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Domaine Saint-Damien, Gigondas Vieilles Vignes 'La Louisiane' 2014

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By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-01-16 · Published 2026-09-19 · Updated 2026-09-19

In one paragraphDomaine Saint-Damien Gigondas Vieilles Vignes 'La Louisiane' 2014 is a Grenache-led red from the Saurel family's estate in the southern Rhône appellation of Gigondas, bottled separately from the domaine's other plots — La Moutte, Pigières, Les Souteyrades, La Tour — as a single-vineyard cuvée from the old vines of La Louisiane. Vivino lists alcohol at 14.5% and the blend at 85% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 5% Mourvèdre. The 2014 vintage averages 4.1 from 143 Vivino ratings (close to the label-wide average of 4.0 from 1,773 ratings), with one listed critic score of 90 points (Dec 2016). The nose leads with black fruit like blackberry and plum (125 mentions), followed by an earthy group of earthiness and leather (103), oak and clove (89), and a spice group of pepper and licorice (84). Structure: intensity 4.1/5, acidity 3.4, tannin 3.2 — powerful but not rough on the finish. I logged this bottle on 16 January 2020 at 3.5 — my note read "grass, licorice, pepper," and it landed third-highest of five bottles that night. Price: world average pending (Wine-Searcher, US$23 per 750ml ex-tax (Wine-Searcher, Sept 2026)); overseas retail runs in the mid-US$40s depending on vintage (tablewineasheville.com, Sept 2026).

Domaine Saint-Damien, Gigondas Vieilles Vignes 'La Louisiane' 2014 bottle — my own photo, 2020.01 — Photo: Daniel Min, 2020.01 (Vivino log)

3.5

Father's rating / 5 ★★★½☆

4.1

Vivino 2014 vintage average (143 ratings)

90 points on Vivino (publication not named, Dec 2016)

World average US$23

World average price (Wine-Searcher)

At a glance

Producer

Domaine Saint-Damien (Saurel family, Gigondas)

Region

France · Gigondas (Southern Rhône)

Grapes

Grenache 85% · Syrah 10% · Mourvèdre 5%

Alcohol

14.5%

Style

Full-bodied, high acidity (Vivino: Southern Rhône Red)

Drinking window (Vivino)

2018–2028

Food pairing

Beef, Lamb, Game (deer, etc.)

World average price

World average US$23 / 750ml (ex-tax, Wine-Searcher, Sept 2026)

In one line

3.5/5 — lower than Vivino's 4.1 average · world avg price US$23 · The Saurel family has farmed this land since 1821 and formally founded the domaine in 1979.

One critic score registered on Vivino — 90 points (Dec 2016)

Market note: Overseas retail runs in the mid-US$40s depending on vintage (tablewineasheville.com, checked Sept 2026). La Louisiane is a single-plot cuvée made in smaller volumes than the domaine's standard Gigondas Vieilles Vignes, so availability is limited.

Father's note — Daniel Min

Original author of the notes

2020-01-16 3.5 ★★★½☆

grasslicoricepepper

“Grass, licorice, pepper.”

Min Haru Aspiring sommelier Level 1 · Cork

grasslicoricepepperA memory from January, at twenty-one

What I learned today: even a sneeze is part of the scent that remembers the order of a day.

Saturday, there was a year-end party booked for eight. From the afternoon, Master Seo laid cheese and ham out on a big wooden board. Last of all he ground whole pepper over it. By the grinder's second turn, I sneezed. Twice, in fact.

That sneeze pulled out a night before the wine did. Sometimes the body remembers before the nose. Deep winter when I was twenty-one, a Thursday night when the sun had set early. The big bottles had passed, and so had a quiet glass of wood. Father wrapped the next bottle in cloth, stood it up and poured. The moment I put my nose to it, I sneezed. Without a word, Father handed me a tissue. The second time I smelled it, behind the pepper there was grass and licorice. I don't know the bottle's name.

At eleven, after the party guests had gone, Master Seo poured me a glass from what was left in the bottle. This time no sneeze: pepper, licorice, then black plum. When I opened that night's notebook, the line was there. "Grass, licorice, pepper." Three and a half stars. Almost exactly what I smelled the second time. The bottle was Saint-Damien Gigondas La Louisiane. I stuck a wine-name Post-it into the notebook.

Among that night's bottles, its stars sit somewhere in the middle. Maybe Father, too, wrinkled his nose at the pepper on the first sip. Maybe that's why he wrote the grass first.

Only a few peppercorns were left on the wooden board. What I learned today: even a sneeze is part of the scent that remembers the order of a day.

Haru — Prepping for the year-end party: as Master Seo grinds pepper over the wooden board, Haru scrunches her nose, fighting a sneeze. — **Haru** Prepping for the year-end party: as Master Seo grinds pepper over the wooden board, Haru scrunches her nose, fighting a sneeze.

What this wine is

Gigondas spent a long time as part of Côtes du Rhône-Villages. Before World War II, the village's wine is said to have been used, in part, to strengthen Burgundy wines. Then in 1971 Gigondas broke off from Côtes du Rhône-Villages and became a full appellation in its own right — earning a status as the southern Rhône's "little brother" to Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The limestone spires of the Dentelles de Montmirail split the appellation into two distinct microclimates, one cooler and one warmer, and within the blend rules — Grenache capped at 80%, Syrah and/or Mourvèdre at least 15% — that split lets Gigondas range across quite different styles.

The Saurel family behind this wine has reportedly farmed this land since 1821. Joël and Amie Saurel, with their son Romain (now the winemaker), formally founded the domaine in 1979, moving away from decades of selling grapes to négociants and starting to bottle under their own name in 1996; they achieved organic certification in 2012. Of the domaine's 45 hectares, 15 are given to Gigondas, split across several named plots — La Moutte, Pigières, La Louisiane, Les Souteyrades, La Tour. This bottle is the separate single-plot bottling from La Louisiane. The vines average 50 years old and are planted at high density (5,000 vines per hectare) to keep yields low, with some blocks dating to the 1940s. Grapes are hand-harvested and de-stemmed, given a long 4–8 week maceration, then aged 12 months in traditional 50-hectoliter foudres, unfined and unfiltered.

Haru — Eleven at night, the party guests gone, Haru cautiously brings the glass toward her nose at the counter. — **Haru** Eleven at night, the party guests gone, Haru cautiously brings the glass toward her nose at the counter.

What the world says

The 2014 vintage averages 4.1 from 143 Vivino ratings — slightly above the label-wide average of 4.0 from 1,773 ratings. The distribution skews heavily toward 4-star ratings (100), with 20 fives and 18 threes. One critic score is on file: 90 points (Dec 2016, publication not named).

The flavor keywords lead with black fruit — blackberry, plum — at 125 mentions, followed by an earthy group of earthiness and leather (103), oak and clove (89), and a spice group of pepper and licorice (84). Structure: intensity 4.1/5 shows real power, but acidity at 3.4 and tannin at 3.2 keep the finish from turning rough.

"Perfect Rhône wine — smooth yet full of cassis flavor." — Vivino review, Mar 2019, 4.5 stars

"Outstanding value! Great Grenache loveliness that tastes better than most Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Dark, tart cherry, blackberries, pepper, licorice..." — Vivino review, Sept 2018, 5.0 stars

The recommended drinking window is 2018–2028; I drank this in January 2020, near the start of that window.

Haru — A deep-winter night at twenty-one. Right after Haru sneezes, Father's hand holds out a tissue. — **Haru** A deep-winter night at twenty-one. Right after Haru sneezes, Father's hand holds out a tissue.

How I drank it

"Grass, licorice, pepper." 16 January 2020, 3.5 stars. Short as the note is, its direction matches the community's top keywords almost exactly — pepper and licorice are the top two entries in the spice group. That night was a party with two double magnums in play: Louis Roederer Brut Premier (4.0), a double magnum of Martelet de Cherisey Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru 'Hameau de Blagny' 2016 (4.5), a double magnum of Arnaud Mortet Gevrey-Chambertin 2017 (4.0), and Vieux Château Gaubert Graves 1999 (2.5) all came before this Gigondas, and Antinori Solaia 2012 (5.0) closed the night.

Of six bottles, 3.5 was the third-highest score — below Solaia (5.0) and the Puligny (4.5), but above the Roederer and the Gevrey (both 4.0) and well above the Graves (2.5). That's half a point below the community average of 4.1. There's not much to read into psychologically from a two-word note like this one; the plain number is that this Gigondas landed just under the midpoint of a six-bottle lineup where half the wines scored 4.0 or higher.

Haru — Next to the board with only a few peppercorns left, Haru sticks a Post-it into her notebook while Master Seo polishes an empty glass. — **Haru** Next to the board with only a few peppercorns left, Haru sticks a Post-it into her notebook while Master Seo polishes an empty glass.

Where this wine shows up

History Gigondas breaks off from Côtes du Rhône-Villages (1971) · 1971

Said to have once been used to strengthen Burgundy wines before World War II, Gigondas became its own AOC in 1971, splitting from Côtes du Rhône-Villages — the moment it earned a standing close to Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the southern Rhône. This domaine's Gigondas is made within that same appellation framework.

Wikipedia — Gigondas AOC · Vins Rhône — Côtes du Rhône Cru AOC Gigondas

Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.

Vivino community data

2014 vintage rating distribution (143 ratings, average 4.1)

5★		20 (14%)
4★		100 (70%)
3★		18 (13%)
2★		3 (2%)
1★		2 (1%)

Most-mentioned aromas

Family	Mentions	Top keywords
Black fruit	125	blackberry 33 · plum 28 · dark fruit 20 · black cherry 12 · black fruit 12
Earth	103	earthy 32 · leather 23 · minerals 14 · smoke 6 · forest floor 3
Oak	89	oak 26 · clove 13 · cedar 9 · cola 8 · tobacco 8
Spice	84	pepper 42 · licorice 22 · thyme 5 · white pepper 3 · anise 2
Red fruit	70	cherry 23 · raspberry 13 · red fruit 13 · red cherry 6 · red plum 4
Floral	16	violet 8 · lavender 6 · dried rose 1 · rose petal 1
Dried fruit	14	prune 6 · raisin 5 · dried cranberry 1 · dried fruit 1 · fig 1

Structure: Acidity 3.4/5 · Intensity 4.1/5 · Tannin 3.2/5 · Sweetness 1.6/5

Average by vintage (all vintages: 1773 ratings, average 4.0)

Vintage	Average	Ratings
2007	3.9	50
2009	3.6	58
2010	3.7	99
2011	4.1	102
2012	3.9	162
2014	4.1	143
2015	4.1	256
2016	4.1	158
2017	4.1	146
2018	4.1	168
2019	4.1	147
2020	4.0	102
2022	4.2	64
2023	4.1	32

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Frequently asked questions

What kind of wine is Saint-Damien Gigondas 'La Louisiane' 2014?

A Grenache-led blend (85% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 5% Mourvèdre) from the Saurel family's estate in Gigondas, southern Rhône, bottled separately from the La Louisiane plot's old vines, some planted in the 1940s. Vivino: 143 ratings averaging 4.1, with one 90-point critic score on file.

How much does it cost?

World average pending on Wine-Searcher. Overseas retail runs in the mid-US$40s depending on vintage (tablewineasheville.com, checked Sept 2026).

What food pairs well with it?

Vivino users suggest beef, lamb and game (deer, etc.). With intensity at 4.1/5, it holds up well against well-spiced red meat dishes.

How is Gigondas different from Châteauneuf-du-Pape?

Both are Grenache-centered southern Rhône reds, but Gigondas only became its own appellation in 1971, breaking off from Côtes du Rhône-Villages — a relatively young status compared with Châteauneuf. The cooler microclimate under the Dentelles de Montmirail often gives Gigondas more retained acidity than Châteauneuf.

Links & sources

View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher

Domaine Saint-Damien, Gigondas Vieilles Vignes 'La Louisiane' 2014

At a glance

In one line

Father's note — Daniel Min

What this wine is

What the world says

How I drank it

Where this wine shows up

Vivino community data

2014 vintage rating distribution (143 ratings, average 4.1)

Most-mentioned aromas

Average by vintage (all vintages: 1773 ratings, average 4.0)

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