White Burgundy vs. Riesling vs. ...
Hermitage Blanc?
2005 Guigal Hermitage Ex Voto Blanc
Over 30% Below the Lowest Price in the Nation
"Along with the late Thomas Jefferson, Guigal has always believed that white Hermitage is France's greatest white wine. With his recent acquisitions of superb vineyard sites, he is hell-bent on proving to the world that Jefferson was correct..."
- Robert Parker
Honestly, we very rarely make a fuss over Rhone whites. Usually, they’re completely ignored in our fiery debates over the best white wine in the world (half the staff is adamant it's white Burgundy, the others insist it's German Riesling). This is an almost daily exercise.
But when we tasted Guigal’s Ex Voto Blanc, we all got a little quiet, glancing at each other with conceding looks: “Is this really as good as I think it is??”
 |
Marcel Guigal makes a very, very strong argument for the nobility, grace and ageworthiness of Hermitage Blanc with his 2005 Ex Voto. This is monumental wine; a benchmark not only in the Rhône but in the world; a super-luxe cuvée that, considering its site/producer/small production pedigree (more on all that in a minute), deserves to be sold for its typical $160-300 price.
With a preface like that, today’s pricing is completely absurd...
2005 Guigal Hermitage Blanc Ex Voto as low as $109.95 a bottle on the six-pack.
Since bursting onto the scene only a short, short decade ago, Marcel Guigal’s Ex Voto has completely changed the whole Hermitage Blanc game from being a two-headed monster with Chapoutier and Chave (our other favorite) running the show, to being a three-horse race.
Since its premier vintage in 2001, Guigal's Ex Voto has not missed a beat. Made only in the best vintages, and in tiny quantities - 750 cases in 05 - this is Hermitage Blanc with unbelievable power, richness and concentration that somehow also manages to dance with stunning elegance.
The 2005 vintage was amazing for RhĂ´ne whites, and this may very well be Guigal's best Hermitage Blanc so far, unreal in its delivery of honeyed white and yellow fruits that are ultra-ripe and luscious, like a summer peach begging for more napkins.
Then, as you polish those off, in comes the provocative, irresistible suggestion of white truffles, exotic spices and a trail of finely crushed rocks.
Guigal’s success here shouldn’t come as a surprise. These are preeminent vineyard sites in Hermitage - Les Murets and l’Ermite, acquired only recently by Guigal and renowned for their impressive affect on the area’s Marsanne and Roussanne varietals. And Guigal has long been known as a veritable master of the Rhône, crafting benchmark wines with his hyper-attentive winemaking.
I wrote the following about the 2001 Ex Voto: "It changed so many times in the glass, vacillating endlessly from rich and heady to lean and aromatic that it reminded me of the dynamic complexity of the great older Lopez de Heredia Blancos.” The analogy is applicable here, too, and I’ll even go so far as to throw in an allusion to Leflaive, with that sumptuous, rolling fruit and aromatics.
If only Montrachet went for anywhere remotely close to $110. Again, the pricing here is just ridiculous; 30% below the lowest price in the nation and a steal for such an impressive bottle.
If I were to guess, I'd say this could have, easily, 50 years life ahead of it; we very strongly advise you take a six-pack and toast to each decade. Or, considering how delicious this is now, perhaps two six-packs might be in order? We'll do our best. Please keep in mind quantities are limited, so all orders are subject to confirmation.
To place your order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & SpiritsÂ
Robert Parker for the Wine Advocate: "An outrageous wine, the 2005 Hermitage Ex-Voto blanc boasts extraordinary pineapple, lychee nut, white peach, floral, crushed rock, and quince notes in its full-bodied, powerful, mouth-coating personality. A blend of 95% Marsanne and 5% Roussanne, it was aged in new oak for 18 months. Nine thousand bottles were produced in 2005. It will have at least three decades of evolution.
While the entire world of wine knows how profound Guigal’s red wines are, they may not know that he continues to demonstrate a complete mastery of white wine varietals, from his lowly Cotes du Rhone blend of Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier, Clairette, and Bourboulenc, to his seriously-endowed dry whites from the northern Rhone. There are two cuvees of white Hermitage. The luxury offering, Ex-Voto, comes from five acres of 90-year old Marsanne vines planted in two separate vineyards on Hermitage Hill - l’Ermite and Les Murets. As the following notes indicate, Guigal has set aside a number of barrels that could make up the 2007 Ex-Voto, but he is not yet sure the quality will be high enough as this must be a wine of great richness and complexity."
Guigal Ex Voto Blanc is pre-arrival
NET | No further discount