Wine Advisor
Etienne Guigal, Cote Rotie La Turque 2003
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Description
Côte-Rôtie "La Turque" is one of the flagship of the Domaine GUIGAL. A powerful wine with spicy notes, its terroirs from côte brune with “blond accents” lends it a great elegance.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
I’ve always loved the 2003s from the Guigal family and the 2003 Cote Rotie la Turque has yet to ever disappoint. An incredible perfume of smoked herbs, charred meats, violets, licorice and blackcurrants gives way to a huge, unctuous, powerful Cote Rotie that has masses of ripe, sweet tannin, full-bodied richness and a finish that just won’t quit. Enjoy this heavenly elixir over the coming 2-3 decades.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A pure aromatic smorgasbord is offered by the 2003 Cote Rotie La Turque, which has an amazing aromatic profile of espresso coffee interwoven with scorched earth, tar, truffle, incense, blackberry, bacon fat, and flowers. Powerful, thick flavors ooze across the palate with a viscous texture, amazing purity, and just enough acidity and tannin to give uplift and precision to this remarkable tour de force in winemaking. Of the 2003s, this is also approachable, but ideally 2-5 years of cellaring would be suggested, and the wine will evolve for at least 30 more years. Importer: Fred Ek and Patrick Will, Ex Cellars Wine Agencies, Solvang, CA; tel. (805) 686-9153
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
Getting a few expletives in my notes, the 2003 Cote Rotie La Turque is more structured and powerful, with a youthful purple color giving way to meaty, bloody characteristics that are intermixed with creme de cassis, roasted meats, licorice and leather. Full-bodied, seamless and layered, with incredible depth, purity and texture, it needs a few more years over the La Mouline to fully stretch out, but will have three decades or more when all is said and done. Robert Parker has been singing the praises of the wines of Marcel and Philippe Guigal for years now, and I’m happy to pick up the torch going forward. In 2003, harvest here occurred between the August 21 and 31, with yields down over 60%. The wines took five weeks to ferment dry, were never acidified, and spent roughly 48 months in new oak prior to bottling. What comes out of the bottle now is sheer magic.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
I find Guigal’s single-vineyards difficult to appraise at such an early juncture, recognizing the fact that they demand at least 15 years to show their true character. The La Turque is a little mystifying at this stage. A rather stubborn nose at first but with coaxing scents of kirsch, iodine, black cherry and a lot of new oak emerge. The palate is typical La Turque: showy, extrovert and ostentatious, perhaps to some rather vulgar? Lascivious would me more appropriate with super-ripe black cherries, plum and cassis fruit. I remain hopeful that it will eventually turn into a more elegant wine since the finish is a little more under-stated than I presumed. Hedonistic. Tasted June 2007. Drinking 2020-
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
This is a prodigious effort that may eclipse any other vintage Guigal has ever produced! It possesses similarities to the 1999, but it is even higher in alcohol, more unctuously textured, thicker, and longer. Encapsulate the character of this single vineyard in a top year, add more depth, intensity, alcohol, and power, and this describes this freakishly rich 2003. It will be released after spending 42 months in 100% new oak casks, so consumers will have to wait until 2008 to purchase this stupendous gem. This 2003 is literally off the charts, as are many of the northern Rhones in this vintage. La Turque should last 30-35 years. This is the stuff of modern day legends. As for what it actually tastes like, just take my notes for any of the great vintages and add more power, glycerin, alcohol, tannin, and concentration ... that about defines this 2003! Importer: Fred Ek and Patrick Will, Ex Cellars Wine Agencies, Solvang, CA; tel. (805) 686-9153
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2003 Cote Rotie La Turque reveals an incredible nose of incense, black truffles, blackberries, espresso roast, roasted meats, melted road tar, tapenade, and bacon. A meaty, full-bodied, extraordinarily concentrated wine with a viscous texture, a remarkable finish, and even more tannin and body than La Mouline, it requires 4-5 years of cellaring, and should drink well over the following 30+. Marcel and Philippe Guigal, never content to rest on their already impressive credentials, announced that in the future, they expect to release another single vineyard Cote Rotie from a 3.7 acre parcel in the Viria vineyard on the Cote Brune. The first vintage or two will probably be added to the Chateau d’Ampuis. If the potential turns out to be as exceptional as they believe, lovers of these great wines will have a fourth single vineyard Cote Rotie called Viria to contemplate. There are many admirable things about Marcel Guigal, but most significant is that he has been a qualitative locomotive that has brought attention to the Rhone Valley, and has raised the quality bar for the entire region. More importantly, he realizes that most consumers will have access only to his least expensive wines from the Cotes du Rhone, so he has made every effort to continue to increase the quality of both his white and red Cotes du Rhones. His Cotes du Rhone whites have jumped in quality as he has settled on a general blend of approximately 50% Viognier and the rest Roussanne, Marsanne, Clairette, Bourboulenc, and Grenache Blanc. Importer: Fred Ek and Patrick Will, Ex Cellars Wine Agencies, Solvang, CA; tel. (805) 686-9153
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Inky purple. Vibrant, floral, remarkably deep cherry and spiced plum aromas. Lush and sweet, with an oily texture and an impressively deep kirsch quality complicated by an exotic violet pastille tone. Finishes sweet and very long, with very good lift and a lingering cherry note.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
(cropped at just under 12 hectoliters per hectare, according to Philippe) Inky violet. Explosive florist shop of a nose, with a powerful fruit component of cherry liqueur. Dense but juicy and fresh on the palate, with the deep, concentrated cherry flavor calling to mind the kirsch of legendary eau de vie producer Jean-Paul Mette. Offers a sappy, almost oily texture and great power. Finishes with outstanding persistence, the pure cherry and red plum flavors expanding on the back end.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2003 Côte-Rôtie La Turque from E. Guigal is a wine that I remember buying on release and then sold when I didn’t really appreciate the style of the vintage. It has a decadent bouquet with blue fruit, orange zest, marmalade and a fair bit of alcohol. The palate is sweet and exotic on the entry, dense and powerful, though I cannot help but wishing there is more acidity and tension on the finish. For someone else’s palate.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Full medium ruby. Superripe aromas of blackberry, black cherry, graphite, violet and gunflint. Boasts an incredible core of sappy black cherry fruit, with a noble volatility giving the wine great lift despite its sheer weight. This too boasts great density and today the finish is even more explosive than that of the Mouline, with torrefaction notes of chocolate and mocha.
About the Producer
In 1946, Etienne Guigal founded Château Guigal in the village of Ampuis, the winemaking heart of the Rhône. The village of Ampuis is rich in history, with vineyards that are over 2,400 years old and buildings that still date back to Roman times, and it was here that Etienne Guigal arrived in 1923 at the age of 14. He decided to devote himself to winemaking, which he did for more than 67 years. In 1961, the young Marcel Guigal took over the management of the estate from his father. Thanks to Marcel's efforts, Château Guigal began to acquire some well-known wineries and grew in strength.
1986(1)1987(1)1990(1)1993(1)1995(1)1996(1)1997(2)1998(5)1999(3)2000(1)2001(1)
Package Size
12 x 75cl
