Chateau La Nerthe Les Cassagnes Cotes-du-Rhone Rose 2017
-
Wine
Enthusiast
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Produced in Tavel, the heart of the Rhone Valley’s rosé production, this Cotes-du-Rhone rosé is crafted from 30+ year old vineyards planted in soils rich with calcareous sandstone and positioned on gently undulating slopes for optimal sun exposure.
The color is pale pink fuchsia, very bright. The nose is frank, lively, expressive, on white flowers and citrus fruits (pink grapefruit). The palate is fresh and the gooseberry meets again the grapefruit. A wine of great freshness and easy pleasure!
A versatile companion to many styles of cuisine. Enjoy with cheeses and fruit or pair with salmon dishes, poultry in light to medium weight sauces, and fresh salads.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
Concentrated, juicy raspberry and red-cherry flavors are offset by crisp minerality and a delicate fringe of tannins in this substantial, elegant rosé. It's deep pink in color and quite nervy on the finish. Ideal in warmer months, it's bold enough to drink throughout the year with lighter fare.
Other Vintages
2022-
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker
-
Tasting
Panel -
James
Suckling
-
Tasting
Panel
-
Robert
Parker
Archives affirm Chateau La Nerthe’s existence as early as 1560, while suggesting an even more distant past dating to the dawn of the region’s wine culture in the 12th century making it one of Chateauneuf’s oldest estates. Located in the heart of the Chateauneuf-du-Pape AOC region of southern France not far from Avignon, the 225 acres of Chateau La Nerthe vineyards are located in a single block around the Chateau and have been certified Organic since 1998. The terroir is very typical for the region: vineyards runs along a slope, at the top of which the vines dig their roots into soils of sandy-clay, on the surface there is a layer of the famous galettes, large, round, well-worn stones that originated in the Alps, having been carried down to the Rhône by the glaciers of previous ice ages. The further down the slope of the vineyard you travel, the more these stones dominate. All 14 of the permitted primary varietals are planted-Grenache dominates 62% of vineyards and the vines average over 40 years old. Chateau La Nerthe is the prime expression of Chateauneuf-du-Pape.
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
Typically thought of as a baby Chateâuneuf-du-Pape, the term Côtes du Rhône actually doesn’t merely apply to the flatter outskirts of the major southern Rhône appellations, it also includes the fringes of well-respected northern Rhône appellations. White wines can be produced under the appellation name, but very little is actually made.
The region offers some of the best values in France and even some first-rate and age-worthy reds. Red wine varieties include most of the Chateâuneuf-du-Pape varieties like Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, and Counoise, as well as Carignan. White grapes grown include Grenache blanc, Roussanne and Viognier, among others.