WINERY HISTORY
Domaine Giraud, established in 1974 by Pierre and Mireille Giraud, is relatively young yet rooted in rich viticultural heritage. Pierre, a sixth-generation grape grower from the village, traces his lineage to the venerable Armenier family through his mother. Meanwhile, Mireille, born into the Buou family, hails from a lineage that once operated the local distillery in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, an integral part of the community for over a century. Although the distillery closed decades ago, its old building has found new purpose since 1981, serving as the cellars for Domaine Giraud. Beginning with only 4ha of vines under a sharecropping lease, the domaine steadily expanded their holdings over the subsequent years. Their first vintage was released in 1981, and marked the beginning of the domaine's rise to regional prominence and popularity. Having stewarded the winery for over two decades, Pierre and Mireille stepped back in 1998, passing on the domaine to their children, Marie and François. Transitioning to organic farming in 2008, the sibling duo continue to master their winemaking and plot selection, pushing themselves to create some of Châteauneuf-du-Pape's most elegant wines.
VITICULTURE & WINEMAKING
The Giraud estate has grown to cover more than 35ha, with their largest single plot comprising 8ha in the famed Galimardes district. Most of their terroir is made up of the region's famous large pebbled soil, known locally as galets roules, deposited in the region by millennia of glacial deposits. By absorbing heat from the blistering Southern Rhône sunshine and then releasing it slowly overnight, this soil type provides the optimal environment for ripening the grapes of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. On these plots, Giraud cultivate century-old plots of Grenache and Mourvèdre, along with Clairette, Bourboulenc, Grenache Blanc, and Roussanne.
The rest of the holdings are spread across the sandier soils in the north of the appellation. Centenarian vines of Grenache thrive in the Crau districts and on the Pignan plateau, yielding fruit of unsurpassed finesse and elegance. In the Les Tresquoys district, Syrah flourishes on predominantly clay-based hillsides. Farming at the estate is entirely organic, and has been for over a decade. Viticulture is carried out with the greatest respect for the terroir, with winemaking dedicated to the production of wines of place. The meticulous manual work, from harvesting to sorting, ensures only the finest fruit reaches the cellar. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks and various-sized concrete vats, with exception for Les Galimardes Blanc, where the Roussanne portion is fermented and aged in demi-muid. The reds, excluding Syrah, age in concrete tanks.
GRAPE VARIETIES
Clairette, Bourboulenc, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre
