Domaine Garon

Domaine Garon traces its history to 1485 and the birth of Jean Garon, a vigneron in Ampuis, and the family has stayed in the heart of the Côte-Rôtie vineyard since. In the 1980s Jean-François and Carmen Garon set out to bring the domaine's abandoned terraces back to life. They replanted the historic lieu-dit of La Triote first and then, in 1987, Lancement. For years, combining livestock farming with vine growing, they sold their grapes to local négociants. After trials in 1993 and 1994, the first bottle of Côte-Rôtie was made in 1995. Their sons Kévin and Fabien joined the domaine in 2000 after studying oenology in Burgundy and Beaujolais, and Domaine Garon was officially founded in 2003, with 2 hectares of vines in Côte-Rôtie. A new chai was built in 2012, and a new chai was inaugurated in 2023. The domaine moved into Seyssuel in 2015, added Saint-Joseph in 2019 and Hermitage in 2022, and released its first bottles from Saint-Péray and Cornas in 2024. The 2025 harvest was the domaine's 30th vintage. The domaine has passed from generation to generation within the Garon family.

• 1485: birth of Jean Garon, a vigneron in Ampuis, where the family's history begins
• 1980s: Jean-François and Carmen Garon replant the abandoned terraces, La Triote first, then Lancement in 1987
• 1995: first bottle of Côte-Rôtie, after trials in 1993 and 1994
• 2000: sons Kévin and Fabien join; 2003: Domaine Garon officially founded with 2 hectares in Côte-Rôtie
• 2012: new chai built; 2023: new chai inaugurated
• 2015 Seyssuel, 2019 Saint-Joseph, 2022 Hermitage, 2024 Saint-Péray and Cornas; 2025 was the 30th vintage

As of October 2026, Domaine Garon is a family domaine. Jean-François and Carmen Garon replanted the terraces from the 1980s and made the first bottle in 1995. Their sons Kévin and Fabien Garon joined in 2000 after oenology studies in Burgundy and Beaujolais. Delphine, Kévin's wife, joined the domaine in 2023. The domaine names Paul, Tom and Valentine as the arriving new generation.

• Jean-François and Carmen Garon: replanted the terraces from the 1980s; first bottle 1995
• Kévin and Fabien Garon: sons, joined in 2000 after oenology studies in Burgundy and Beaujolais
• Delphine: Kévin's wife, joined the domaine in 2023
• Paul, Tom and Valentine: the new generation, as named by the domaine in October 2026

Domaine Garon covers more than 16 hectares, mainly in Côte-Rôtie. In early 2023 most of its Côte-Rôtie holdings surrounded the property at the southern edge of Ampuis, in the adjacent lieux-dits Le Mollard, Le Combard, Lancement, La Triote and Le Goutay, all on the blonde side, with a little on the brune side. Lancement lies at the heart of the blonde part of the appellation, on very acidic schists mixed with sand and small stones and held up by dry-stone walls. Les Rochins is a historic parcel of the domaine on brown earth of schist, clay and iron oxide. Beyond Côte-Rôtie the domaine farms in Seyssuel, north of Vienne, on south-west-facing schists. Its Condrieu was, in early 2023, mostly from bought grapes that the Garons pick themselves. The soils are worked by horse, tractor and pickaxe and grassed where conditions allow, and treatments have been cut back to a little sulphur and almost no copper. By early 2023 the domaine had stopped using herbicides for several years; it was not certified organic, because it used some chemical products to control mildew.

• More than 16 hectares, mainly in Côte-Rôtie
• Côte-Rôtie lieux-dits around the property (early 2023): Le Mollard, Le Combard, Lancement, La Triote and Le Goutay on the blonde side, plus a little on the brune side
• Lancement: very acidic schists with sand and small stones, held by dry-stone walls; Les Rochins: brown earth of schist, clay and iron oxide
• Seyssuel vineyards north of Vienne on south-west-facing schists
• Soils worked by horse, tractor and pickaxe; a little sulphur and almost no copper
• No herbicides for several years by early 2023; not certified organic

The Côte-Rôtie range has five cuvées. Les Rochins, from the lieu-dit Les Rochins, was launched in 2003. Les Triotes, a blend of lieux-dits on the blonde sector, was launched in 2006 and became La Triote in 2022; La Triote comes from the first parcel Jean-François and Carmen replanted in the early 1980s. Sybarine, the domaine's blend cuvée of schist, gneiss and granite terroirs, joined in 2009. Lancement has been raised separately as a parcel cuvée since 2013, and Le Combard, from the lieu-dit Le Combard, arrived in 2019. All of the domaine's Côte-Rôties are pure Syrah. Whites began with the 2017 harvest: Condrieu La Vieille Maison, a blend of lieux-dits, and Viognier Les Grandes Parcelles; Condrieu Carmen, a barrel selection from granite terroirs, followed in 2022. The wider range includes Saint-Joseph Agricola (red) and Agricolis (90% Roussanne and 10% Marsanne) from 2019, Hermitage Fossyl (white) and Colysée (red) from 2022, Saint-Péray Amadelphe, Cornas Les Prés, Crozes-Hermitage Around the Rhône, Syrah Les Grandes Parcelles (the 2006 Collines Rhodaniennes Syrah, renamed in 2017), Jardins de Rome from Seyssuel (first made in 2018) and Côtes du Rhône La Part des Vivants (first vintage 2017).

• Côte-Rôtie: Les Rochins (2003), Les Triotes (2006, La Triote from 2022), Sybarine (2009), Lancement (separate parcel cuvée from 2013), Le Combard (2019)
• Condrieu: La Vieille Maison (from 2017) and Carmen (from 2022); Viognier Les Grandes Parcelles (from 2017)
• Saint-Joseph: Agricola (red) and Agricolis (90% Roussanne, 10% Marsanne), from 2019
• Hermitage: Fossyl (white) and Colysée (red), from 2022
• Also Saint-Péray Amadelphe, Cornas Les Prés, Crozes-Hermitage Around the Rhône, Syrah Les Grandes Parcelles, Jardins de Rome (Seyssuel) and Côtes du Rhône La Part des Vivants

Use of whole bunches and new oak rises through the range: in early 2023 the Saint-Joseph had 10% whole bunch and 10% new oak, rising to 25% and 30% for Les Rochins. Kévin Garon explained the choice of pure Syrah for Côte-Rôtie this way: 'They naturally develop fine and floral aromas without having to use Viognier.' The family describes its aim as elegance, seeking finesse of fruit and elegant tannins in wines that last. Matt Walls, writing in Decanter in February 2023, found that the wines 'speak first and foremost of their origins' and placed their style 'somewhere between Ogier, Barge and Jasmin.'

• Whole bunch and new oak in early 2023: 10% and 10% for the Saint-Joseph, 25% and 30% for Les Rochins
• Côte-Rôtie made from Syrah alone, without Viognier
• Matt Walls (Decanter, 2023) placed the style between Ogier, Barge and Jasmin

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://domainegaron.fr/, https://domainegaron.fr/le-domaine/, https://domainegaron.fr/nos-vins/. Secondary source: Decanter (Matt Walls, last updated 16 February 2023), https://www.decanter.com/premium/walls-hidden-gems-domaine-garon-cote-rotie-497375/. Last verified 2026-10-19. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs.