2020 Gard Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley
90 Points, Owen Bargeen, Washington Wine Blog
Tasting Notes
Intense notes of guava, passion fruit, dried strawberry, white tea, and a whiff of floral white pepper. Swirling adds a sweet red berry and crème brulee while maintaining floral white tea notes. The palate is saturated and creamy with the mourvèdre adding an impressive amount of texture to this wine. It really has an explosion of flavors across the palate with tropical, sweet red fruit and citrus all playing off of each other. Delicious but serious at the same time.
Inspired by the French Grand Cru wines, Gard “Grand Klasse” is our reserve-level program, aptly named in reflection of our Scandinavian heritage. It represents the top tier of Gård wines, the best of what our estate vineyard has to offer. Award-winning wines produced by winemaker Aryn Morell to showcase the quality of the Lawrence Vineyards estate. To be designated “Grand Klasse,” each wine must meet strict standards of quality and is blended, bottled, and aged with the utmost of care to bring you the very best of our grapes and effort in the bottle.
Vineyard Notes
The first time using a vineyard outside of Corfu Crossing. We’ve added a block of Grenache planted specifically for Rosé at a lower elevation on fine alluvial soil with a good amount of caliche in addition to a block of Mourvèdre planted for rosé as well. The Thunderstone Vineyard Grenache adds a nice sweetness and more exotic aromatics. The wine is actually 56% from the Thunderstone vineyard with the combination of Grenache and Mourvèdre (being used for the first time) and the balance coming from Corfu with both clones (Tablas and 3) from that site.
Specs
Vintage: 2020
Blend: 96% Grenache, 4% Mourvèdre
Appellation: Royal Slope
pH: 3.4
Aging: 5 months in 100% stainless steel
Alcohol: 13.80%
Cases Produced: 850
This wine is sustainably produced, vegan, and glyphosate free
What’s Included
6-bottles:
6x 2020 Gard Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley
Case:
12x 2020 Gard Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley
Gård, meaning “farm” in many of the Scandinavian languages, is a tribute to our family’s Scandinavian heritage and farming tradition.
Our mission at Gård is to capture and bottle the unique characteristics of the land we farm. We humbly craft value-driven, award-winning wines from our sustainable estate vineyards to create lasting memories for our customers. Gård Vintners is dedicated to crafting world-class wines from its sustainably-farmed estate vineyard on the Royal Slope of Washington’s Columbia Valley AVA. We produce 6,000 cases a year for our wine club, three tasting rooms, and select distribution in the northwest and across the country.
Founded in 2006, Gård Vintners is a family-owned and operated estate winery in the heart of Washington’s Columbia Valley AVA, with vineyards on the Royal Slope, wine production in Walla Walla, and tasting rooms in Woodinville, Walla Walla, and Ellensburg.
The winery was founded by Josh and Lisa Lawrence, along with Josh’s dad John Lawrence and uncle Sandy Lawrence, who had farmed the Royal Slope for more than 40 years. The winery and estate vineyard is now owned and operated by Josh and his wife, Lisa, who oversees sales and marketing, while Josh oversees the vineyard and other farm and orchard operations.
In 2011 Aryn Morell joined the team as winemaker, and winemaking is now managed at M&L Production in Walla Walla, a partnership between Morell and the Lawrences.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, TX, VA, WA, WI
Gard Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé
6 bottles for $79.99 $13.33/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $139.99 $11.67/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2020 Gård(meaning Farm)Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé.
Opened and poured at 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Noticed tiny little bubbles and a warming pale coral pink color to it. On the nose I instantly thought of tropical fruits, strawberry, lychee, with a slight whiff of alcohol. Taste is fruit forward making it seem off dry. Picking up on guava, strawberry, and a slight tingle of spice on the tongue. It wasn’t that kind of rosé that cuts with acidity, though it had me wondering if it was flat or was it a creamy mouthfeel. I then took a peek at the specs to show that there’s a decent amount of ph to it, so creamy it is. After tasting the wine and looking at my jotted notes, then reading up on the wine specs, I said to myself, “damn I’m getting good at this”. The overview that Gård provides is ON POINT!
I’m a big fan of rosé of Cabernet Franc, I’ve had some others here on CM, but this Grenache and Mourvèdre blend really hit the spot being simply tasty, balanced, and subtle with its acidity. Im curious how this would pair with some lighter foods or appetizers. Thanks to the CM crew for giving me another chance to rat a bottle for y’all. This one was surprisingly a fun one.
@Superllama7 I understand what it is and what it’s used for, but is it overspray or is there root uptake in such quantity it shows up in finished wine?
@rjquillin sorry, I was just being snarky. I doubt there’s any data on that, and surely the amount people get in wine would be less damaging than the alcohol. My preference is no roundup on any food crop ever, but this is a nice start I guess
@rjquillin (of course, it could be just marketing, like when the chicken package says “no added hormones - and by the way none of the other meats have them either”)
@Superllama7 No offense taken. It has been around for years, and I’ve used it for years, but lately Monsanto(?) has been taking class action hits for it; unless I’m thinking of something else. Like about anything, misuse it and there will be issues.
@rjquillin@Superllama7 I am very well versed in all that has gone on with glyphosate. Can discuss over a glass of wine any time!
Suffice it to say, being a non-selective herbicide, it was never sprayed on grapevines directly. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was used as weed control spot treatments in a vineyard though. But the last thing anybody wants, especially a grape grower, is to have it splash onto the vine and kill it.
Casemates LabRat report – Gard – Rosé 2020 Grand Klasse
Got lucky before the holidays again!
Alice (thanks!) contacted me to be a rat for what turned out to be an excellent wine.
Got the bottle on Tuesday and left it in the fridge until Thursday night, when a couple of friends joined me for a tasting.
Given the predominance of Grenache (96% - the rest is Mourvèdre) I opted for a few Asian appetizers to accompany the wine – namely potato samosas and chicken egg rolls.
But no more fuss: here’s the description of the wine.
Color: beautiful salmon pink, with a golden hue. One of the taster referred to it as the Apple pink of some MacBook Air – a sort of in-between bronze and pink (see pic)
On the nose: wine was stored in a normal fridge (at 5C – 41F) so it was too cold when first poured. Though, on the nose some characteristics were already present. Not much flowers here: I smelled some rose (both the flower and the hips) right away, strawberry, unripe mango, Barlett pears, and grapefruit skin that lingers towards a fennel flower. It is a complex wine for sure, with a hint of acidity that you can detect on the nose already. No alcohol smell here: the wine smells beautiful, and fresh, and yet with body. It calls for Spring – like a cool April evening, with the promise of being both refreshing and yet with a body that can hold the cooler temperature.
Mouth: acidity hits right away: this is a wine that will hold well the Asian appetizers I prepared. The long finish is also surprising, for a rosé. At first, in the mouth is almost buttery, but it is just an impression that last for the first sip. Then pear, dry apricot, honeysuckle, grapefruit (pink) and a faint hint of fennel flower (or anise) are concerted well in the mouth. It is dry: the sweetness you might get is all fruit, no sugar. Every sip is very well balanced, with a series of hints to different possible fruits, but so well integrated that it leaves you wonder – bottle finished – what else was there that you might have missed.
This is not your dad’s cheap rosé with a flat profile. This is an amazing wine, that will keep you company by itself on the porch - maybe with a few unsalted nuts to tease out some of the more buttery notes - or with Asian food, fish (from perch to salmon) and shellfish (lobster included: this would be fantastic with lobster, indeed), and even to accompany a tart (with a pear tart it would be perfect). It is ready to drink, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it getting even better in the next 2-4 years.
I can’t recommend this enough. Make space in your wine rack: this should not be drunk mindlessly. And keep it for aging, if you want to have fun tasting how even a rosé can change over time.
At this price, this is an absolute steal.
The Wine Enthusiast says, give me an eight…8! Give me another eight…8! What’s the spell?..88!
Well they didn’t put it exactly that way…
This is the first time fruit for this wine comes from outside Corfu Crossing Vineyard, with more than half of it from Thunderstone. A blend of 96% Grenache and 4% Mourvèdre, this medium salmon-colored wine offers bright aromas of strawberry candy and guava. Full-bodied, creamy feeling, sweet, almost off-dry seeming passion fruit and kiwi flavors follow. It brings a whole lot of fruit but could do with more acidity to support it all. SPS 12/1/21 RATING 88
90pts - Owen Bargeen/ WA Wine Blog
A silky and soft wine, this is almost all Grenache (96%) as this comes off very pretty with red rose water, red cherry and watermelon tones on the palate. The finesse and texture really makes this shine. Drink 2021-2026
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2020 Gard Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé - $20 = 12.50%
@kaolis We transitioned all of our estate vineyards to glyphosate-free in 2019, which means we no longer use glyphosate (a component in what is commonly known as Roundup) to control weeds in our vineyards.
@gardwine@kaolis@klezman
Thanks for this, but what was/is the common vector where it would be detected in wine? Overspray, perhaps near harvest, where there may be stem inclusion?
@kaolis@klezman@rjquillin We have never noticed an influence on the grapes or wine, the shift to glyphosate-free was more philosophical in nature as it relates to the various crops we grow.
Joined the Gard wine club when I was in Washington as a result of previous Casemates offerings, so Gard is an auto-buy for me!
/giphy splendorous-happiest-elf
@gardwine Hey there, I don’t know if this is Josh, Lisa, or Matias, but hi to all of you! I love your winery. I purchased a 6-pack in this offer and thought you’d want to know about a issue with one of the bottles. It sort of looks like a problem on the bottling line, but I can’t rule out a pushed cork in the warehouse or during shipping. Since the other 5 bottles are perfect in appearance, I don’t think anything froze during shipment. Also there are lees or possibly tartrate crystals in the bottle, whereas the other 5 are perfectly clear. It tasted okay and there was no fizz/secondary fermentation in evidence, but it was the first bottle I opened so I don’t have a baseline for comparison. With the slight gunk in the bottle, I wouldn’t have wanted to serve it to guests. I also would hope that your staff wouldn’t pack a bottle that looked like this in a shipper. I’m guessing that the shipments for this offer originated at your Royal City facility, based on UPS tracking. Anyway, just letting you know!!
@baldwino0 I had 2 bottles similarly affected. Drank one and gifted the other. Would expect it to be fine for current consumption. Depending on your latitude, I would think a freeze and thaw on the affected bottles. A couple years ago I had a frozen case with several ejected corks delivered to my office. Made quite a puddle after thawing. Others may know more.
@baldwino0 Thanks for the heads up! Certainly an anomaly that occurred during shipping, as we wouldn’t packaged and shipped it if anything looked slightly off on this end. We’d be happy to replace it for you. Could you email us directly at wine@gardvintners.com? Thanks!
2020 Gard Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley
90 Points, Owen Bargeen, Washington Wine Blog
Tasting Notes
Vineyard Notes
Specs
What’s Included
6-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$300/Case at Gard Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, TX, VA, WA, WI
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Jan 10 - Wednesday, Jan 12
Gard Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé
6 bottles for $79.99 $13.33/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $139.99 $11.67/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2020 Gard Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé
2020 Gård(meaning Farm)Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé.
Opened and poured at 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Noticed tiny little bubbles and a warming pale coral pink color to it. On the nose I instantly thought of tropical fruits, strawberry, lychee, with a slight whiff of alcohol. Taste is fruit forward making it seem off dry. Picking up on guava, strawberry, and a slight tingle of spice on the tongue. It wasn’t that kind of rosé that cuts with acidity, though it had me wondering if it was flat or was it a creamy mouthfeel. I then took a peek at the specs to show that there’s a decent amount of ph to it, so creamy it is. After tasting the wine and looking at my jotted notes, then reading up on the wine specs, I said to myself, “damn I’m getting good at this”. The overview that Gård provides is ON POINT!
I’m a big fan of rosé of Cabernet Franc, I’ve had some others here on CM, but this Grenache and Mourvèdre blend really hit the spot being simply tasty, balanced, and subtle with its acidity. Im curious how this would pair with some lighter foods or appetizers. Thanks to the CM crew for giving me another chance to rat a bottle for y’all. This one was surprisingly a fun one.
When did glyphosate in wine become a thing?
@rjquillin glyphosate has been a thing in agriculture since (checks watch) 1974
@Superllama7 I understand what it is and what it’s used for, but is it overspray or is there root uptake in such quantity it shows up in finished wine?
@rjquillin sorry, I was just being snarky. I doubt there’s any data on that, and surely the amount people get in wine would be less damaging than the alcohol. My preference is no roundup on any food crop ever, but this is a nice start I guess
@rjquillin (of course, it could be just marketing, like when the chicken package says “no added hormones - and by the way none of the other meats have them either”)
@Superllama7 No offense taken. It has been around for years, and I’ve used it for years, but lately Monsanto(?) has been taking class action hits for it; unless I’m thinking of something else. Like about anything, misuse it and there will be issues.
@rjquillin @Superllama7 I am very well versed in all that has gone on with glyphosate. Can discuss over a glass of wine any time!
Suffice it to say, being a non-selective herbicide, it was never sprayed on grapevines directly. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was used as weed control spot treatments in a vineyard though. But the last thing anybody wants, especially a grape grower, is to have it splash onto the vine and kill it.
Casemates LabRat report – Gard – Rosé 2020 Grand Klasse
Got lucky before the holidays again!
Alice (thanks!) contacted me to be a rat for what turned out to be an excellent wine.
Got the bottle on Tuesday and left it in the fridge until Thursday night, when a couple of friends joined me for a tasting.
Given the predominance of Grenache (96% - the rest is Mourvèdre) I opted for a few Asian appetizers to accompany the wine – namely potato samosas and chicken egg rolls.
But no more fuss: here’s the description of the wine.
Color: beautiful salmon pink, with a golden hue. One of the taster referred to it as the Apple pink of some MacBook Air – a sort of in-between bronze and pink (see pic)
On the nose: wine was stored in a normal fridge (at 5C – 41F) so it was too cold when first poured. Though, on the nose some characteristics were already present. Not much flowers here: I smelled some rose (both the flower and the hips) right away, strawberry, unripe mango, Barlett pears, and grapefruit skin that lingers towards a fennel flower. It is a complex wine for sure, with a hint of acidity that you can detect on the nose already. No alcohol smell here: the wine smells beautiful, and fresh, and yet with body. It calls for Spring – like a cool April evening, with the promise of being both refreshing and yet with a body that can hold the cooler temperature.
Mouth: acidity hits right away: this is a wine that will hold well the Asian appetizers I prepared. The long finish is also surprising, for a rosé. At first, in the mouth is almost buttery, but it is just an impression that last for the first sip. Then pear, dry apricot, honeysuckle, grapefruit (pink) and a faint hint of fennel flower (or anise) are concerted well in the mouth. It is dry: the sweetness you might get is all fruit, no sugar. Every sip is very well balanced, with a series of hints to different possible fruits, but so well integrated that it leaves you wonder – bottle finished – what else was there that you might have missed.
This is not your dad’s cheap rosé with a flat profile. This is an amazing wine, that will keep you company by itself on the porch - maybe with a few unsalted nuts to tease out some of the more buttery notes - or with Asian food, fish (from perch to salmon) and shellfish (lobster included: this would be fantastic with lobster, indeed), and even to accompany a tart (with a pear tart it would be perfect). It is ready to drink, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it getting even better in the next 2-4 years.
I can’t recommend this enough. Make space in your wine rack: this should not be drunk mindlessly. And keep it for aging, if you want to have fun tasting how even a rosé can change over time.
At this price, this is an absolute steal.
@salpo nice review!
@TimW Thanks!
The Saturday Morning Review:
The Wine Enthusiast says, give me an eight…8! Give me another eight…8! What’s the spell?..88!
Well they didn’t put it exactly that way…
This is the first time fruit for this wine comes from outside Corfu Crossing Vineyard, with more than half of it from Thunderstone. A blend of 96% Grenache and 4% Mourvèdre, this medium salmon-colored wine offers bright aromas of strawberry candy and guava. Full-bodied, creamy feeling, sweet, almost off-dry seeming passion fruit and kiwi flavors follow. It brings a whole lot of fruit but could do with more acidity to support it all. SPS 12/1/21 RATING 88
https://www.winemag.com/buying-guide/gard-2020-grand-klasse-reserve-lawrence-estate-wines-lawrence-vineyards-rose-royal-slope/
The above mentioned Washington Wine Blog review:
90pts - Owen Bargeen/ WA Wine Blog
A silky and soft wine, this is almost all Grenache (96%) as this comes off very pretty with red rose water, red cherry and watermelon tones on the palate. The finesse and texture really makes this shine. Drink 2021-2026
fwiw
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2020 Gard Vintners Grand Klasse Reserve Rosé - $20 = 12.50%
Greetings from Gard! Thanks for checking out our Grand Klasse Rose offer. I’ll be checking in and answering questions today. Cheers!
@gardwine Thanks for making such an amazing wine!
Question: how do you think this rose will age? Which characteristics will mature with time?
@gardwine and could you expand on use of glyphosate on vineyards?
@salpo We recommend drinking the Grand Klasse Rose early, within the next year or 2, and not aging it. Cheers!
@kaolis We transitioned all of our estate vineyards to glyphosate-free in 2019, which means we no longer use glyphosate (a component in what is commonly known as Roundup) to control weeds in our vineyards.
@gardwine @kaolis @klezman
Thanks for this, but what was/is the common vector where it would be detected in wine? Overspray, perhaps near harvest, where there may be stem inclusion?
Couple of links I found interesting:
https://wineinstitute.org/our-industry/glyphosate/
https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/catalog/files/project/pdf/em8860.pdf
@kaolis @klezman @rjquillin We have never noticed an influence on the grapes or wine, the shift to glyphosate-free was more philosophical in nature as it relates to the various crops we grow.
@gardwine what method did you use to replace the glyphosate use?
@ciswt We employ a few tactics for weed control - mostly tilling, mowing and weeding by hand, depending on the situation.
/giphy overcast-magnificent-keepsake
@CorTot that giphy was my first introduction to opera!
@CorTot
@CorTot @TimW
Lol mine too
You had me at “glyphosate”
roasted-symbolic-wreath
But seriously we enjoyed the past Gard offerings.
Just as well that my state is not on the list
Joined the Gard wine club when I was in Washington as a result of previous Casemates offerings, so Gard is an auto-buy for me!
/giphy splendorous-happiest-elf
/giphy cherubic-neighborly-blitzen
@gardwine Hey there, I don’t know if this is Josh, Lisa, or Matias, but hi to all of you! I love your winery. I purchased a 6-pack in this offer and thought you’d want to know about a issue with one of the bottles. It sort of looks like a problem on the bottling line, but I can’t rule out a pushed cork in the warehouse or during shipping. Since the other 5 bottles are perfect in appearance, I don’t think anything froze during shipment. Also there are lees or possibly tartrate crystals in the bottle, whereas the other 5 are perfectly clear. It tasted okay and there was no fizz/secondary fermentation in evidence, but it was the first bottle I opened so I don’t have a baseline for comparison. With the slight gunk in the bottle, I wouldn’t have wanted to serve it to guests. I also would hope that your staff wouldn’t pack a bottle that looked like this in a shipper. I’m guessing that the shipments for this offer originated at your Royal City facility, based on UPS tracking. Anyway, just letting you know!!
@baldwino0 I had 2 bottles similarly affected. Drank one and gifted the other. Would expect it to be fine for current consumption. Depending on your latitude, I would think a freeze and thaw on the affected bottles. A couple years ago I had a frozen case with several ejected corks delivered to my office. Made quite a puddle after thawing. Others may know more.
@baldwino0 Thanks for the heads up! Certainly an anomaly that occurred during shipping, as we wouldn’t packaged and shipped it if anything looked slightly off on this end. We’d be happy to replace it for you. Could you email us directly at wine@gardvintners.com? Thanks!
@gardwine Email sent. Thanks for responding!