As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was sceptical about this domaine. I do a lot of Rhones and I asked myself, "do I really need another expensive Cotes du Rhone?" That they had no Village wines was also not exactly a point in their favor (they now have one Village wine - a Plan de Dieu). After tasting the 2004 CDR "Prestige des Garrigues" (a coup de coeur in Hachette), I realized that it made more sense to view this wine as a cheap (and GOOD) Chateauneuf rather than an expensive CDR. Seriously, you could really embarass some people by bringing a Prestige des Garrigues to a brown bag Chateauneuf tasting
The domaine is located halfway between Chateauneuf and Gigondas on what must be some of the best non-village land available. An excellent VDP rouge is produced, a veritable Cotes du Rhone-alike that is way better than its humble price would suggest - we have it available in 750ml bottles and 5 litre BIBs.
Speaking of BIBs, we have also Rigot's midrange CDR, the cuvee Jean-Baptiste in 5L BIB. Millesime was and is a real pioneer in Seattle in offering quality BIBs from France and Spain, and Rigot's are easily the best available in this market. Whenever I pour a glass for someone at a tasting, the response is generally "wow" followed by "I can't believe it's a box."
While these wines are great, the one truly of note is the flagship of the domaine, the Prestige des Garrigues. 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah, it resembles a CDP in more ways than just the blend. The superb 2005 is available in 750ml bottles, and we have a few older vintages available in large formats - I'm not just talking about mags here, but also jeroboams and even imperiales!
