Side QOTD: Never have tried a Gigondas, but now am very intrigued and will be looking for some here locally. Sounds appealing at a great price point.

QOTD: March Madness…… = GAG! :o) , not into the college stuff.

Yes! Gigondas!!!

Side QOTD – I've had two Gigondas('s?), both from Domaine Les Pallieres, the '04 and the '06. Had them quite recently… If I remember correctly, the '04 had a bit more earthiness to it, but both were quite enjoyable. Complex, yes – but also very refined and not gritty. To me, these wines were a great look at quintessential Rhone – an almost perfect balance of earth, fruit and spice. Sorry to sound like Parker all of a sudden… Long story short – I'm sitting on a couple of more bottles of Gigondas, and am excited to try them. Also have a bottle of Lirac, which is a nearby appellation. Interested to see how the wines compare, as the blend of the latter is nearly identical to that of the Gigondas (and, for that matter, to 70% of the rest of the southern Rhone).

Gary, sorry I can't answer the official QOTD. I'd be happy to weigh in with a prediction of the final four for the French Open or Wimbledon, should the QOTD ever go there.

Ultimate lurker here! Have to admit I have watched almost all your programs via podcast. I have to chime in on the Gigondas qotd. Yes, I have tried wines from Gigondas. After viewing a past episode, I was pleasantly surprised to find a Gigondas at Trader Joes. I don't remember the specific producer, but I was hooked immediately. Oddly enough, here in Monterey wine country, it is hard to find French wines, let alone a Gingondas.

Thnx G….

Great! to see that comfy couch again, letalone be in your company.

Sqotd: Boatloads. Comes to mind: Tardieu-Laurent, Delas, Guigal, most of the age well.
Qotd: ? not really a basketball fan. But i will say this: Barcelona, AC Milan, Inter, Manchester U ; )

Not really a football fan either, you see….

Have a great weekend all. Cheers.

The Dude abides man…………I had a little too much vino last nite but it’s all good.

A Vacqueyras, Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape 3 pack on Cindy would be awesome!

Funny though. lol (And I am short enough to be a jockey)

Well, this is a first; someone responding to my post. All that you say is
correct. I suppose this is the problem with a quick summary post. I did
not want to bore people to death in that particular setting. Given the
level of commentary in that forum I did not want to post something long but
in doing so I left some room for misunderstanding.
When I said Gigondas can be inconsistent I was referring to what happens in
the cellar. My opinion is that for some time the standards in the cellar
for a number of the producers was not as rigorous as it could be and that
resulted in some inconsistent wines. By that I mean inconsistent by that
particular producer allowing for vintage variation. For some time I
personally think the village (and some of the producers) were resting on
their laurels as sort of the unofficial second place behind CDP. But with
other villages and the better producers in places such as Vacqueyras,
Cairanne and Rasteau improving their quality Gigondas has had to pick up the
pace to keep up.
Of course this is just my own personal impression but it is based on the
fact that I live in the region for half the year and taste and drink a lot
of the local stuff. I also talk to local producers so that is the basis for
my opinion (as unscientific and random as my sampling might be).
Having said all that my sense is that the overall quality of Gigondas is
improving and getting back to where it should have been all along. The
terroir is there and that has never changed.
I go back to France on Monday for five months so I will be back snooping
around and tasting so it will be time for more investigation.
Your comment about that group of people generally drinking their wines too
soon is probably true. My experience is that North Americans do drink wines
much too young. I suppose that could partly be because of lack of good
cellar space but also because of lack of experience with wines. Look how
many people on that forum have never even had a Gigondas (hence his question
of the day).
And yes, most people do not store their wines cool enough. For that matter
most North Americans drink their red wines too warm.
Anyway, enough of my rambling; thanks for the reply.
Alan

You said it man, nobody f*cks with the jesus!

Holler holler. Laid back friday on the couch AND Gigondas, what a lovely combination. I've been missing both! Have had three really nice Gigondas's at about 15-20 dollars and all were great values (can't remember the names though….). Great show Gary!

I almost had a Gigondas the other day but sadly I didn't have enough money with me.

G. – Great Laid Back Friday show. I'm a big fan of the ole' school shows with straight wine talk. You turned me on to Gigondas…I'm a huge fan now.

QOTD: Syracuse may have peaked a little early but I'm going with them to make the final four.

Nice Laid Back Friday show with some impressive wines.

Pre-QOTD: I've had a few Gigondas since they, to me, are so unpredictable.

QOTD: Big Ks: Kansas, Kentucky, Kansas State and Georgetown

Cheers!

QOTD: No I have not had a Gigondas and after your rodent guts and motor oil description… I won't be seeking that one out…

Agree on the right mood, definitely important.

Bring back the card pack opening segment!

QOTD 1: No, but can't wait to try it now
QOTD 2: Illini baby!

Rhone, an under rated area. By whom? Anyone with more than a passing fancy of drinking wine should know the Rhone region. Other than CdP, they are some of the best buys in France. Have not had the 2007 Bousquet but have had it many times before and it is always a good buy. Not a big fan of Arnoux as I find the weight a little less than what I expect for Gigondas. All of them are great with a hearty stew, veal, beef, duck. Final Four Georgetown (they are hot right now), Duke, University of New Mexico (also hot now), Kansas.

I have been a fan of Gigondas since I spent 2 days there a few years ago. It's a great place to visit and taste good wine. I am thinking that Kansas will be in the final 4. The other 3 spots are up for grabs.

QotD: Never had one
SQotD: 49ers, baby!

boo hoo, you don't like to hear gary talk about american sports. Then find a euro wine program where you can discus wine and soccer, tight jeans, men in speedos, techno music…….

U-S-A U-S-A U-S-A

(propagating american stereotypes since 1982)

Yes, I've had a bunch of Gigondas, also enjoy the Vacqueras for a cheaper option to CNDP's. However I will say, I've had lots of dissapointments with cotes du rhone and cdr village wines over the past couple years. I keep finding over oaked wines.

QOTD – Sorry, I'm Canadian and don't follow basketball. But given I was born and raised in Windsor Ontario, I always root for UofM or Michigan State, but not sure if they're even in the hunt.

I haven't tried Gigondas and I'm really excited to. I love grenache based wines.

lol…I did miss your point. Maybe some people can find an appreciation for sports through wine?

QotD: Kansas and Kentucky would be amazing to see in the finals.
side q: the first gigondas i ever had was at the first official wine tasting i ever went to. i had had wine tastings at my house before, but this was set up by a wine store. fantastic wine, but i had almost forgotten about it until this show. so thanks

QOTD #2: Syracuse, Kentucky, Kansas, and a Cinderella team