Gigondas Raspail-Ay 2023

Tended by the same family for seven generations, Domaine Raspail-Ay has been run by Dominique’s children, Anne-Sophie and Christophe since 2020. The estate extends over almost 19 hectares in Gigondas, in the southern Rhône Valley. The vineyard parcels form a single contiguous holding surrounding the estate, just below the village, where soils of clay and limestone, are strewn with sand and small stones. Vineyard plantings are dominated by Grenache Noir (75%), complemented by Syrah and Mourvèdre. Just under one hectare is devoted to white grape varieties, including Clairette, Picpoul and Bourboulenc, with the inaugural vintage scheduled for 2025. The vines average 50 years in age. Annual production is approximately 60,000 bottles.
Following manual harvesting and rigorous sorting in both the vineyard and the winery, the grapes are fully destalked before spending around one month in enamel-lined concrete vats for fermentation. The wines are then aged for 18 to 24 months in large seasoned oak vessels ranging from 40 to 130 hectolitres.
In the glass, they are powerful, intense, fleshy and generous. In short, these are wines that faithfully capture the character of the Gigondas terroir. We recommend laying these wines down for a few years, if you can resist the temptation. In the finest vintages, they will continue to reward patience for 15 to 20 years.