Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque 2019

98-100 points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, February 2022

The extroverted 2019 Cote Rotie La Turque is about as impressive a young wine as I've tasted at Guigal, with extravagant, blossom-like aromas and oodles of cassis and blueberries. Full-bodied, it's simultaneously concentrated and rich yet airy and almost weightless, an outrageous juxtaposition of characters that must be tasted to be understood.

It was the start of the last full day of my 2021 Rhône trip when I pulled into the parking lot at Guigal around 9:30 a.m. Reminder: Always dress warmly when tasting at Guigal, because the cellars are a few degrees cooler than average! The cool temperatures help inhibit the growth of any spoilage organisms during the extended élevage these wines receive.

While the stars of the cellars are the single-vineyard wines from Côte-Rôtie, the Guigal family takes pride in all of the wines they produce, and one reliable indicator of the quality of a Southern Rhône vintage is the quality and volume produced of the négoce Côtes du Rhône, which is typically around 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache and 10% Mourvèdre. The 2018 is charming and fruit-forward, while the 2019 looks to be slightly more concentrated. The family's relationships in Gigondas go back before the elevation of that appellation to cru status in 1971, so that is another reliable southern offering from the négociant side of the business.

In the Northern Rhône, the large-scale bottlings from Condrieu and Côte-Rôtie are consistent performers and widely distributed. As they will be many consumers' introduction to these appellations, it's important they remain of high quality, vintage after vintage. The so-called La Las really require no introduction, except to mention that a new La La is being contemplated—a steep, two-hectare parcel within the Fongeant lieu-dit was vinified separately in 2019 and 2020. I was able to taste some impressive barrel samples, but as those wines will not be bottled separately, I've not scored them or added them to the database. Philippe Guigal was hopeful that the new wine—tentatively named La Renarde—would be ready to make a formal debut beginning with the 2022 vintage.

Value-oriented consumers who still want a taste of Northern Rhône Syrah will want to focus on the family's négoce bottlings from Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph. While the Crozes is normally a fruit-forward, easy-drinking wine, the 2019 version boasts a bit more concentration than usual, while the 2018 and 2019 St-Joes both deliver ripe fruit and hints of granitic austerity. The Lieu-Dit Saint-Joseph and Vignes de l'Hospice bottlings ratchet up the intensity of both oak and terroir, but prices for those are rising rapidly, as consumers have caught on to the value they represent.
- Joe Czerwinski