Wine from Chateau Gigognan

Since 1996, we have been looking after the estate : Having become “wine-growers per chance”, we have come to love our destiny and have endeavoured to give the Chateau Gigognan back its letters of nobility.

As owners of an estate boasting great potential, we have surrounded ourselves with a team that is efficient and loyal.

Fully convinced of the quality of the estate’s wines and the exceptional beauty of the place, we have great ambitions for Gigognan:

Renovation and restoration works have been carried out since the acquisition of the vineyard and the castle. In 2007, work was undertaken in the south wing. This project has resulted in the refined and sophisticated construction of private apartments and a bed-and-breakfast since January 2011.

The opportunity to combine wine with tourism, offering pleasure to all.

Chateau Gigognan History:

At the heart of the Valley of the Rhone, 10 minutes from Châteauneuf du Pape, Château Gigognan is the heir of a deeply rooted history that dates back to the time of roman colonisation.

A spiritual and temporal lordship: The estate quickly becomes a fiefdom which formed a principality with Châteauneuf du Pape and Bédarrides, one governed by the archbishops of Avignon.

During the 17th and 18th century, the administration of Gigognan was entrusted to Lords from Provence by the archbishops of Avignon. Its prosperity gave it the title of a village with the rank of a municipality.

Since 1996, the castle knows a true rebirth thanks to Jacques Callet. Having been completely renovated, it was given back the charm of the great manors of Provence.

In 2012, a new team of expert professionals is brought together. The vineyard knows an unprecedented renewal and is the object of investments to reinforce the excellence of the estate’s wines.

Know How:To produce great wines on exceptional terroirs means to continue writing a few pages of an illustrious wealth, an almost mystical responsibility towards the work of our ancestors, and one we prepare for generations to come.

It is in this spirit that the teams have worked, inspired by the dynamism of our young Maître de Chai, the expertise of Mr Bouachon, a great specialist of blends and Mr. Philippe Cambie, who was awarded the title of "best oenologist in the world" in 2010 by Robert Parker. The vinification process is entirely dedicated to revealing the secret relationship between the terroir and the wine grape varietals.

"Offering the quintessence of our vineyards, fruit of the full maturity of our grapes for a phenomenal gustative experience” is the remarkable leitmotiv of this team of young demanding and passionate professionals who audaciously advocate the principle of perpetual questioning as a method of progress.

Today, all are intimately committed to this method which relies on apparently contradictory qualities: an ambition to enable the terroir to express all the subtleties of its potential and humility, and an indispensible feature to practice and maintain the philosophy of “constant quality improvement” which drives the Château Gigognan forward.

Chateau Gigognan Vineyards:

Exposed to the weather and particularly to the Mistral for more than 100 days a year, the vineyard is located in one of the driest zones of the Valley of the Rhone, on the southern part of the estate. It benefits from over 2 800 hours of sunshine per year, but it is at night that the "caïau frejaü*" give back the heat stored all day long, just like an oven.

The homogeneity of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape vineyard located on an exceptional terroir is very representative of those who have contributed to the reputation of the estate (a single plot of 25 hectares with several other plots nearby). The Côtes du Rhône vineyard is located in a small valley.

The choice of the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Roussane and Viognier varietals has imposed itself given the particularities of the climatic and geologic conditions of the vineyard.

The restructuring of the vineyard undertaken over the past years, which has seen the planting of 20 000 stocks on 30 Châteauneuf du Pape hectares has allowed keep the old grapevines and to develop the aromatic complexities. 

Chateau Gigognan Cellar:

 2012, the Château Gigognan takes a new important step in its history with the arrival of a new team of directors, the input of Philippe Cambie, internationally renowned oenologist as an advisor and the undertaking of important tasks to make this emblematic territory absolutely sublime; a new direction was taken to adopt wines of great quality.

• Traditional vinification with long maceration.
• Partial maturing in oak barrels.
• Development of quality products benefitting from the specific features of each vintage.

Organic:

onversion to organic agriculture has been undertaken and the Ecocert certification was awarded for whole estate in 2010.

This recognition underlines the requirements of quality and environmental responsibility which drive the estate. The priority of the teams is to favour the balance and the ecosystems of the different terroirs to enable the vineyard to develop natural defences against different bacterial or climatic aggressions and to support mineralisation of organic material.

The main efforts are concentrated on an essential objective: taking all measures necessary to ensure the organoleptic quality of our grapes, an essential condition in order to ensure the elaboration of great wines.

The manual harvest is done at full maturity according to a double phase, which offers the benefit of optimal richness and concentration.