Domaine de Nalys Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc 2012
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This family´s last owner was certainly the most famous in the form of Philippe Dufays; a Medical Doctor, he came to the region during the Second World War and married the heir to Nalys. The Domaine, then in a terrible state, received all his tender loving care and Philippe Dufays soon gave up practising medicine to take charge of it full-time in 1955.
An enthusiastic bon vivant, the "Doctor" as his close circle called him, devoted all his know-how, scientific logic and heritage to this Domaine; he knew how to surround himself with competent and trustworthy associates, totally committed to their work and capable of running experiments with him on vineyard techniques and winemaking processes; if these were hotly contested at the start, after a few successful vintages they became the reference-point in the Appellation.
Thus Doctor Dufays developed Nalys with panache for around twenty years, which practically doubled in size and was sold in numerous countries abroad, especially the United States. After his only son died in an accident and during a period of severe viticulture crisis, Doctor Dufays decided in 1975 to part company with Nalys.
So Nalys was sold partly to young winegrowers and partly nowadays to the Mutual Agriculture Insurance company, Groupama.
Today Domaine de Nalys is a fifty hectare estate (128 acres) grouped together into three plots: "Nalys" or the parcel circling the estate, "Le Bois Sénéchal" and "La Crau"; they´re found on two of the Appellation´s major terroirs with on the one hand, for La Crau and Le Bois Sénéchal: soils made up of rounded pebbles with weathered sandstone subsoils dating from the pliocene era as well as well-drained sandy terraces, and on the other hand, for "Nalys": soils lying on an older geological vein dating from the middle miocene era composed of rust-coloured, Comtat molasse sandstone with sandy texture.
Varieties planted
All of the Appellation´s thirteen permitted grape varieties are represented in the vineyard. They allow us, linked to the terrain they´re grown on, to bring greater complexity and balance to the wine. In this respect, Domaine de Nalys is also tracking an experimental vineyard planted with the 13 varieties, working alongside the relevant authorities.
La Crau, Grenache, June 2007
Out of the red grapes, Grenache dominates with 60% of plantings while Syrah makes up, and has done now for around 30 years, almost 25% of plantings. Next come the 6 other varieties: Counoise, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Muscardin, Vaccarèse and Black Terret.
Whites varieties account for 20% under vine on the estate, and we work with all six of the Appellation´s white grapes: White Grenache, Clairette and Bourboulenc in addition to, in smaller proportions, Roussanne, Picardan and Picpoul.
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.