Winemaker Notes
The nose on the flagship Hérédita cuvée is intense and sophisticated, with notes of kirsch, black fruits such as blueberries and cherries, sweets spices and garrigue. The mouthfeel is smooth and powerful, with beautiful tannins and a very long finish of toasted aromas and spices.
Blend: 90% Grenache, 5% Mourvèdre, 5% Syrah
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Dominated by Grenache (it accounts for 90% of the blend, with 5% each Mourvèdre and Syrah), the 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape Heredita was vinified in stainless steel, then matured for a year in demi-muids. Black cherries, black olives and black licorice lead the way, followed by a concentrated and weighty, full-bodied feel on the palate. Solid, without being overbearingly tannic, this shows significant authority and ample length.
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
The 2020 Cellier des Princes Chateauneuf-du-Pape is powerful and long-lasting on the palate. This wine exhibits aromas and flavors of fragrant spices, rustic earth, and rich, blackberry notes. Try this with a mutton stew. (Tasted: March 28, 2025, San Francisco, CA)
-
James Suckling
A chewy and chocolaty blend of 90% grenache, 5% syrah and 5% mourvedre. Full-bodied with firm tannins. Pretty rich and structured with notes of dark cherries, dried herbs, cedar and dried spices. Some dark chocolate and peppercorns on the palate brings energy to the vivid finish. Drink or hold.
-
Vinous
The 2020 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Hérédita aged for one year in demi-muids and comes in at 15.5% alcohol. It displays aromas of jammy red and black fruits, dried herbs and a splash of mint. Smooth tannins structure the full-bodied palate, kept in check by lively acidity.
Cellier des Princes was founded In 1925 by a group of dedicated winegrowers. 11 years later, these visionary men were involved in the creation of the 1st AOC appellation in France, Chateauneuf du Pape. Prior to 2005, the group of Cellier des Princes sold their grapes to other wineries. In 2005 they started directly bottling their own wines to show the prestige and quality of their historic vineyards. Utilizing traditional methods and modern equipment, the winery makes wines offering the purest expression of each terroir and appellation. Today, Cellier des Princes has become a reference in Rhône Valley and Chateauneuf du Pape, under its own brand, known for its excellent quality at the best price.
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.