Fast facts:
- 2019 Kirkland Signature Gigondas, Gigondas, France ($14.99 @ Costco, California – Item # 1134102)
I am blaming the warping of time on Covid, but when I recently spied this in my local Costco my first thought was: “didn’t we just review the 2018 vintage?” The answer was no, we reviewed it some 55 weeks ago. Proving all is right in the universe. Although Elon Musk reportedly lost 40 satellites today. Cause of death, solar flares. So, so sad. But I digresss…
Back to earth, and back to vino.
The good news is that Costco and the winery didn’t mess around with the successful GSM blend they had in the prior vintage. Again, this blend of Grenache 85%, Syrah 10% and Mourvedre 5% is from the fruit of old vines grown in the Grand Cru appellation of Gigondas, on some of its highest limestone vineyards in the Southern Rhone Valley. It’s a complex wine that is full-bodied and rich with silky, fine tannins. The terroir helps to keep the balance and freshness in the wine, as does the relatively young vintage and the restrained use of oak.
If you need a little assist with the pronunciation on this wine, in the rare event you can find someone to help you at Costco, it is Gee-Gone-Dahs, with the accent on the first syllable.
Tasting Notes:
The nose has classic notes of garrigue, berries and baking spice. in the mouth, big notes of ripe, dark plum, cherry, and blackberry. The texture is elegant and medium to full-bodied. While you detect tannins, they are soft and ready for drinking, although this bottle would age well for at least several years. This would be delicious with red meat: braised short ribs or anything roasted or grilled, but it would also pair well with classic Italian fare.
The surface area of Gigondas today sits around 3,000 acres which is roughly one-third the size of neighbor Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Output is almost exclusively red wine with only 1% rosé produced, although some newer vineyards are being planted to white grape varieties so expect that to change in the next several years. Interested in seeing a map of Gigondas?
This is one of those Kirkland Signature wines that is sure to sell out fast.
If you secure your own personal stock, let us know what you think of it in the comments section here or our Facebook or Instagram pages.
Need More Wine Picks from Costco – or Trader Joe’s Even?
If your wine shopping excursions land you in Costco, prepare by grazing our most recent reviews of Costco wines here in our Lucky 13 list.
And if your shopping finds you at Trader Joe’s, you can find our Lucky 13 list of TJ’s wine here.
Stay safe and healthy everyone!
Cheers!
I share your enthusiasm for all of the Kirkland Rhône Valley wines. That said, this is the first vintage of their Gigondas that I think is going to require cellaring in order to show its potential. Wine Advocate rates the 2019 southern Rhône vintage as outstanding (better than 2018) but tannic and having opened and aerated at bottle of this new vintage of the Gigondas I think they’re right on the money.
The normal pattern with the higher-end CDR wines (Gigondas, Vacqueyras, Châteauneuf-du-Pape) in good-to-great vintages is that you can open a bottle upon release and enjoy it but then they often “shut down” for a few years before reaching a plateau of delicious maturity that often lasts 6-12 years. I suspect this 2019 Gigondas will be very good in a couple of years and last a decade. Meanwhile we have the delicious 2020 CDR, which is drinking great, to tide us over!