Winemaker Notes
This powerful wine perfectly matched with jugged hares, game, and truffled omelets.
Blend: 90% Grenache, 5% Syrah, 5% Mourvèdre
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
I love the 2015 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Chante Le Merle Vieilles Vignes, and it's the most balanced and complete of this estate's 2015s. Garrigue, kirsch, spice, dried earth and garrigue nuances all flow to a full-bodied, supple, beautifully textured red that has classic aromas and flavors, polished, elegant tannin and a great finish. It's approachable today, yet will be even better with short-term cellaring and drink well for a decade or more. The 2015 is 86% Grenache and 7% each of Mourvèdre and Syrah, from 80-90-year-old vines, fermented with 100% whole clusters and aged in foudre (60%), demi-muids (30%) and concrete tanks (10%).
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The old vine cuvée is the 2015 Châteauneuf du Pape Chante Le Merle Vieilles Vignes and is a non-destemmed blend of 90% Grenache and 5% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre. Aged in foudre and demi-muids, it offers textbook notes of black raspberries, kirsch, garrigue, pepper and leafy herbs, as well as full-bodied richness, ripe, polished tannin and a great finish. I’ve found this cuvée to be a touch rustic in the past, but recent vintages show another level of purity, elegance and finesse.
Range: 93-95 -
James Suckling
Dried red berry and slightly leafy notes with an array of gently spicy, potpourri-like aromas. The palate has a succulent, juicy and noble tannins texture, and salty appeal. Great build and length. Elegance with power. Drink from 2020.
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Wine Spectator
Lush and lengthy, with gorgeous raspberry, boysenberry and black cherry pate de fruit notes streaming through, while light anise, floral and incense accents add lift and range. The silky but persistent structure lets everything hang wonderfully through the finish, showing a lingering echo of shiso leaf for freshness. Best from 2019 through 2035.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
Famous for its full-bodied, seductive and spicy reds with flavor and aroma characteristics reminiscent of black cherry, baked raspberry, garrigue, olive tapenade, lavender and baking spice, Châteauneuf-du-Pape is the leading sub-appellation of the southern Rhône River Valley. Large pebbles resembling river rocks, called "galets" in French, dominate most of the terrain. The stones hold heat and reflect it back up to the low-lying gobelet-trained vines. Though the galets are typical, they are not prominent in every vineyard. Chateau Rayas is the most obvious deviation with very sandy soil.
According to law, eighteen grape varieties are allowed in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and most wines are blends of some mix of these. For reds, Grenache is the star player with Mourvedre and Syrah coming typically second. Others used include Cinsault, Counoise and occasionally Muscardin, Vaccarèse, Picquepoul Noir and Terret Noir.
Only about 6-7% of wine from Châteauneuf-du-Pape is white wine. Blends and single-varietal bottlings are typically based on the soft and floral Grenache Blanc but Clairette, Bourboulenc and Roussanne are grown with some significance.
The wine of Chateauneuf-du-Pape takes its name from the relocation of the papal court to Avignon. The lore says that after moving in 1309, Pope Clément V (after whom Chateau Pape-Clément in Pessac-Léognan is named) ordered that vines were planted. But it was actually his successor, John XXII, who established the vineyards. The name however, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, translated as "the pope's new castle," didn’t really stick until the 19th century.