On est en présence d’un bel exemple de ce qu’a pu produire 2017 en matière « d’austérité relative » ; un nez assez fermé, difficile à déchiffrer où l’on perçoit tout de même de la profondeur, de la richesse, des fruits noirs, c’est légèrement herbacé aussi ; on sent au premier nez le potentiel de vieillissement, c’est assez rare. La bouche est d’une belle densité, c’est droit et aérien ; on est sur la branche de thym, la garrigue, le mentholé tout cela dans cette ambiance de fruits noirs qui persiste ; la fraicheur est évidente et c’est là le paradoxe du millésime, une telle fraicheur issue d’un été si chaud, si sec ; qui peut soutenir encore que l’effet terroir est une vue de l’esprit ? Belle longueur en fin de bouche, on retrouve l’austérité dans la structure tanique à laquelle il faudra encore quelques temps pour trouver une vraie maturité.
The Grenache is turned up to 90% for this high-altitude cuvée. The vines (averaging only fifty years) are planted on terraces that nestle against the imposing limestone cliffs of the Dentelles de Montmirail. For those of you who just can’t wait, open the Terrasse du Diable a good two or three hours before serving. Notes of black olive and licorice, mint, eucalyptus, and rosemary will soon fill the room. For those who can, in five to ten years, the brooding youthfulness will start to mature and you’ll be rewarded with … well, we don’t yet know. But if past vintages are any indication, you’ll be very happy with your foresight to put a few bottles away.
94. Lots of violets and blue fruit with cinnamon and dark stony aromas. Baking spices, too. On the palate, there’s black fruit and an attractive, bitter-herb kick, with very dense tannins and a powerful, compressed feel. Lithe, juicy blue-fruit finish. Very focused, dense and long. Drink or hold.
92-94+. Also not yet bottled, the 2017 Gigondas Terrasse Du Diable is rocking stuff and has a mouthwatering sense of salinity and mineratliy as well as the classic kirsch, garrigue, and peppery aromas this cuvée always possesses. Medium to full-bodied, balanced, and nicely concentrated, with ripe tannins, it’s going to keep for 15 years of more.
91-93. From a cool sute at 300-400 meters above sea level, the 2017 Gigondas Terrasse du Diable is a blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Mourvèdre. It boasts knockout aromas of ciolets, garrigue and purple raspberries, with an undercurrent of black cherries. It’s full-bodied and concentrated, with bright, crunchy acids. The overall impression is of a wine with sharper edges that the harmonious 2016 or 2018. Cellar it a couple of years and then enjoy it over the following decade.
***(*) (large 60 hl barrel, bottling summer 2019) clear, shiny red colour. The nose is floral, resembles Pez sweets, is tender, with good crystalline virtues, a peppery backdrop; it holds up safely. The palate links to the nose via its rose fragrance, develops a toffee-caramel aspect from the oak,shows that late on. This is a one-off young foudre/large barrel, which skews it somewhat. This extols purity, doesn’t have many hidden corners. “It has refined, was a bit hard before, the tannins demanding, from a dry vintage,” Daniel Brunier. 14.8°. From 2021. 2038-40
93-94. Black-stone and garrigue aromas. Black fruit, salt licorice and spices. Attractive, bitter-herb kick. Mouthwatering finish. Very concentrated aromas and flavors. This elevated site has a very focused, dense an intense feel. Barrel sample.
(91-94). From 50-year-old vines grown at 300-400 meters above sea level, the 2017 Gigondas Terrasse du Diable is a blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Mourvèdre. It’s medium to full-bodied, with a silky feel and notes of black cherries, orange zest and a bit of peppery spice on the finish.