Winemaker Notes
Complex, long, with a smooth, fleshy mouthfeel. Famille Isabel Ferrando is characterized above all by an abundance of black fruits, a sensation of strawberries and figs mixed together, and a silky, velvety texture. The attack is firm, the mid-palate tense and chiselled, and the finish sustained by a noble bitterness. This collector's wine will henceforth be the only expression of the estate in the Châteauneuf-du-Pape appellation.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Bottled in April of this, the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape clearly ranks with the crème de la crème of the vintage and has more depth, concentration, and texture than most. Black raspberries, Provençal herbs, ground pepper, and assorted spices define the aromatics, and it's medium to full-bodied, has a focused, elegant mouthfeel, beautiful tannins, and a great finish. It's not massive and plays in the elegant, fresher style of the vintage, but it's utterly beguiling with its complexity and nuance. Drink bottles any time over the coming 10-15 years.
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James Suckling
Deep nose of beautifully ripe damson plums dusted with pepper and allspice. Really impressive structure and concentration for the challenging vintage, but the best thing about this wine is the finesse of the tannins that gently build to a stunning crescendo at the precisely nuanced finish, which has the freshness of the vintage in the most positive way. A cuvee with two-thirds grenache, plus mourvedre and just a touch of syrah. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
An earthy, multilayered red, with a lot of stuffing and seductive mulled plum and cherry flavors, layered with wet leaves, black licorice and shaved graphite. Gains warmth and charm from well-integrated grilled apple wood, incense and baking spice notes. Delivers generous fruit yet reveals serious focus through the persistent finish, which goes on and on. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2035.
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Decanter
Mouthcoating ripe fruit, the alcohol is high but it's balanced out by the driving acidity. The tannins aren't the finest, but it has concentration and thrust. Has the presence and power of a classic Châteauneuf, which can be lacking in this vintage. Long finish. This cuvée replaces the three historical red cuvées of the domaine (Classique, Auguste Favier and Charles Giraud). From the galets roulés of lieu-dit Les Serres, fermented in concrete, aged in concrete, old oak and amphora.
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.