Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Aromas of fresh black cherries, white flowers, cut green pears, violets, wild thyme and granite make for an intriguing nose. The palate is luxurious with red cherry skin, thyme and black peppercorn with granitic intensity. Aerate this wine immediately to enjoy with thick cuts of steak or cellar well through 2035+ before revisiting.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape L'Heritage De Pollus is solid, with attractive red and black fruits as well as peppery garrigue, spice, and loamy soil notes, followed by more floral and violet nuances that develop with air. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has terrific balance, a supple, elegant mouthfeel, and a great mid-palate. It should develop more complexity with 2-3 years of bottle age and keep for well over a decade.
Rating: 92+ -
James Suckling
A serious red with dark berries, dried herbs and licorice on the nose. Full-bodied with firm tannins. Textured with some dark chocolate and dark plum character towards the compact finish. Best after 2025.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
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.