Winemaker Notes
Complex nose of pineapple, peach and brioche. Mouth combines liveliness and smoothness with notes of citrus, candied melons and flowers and a very mineral finish.
Serve alongside eggs with truffles, grilled fish or fish in sauce, fish tagine, oysters au gratin, lobster, capon with cream and yellow wine, ceviche.
Blend: 30% Grenache Blanc, 30% Clairette, 25% Roussanne, 15% Bourvoulenc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Ripe stone fruits, chamomile, toast, and a beautiful sense of crushed stone-like minerality all emerge from the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc, a vibrant, medium-bodied white from this estate that has integrated acidity, terrific balance, and outstanding length. It has a kiss of almost Burgundian-like reduction right on opening, and this classy white is going to drink nicely for a solid decade, if not longer. Give it a year if you can. The blend is 30% Grenache Blanc, 30% Clairette, 25% Roussanne, and 15% Bourboulenc, and it was brought up in a combination of stainless steel, concrete, and old and new barrels.
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James Suckling
A well-defined, precise and attractive Chateauneuf-du-Pape white with aromas of dried lemons, warm herbs, blanched almonds and pastry spices. Medium-bodied with fresh acidity adding drive and engagement. It's very precise and bright with a succulent, mouthwatering and persistent finish. From biodynamically grown grapes.
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Wine Spectator
Persimmon, green plum and yellow apple flavors are round and lush, powered by racy acidity, with savory notes of fennel and chives. Lemon, honeysuckle blossom and green almond accents add detail, along with salty yeastiness for savory energy. Offers a clean, smoke-tinged finish. Drink now through 2028. 800 cases made, 250 cases imported.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Evoking aromas of spring flowers, white fruits and ripe orchard fruits intertwined with elegant spicy notes, the 2023 Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc from Domaine de la Solitude is medium-bodied, elegant and juicy, with a delicate core of fruit and fresh notes of flowers in the finish. This classic, well-executed white wine from Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a blend of 30% Grenache Blanc, 30% Clairette, 25% Roussanne and 15% Bourboulenc, all matured for 10 months in wooden tanks (10%), new barrels (10%), used barrels (10%) and stainless steel (50%).
Full-bodied and flavorful, white Rhône blends originate from France’s Rhône Valley. Today these blends are also becoming popular in other regions. Typically some combination of Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier form the basis of a white Rhône blend with varying degrees of flexibility depending on the exact appellation. Somm Secret—In the Northern Rhône, blends of Marsanne and Roussanne are common but the south retains more variety. Marsanne, Roussanne as well as Bourboulenc, Clairette, Picpoul and Ugni Blanc are typical.
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.