Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming from 100% destemmed Grenache and the sandy soils of the Cristia lieu-dit, the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes is the clear winner in the lineup and a gorgeous wine that readers will love. Awesome notes of roasted garrigue, licorice, Provençal spice, and assorted red and black fruits all define the aromatics, and it's a deep, layered, full-bodied beauty revealing velvety tannins and a blockbuster finish. As with most 2022s, it’s already drinking brilliantly yet should evolve gracefully over the coming decade.
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James Suckling
A dense, generous and fruity red from old vines. It shows notes of dark cherries, baked plums, sweet spices and some grilled meat. It’s full-bodied with fine, firm tannins. Structured yet elegant, with a delicious and succulent core of cherries and blood oranges on the palate. Lively and concise, with a focused and flavorful finish. From organically grown grapes. Try after 2025.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Crafted from old vines of Grenache Noir planted on sandy soils (Cristia's south and north lieux-dits), the 2022 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes from Domaine de Cristia exhales a more solar bouquet in comparison with the other cuvées, opening in the glass with notes of dark olive, tapenade, dry thyme, chocolate and baked dark berries. Sweet and medium to full-bodied with a broad attack, it's layered and textured with an enrobing structure and polished tannins. The sweetest of the lineup, it finishes long and perfumed with delicate notes of lavender and licorice. Matured for 18 months in large barrels (33%), new barrels (34%) and the rest in used barrels, this is a great success at this address.
Rating: 93+
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.