GARI is a story of friendship: two artists who are highly celebrated in their respective fields, architect Rudy Ricciotti and chef Pierre Gagnaire (three Michelin stars in Paris), who share a passion for wine. After a chance encounter with the two young winemakers of Châteauneuf-du-Pape’s Domaine Giraud, Marie and François Giraud, GARI was born. The name is a derivative of the two founders’ names: GA for Gagnaire and RI for Ricciotti.
In the Eastern part of Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the lieu-dit of Valaurys, 50-year-old Grenache vines are planted on sand-clay soils, a combination which yields round, generous tannins and lots of finesse. The plot’s east/north-eastern direction is key as it allows the wines to retain their freshness despite being a later-ripening terroir: grapes are manually harvested in early October, undergo whole bunch fermentation and are aged in concrete tanks before bottling 18 months later. 2017 was GARI’s first vintage which was exclusively released at Pierre Gagnaire’s restaurant in Paris.
The Giraud’s family history in winemaking goes back over 500 years, most of which involved selling wines on to the local negotiants. When siblings Marie and François took over the domain from their parents in 2000, they transformed the then 19 hectare estate, converting it to organic farming, acquiring additional plots to almost double the areas under vines (now 35 hectares) and of course bottling the wines under the family name.
In the Eastern part of Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the lieu-dit of Valaurys, 50-year-old Grenache vines are planted on sand-clay soils, a combination which yields round, generous tannins and lots of finesse. The plot’s east/north-eastern direction is key as it allows the wines to retain their freshness despite being a later-ripening terroir: grapes are manually harvested in early October, undergo whole bunch fermentation and are aged in concrete tanks before bottling 18 months later. 2017 was GARI’s first vintage which was exclusively released at Pierre Gagnaire’s restaurant in Paris.
The Giraud’s family history in winemaking goes back over 500 years, most of which involved selling wines on to the local negotiants. When siblings Marie and François took over the domain from their parents in 2000, they transformed the then 19 hectare estate, converting it to organic farming, acquiring additional plots to almost double the areas under vines (now 35 hectares) and of course bottling the wines under the family name.
