producer of Côte-Rôtie, so I knew I was in for a treat.
The grape varietal is Syrah, which is a dark-skinned red wine grape. Syrah and small amounts of Viognier are the only grape varietals authorized in the Northern Rhone appellations of Côte-Rôtie.
On the nose this wine is intensely fragrant with scents of cassis, black raspberries, smoke, bacon fat, grilled meats, and liquorice. I found this wine to be elegant yet complex and powerful with medium to full body. The acidity and tannins were both at good levels given the richness and power of the wine. My bottle has been aged for 15 years, but it has aging potential for another 10 years well stored.
If you are looking to spice things up for the next time you have a steak dinner, I strongly recommend this particular wine!
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