Guillaume Gonnet, Cairanne, Le Brave, Southern Rhône, France, 2020

Producer Profile

The energetic and charismatic Guillaume Gonnet is not your average Rhône winemaker. Extremely open in his attitude, his curious, boundary challenging approach extends beyond wine.

He travelled to the far ends of the earth, revelling in the opportunity to surf some of the best waves in the world while learning his craft in various Australian and New Zealand regions. Returning to the Rhône, now with his Australian wife Kelly, Guillaume has shown similar energy for his family estate and for his own nascent project. This land locked surfer may be miles from the ocean but is happily riding the wave of new found enthusiasm for Grenache based wines. Pursuing biodynamics wherever possible, allowing his fruit to express itself freely through hands-off winemaking and displaying his fascination for the varying soils of the Rhône through his diverse range of wines, he's just the sort of restless creative that we love to work with.

Viticulture

The vines are situated on a plateau near the village, with a southern exposure. The soil is a mix of limestone, clay and sand. Vines are around 45 years old and planted at a density of 3000 vines per HA. All grapes are harvested by hand.

Winemaking

Vinified and aged in concrete tanks.

Tasting Note

The nose is packed full of Cassis, Grenadine, and the "to be expected" pure Provencal aromas of “garrigue” (local herbs). The mouth follows the nose but is more complex with kirsch, fig, stewed blackberries, black olive tapenade and liquorice. Lovely soft, round tannins.

Food Matching

Works extremely well with Provencal beef stew but works equally well with a wide range of foods.