Wine and recipe: exquisite wine from Guigal

This article was first published in the capital.

What could be better than having a glass of red wine in front of the fireplace after a long ski trip? Figures from Vinmonopolet show that delicious whole red wine tops sales in the winter. A favorite wine region served in terms of these stoves is France’s Rhone Valley, which begins an hour’s drive south of the French food capital Lyon and ends around the old Papal city of Avignon in southern France.

Although there are many booming purchases on the column shelves, prices for high-quality wines from the Rhone Valley are still moderate in relation to the quality and prices of similar wines from Bordeaux and Burgundy. And Guigal wines are safe purchases that offer good quality for the money.

Guigal paved the way

Worldwide, 360 million bottles of wine are sold from the Rhone Valley. Red wines mainly account for 76 percent of sales, while pink wines and white wines account for the rest.

The Guigal family dates back to 1946 as their own brand, and is considered one of the most famous producers in the wine region. Today, one can actually say that Guigal paved the way and made the Rhône Valley famous throughout the world through his tireless struggle to preserve a wine region that has not always emerged as a quality region for wine, even among the French.

Guigal’s story began as early as 1924, when 14-year-old Etienne Guigal arrived in the small village of Ampuis in the northern Rhône Valley to work in a Vidal-Fleury winery. After 22 years, he had risen through the ranks from a cleaning worker, becoming a vault manager as one of the youngest ever with 36 years.

I lost my sight

On the other hand, Etienne Guigal had a terrible day. Over the years during World War II, the idea of ​​starting on its own took off. The idea became a reality in 1946, when the E. Guigal company was created. The business idea was simple: to become a reputable buyer of wine and grapes from small-scale producers in the area around Ambiez, and then sell the wine under his own brand at a more expensive price. In today’s eyes, annual production was modest with 70,000 bottles. But it paid off financially in the post-war years. However, Etienne Gigal was thirsty for more success.

For financial profit, Etienne Guigal bought her own vineyards to become more independent and at the same time be able to offer more wine. He knew the vineyards he wanted, and he was known to have a very good knowledge of the inherent quality of vineyards. Rumors of good Guigal wine spread quickly, and the future looked bright. Until his eyesight slowly failed.

world famous

Etienne Guigal completely blinded in 1961, having reached the age of 51 years. However, this did not stop him, letting his 17-year-old son Marcel enter the company and be his eyes. It turned out to be a stroke of luck for small family businesses. Together with his son Marcel, production grew during the seventies and until the end of the eighties to 3.5 million bottles.

Much of the growth is due to the increasing editorial reviews of wines in markets such as the USA and England. Particular mention should be made when in 1986 American wine expert Robert Parker gave the best Guigal wines with 100 points out of a possible 100. In fact, since 1986, no other winery has had as many wines rated as 100 points as Guigal.

Within a few years, he changed his role as a nationally titled producer in the northern part of the Rhone Valley, to become a world famous wine producer with a great reputation.

Approach “royal” mode

Today, one could safely say that Guigal was approaching “royal” status as a producer in the Rhone Valley. After the death of Etienne Guigal in 1988, Marcel and his son Philippe Guigal continued to purchase vineyards and increased production to 7.5 million liters. As a buyer and winemaker with a delivery agreement with more than 600 grape producers in the Rhone Valley, the Guigal family has become an essential quality and price supplier to other winemakers in the wine region.

But with success comes criticism, too. With the ever-increasing volume, there are plenty of examples of declining quality. Guigal has often been criticized in the past for having too much barrel character in his wine. However, Philip Gigal told Kapital that the family has deliberately changed the use of oak since 2003. First by building a separate book factory to control the quality itself, then improving the wine collection and harvesting methods so that the fruit of the berries appear first in the taste of the wine.

Always a good buy

In our opinion, Guigal has changed significantly over the past ten years. Better fermentation, automatic fermentation, lower productivity, and old vines are some of the key words that have changed the quality. Today, Guigal’s selection of wines from both the North and South Valley features a former drinkable wine, without a barrel-dominant character on the palate. Gone are the barrel-controlled wines that needed 10 to 15 years before they were ready to drink.

In our opinion, Guigal wine is safe and a good buy. Here you’ll also find an impressive breadth, from simple everyday wines from Côte-du-Rhône to high-quality wines from Gigondas and Châtenauneuf-du-Pape in the south via St. Joseph, Crozes Hermitage, Condrieu and Hermitage in the North – to the legendary expensive wines La Landonne, La Mouline and La Turque from the Côte Rôtie.

Recipe: Medallion of reindeer with vegetable stew

Reindeer tenderloin is wonderfully tender and delicious, some of the most exotic and exclusive we can offer in this country. But it is still not complicated. Here is a dish that is guaranteed to give guests saliva.

Wine Match: For delicious, sweet, and fat-free reindeer, wine from the Rhone Valley with a hint of fruit-driven berries is an excellent match. Wine from the North Rhone stands out favorably, especially with buttery mashed potatoes or creamy sauces on the plate.

what do you need:

800 g of reindeer tenderloin
2 tablespoons butter for frying
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

Vegetable stew:

1 piece. red onion
2 pieces carrot
100 grams of mushrooms or mushrooms
3 tablespoons butter for frying
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 small piece of spinach (65 g).

Here’s how:

1. Cut the vegetables into small cubes. Put the vegetables and a little butter in a pan and fry the vegetables until they turn brown. Add balsamic vinegar and season with salt, pepper and sugar. stay warm.

2. Divide the reindeer fillets into four equal pieces. Place them upright and press them gently until they are the same size.

Heat a frying pan and add a little butter. When it stops boiling, it is hot enough to add to the meat. Roast the meat for 1-2 minutes on both sides. Season with salt and pepper. Feel free to put some fresh rosemary in the pan while frying. Cook on low heat for a few minutes.

4. Transfer the fresh spinach and chopped parsley to the vegetable mixture and stir in the rest of the butter, until this dough is shiny and smooth. Arrange the vegetable stew on plates and put it on the meat.

Serve reindeer medallions with vegetable broth and good mashed potatoes. The sauce is not necessary for this dish because the vegetables are tender and good, but if you still want a sauce, red wine sauce is just fine.

You can use reindeer steaks (reindeer tenderloin) and flat reindeer meat (reindeer plums) to make reindeer medallions. The medallion is used for round or oval shaped steaks. The word is French and means “big medal”.

(Source: Matprat)