Guillaume Gonnet, Côtes du Rhône Villages Rouge, Le Hardi, Southern Rhône, France, 2023

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

Planted on a South facing plateau the soil structure is made up of round pebbles on the surface, red clay and limestone soil. Average vine age is 50 years old planted at a density of 4000 vines per HA.

Winemaking

A traditional fermentation, and ageing for 12 months in stainless steel and concrete.

Tasting Note

Often described as a “Baby Châteauneuf du Pape”, this wine is rich, complex, yet approachable. Red and dark fruits, cherries, spices and liquorice on the nose and palate.

Food Matching

Barbequed duck or lamb, lovely with French style cheeses.