Domaine Alary, Côtes du Rhône Rouge, La Gerbaude, Southern Rhône, France, 2020

Producer Profile

Denis Alary’s wines are benchmark Southern Rhônes: full of sun and a joy to drink.

Spicy, rich and peppery with warm juicy fruit, his wines are always extremely appealing and a great representation of this region. While Grenache makes up the majority of the vines planted on his 29 hectares of vineyards, he has an old plot of Syrah and uses it judiciously in the cuvée ‘L’Estévenas’. Despite increasing fame and demand, these wines remain great value. Wine passionate, Jean-Etienne, Denis’s son, has naturally integrated at the estate since 2016, after a journey in Australia and in New-Zealand. Together, they ensure the management, marketing, including sales directly from the cellar, vinification and viticulture. Driven by Jean-Etienne, they are all now moving towards biodynamics.

Viticulture

Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan, sourced from organically farmed vines rooted in clay-limestone soils peppered with galets roulés on the La Gerbaude parcel. Since 2009, the estate has practiced sustainable viticulture with meticulous, low-yield, hand-harvested work. The Grenache-dominant vineyards cling to sun-drenched slopes cooled by elevation and Mistral breezes, preserving freshness and depth.

Winemaking

Fermentation follows a gentle style: mild and relatively short extraction in concrete vats to emphasise roundness and preserve brightness. Minimal oak is used, focusing on pure fruit expression and textural harmony. The result is a wine of balanced body and fine structure that reflects the winery’s philosophy of terroir-driven, expressive wines.

Tasting Note

La Gerbaude red is a full, vibrant garnet red. The expressive nose showcases ripe red berries—blackcurrant and strawberry—with an undercurrent of crushed pepper and a hint of bouquet garni spice. On the palate, it’s smooth, round, and juicy, with medium-to-full body. Flavours of jammy blackberry mingle with spicy herbal notes and gentle tannins, culminating in a velvety mouthfeel, persistent volume, and a softly sweet finish.

Food Matching

A versatile table wine. It pairs deliciously with grilled lamb chops or pork sirloin, thanks to its fruity character and soft tannic structure . For vegetarian options, a spinach-and-goat-cheese tart.