Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Lots of white flowers, melon, and spicy nuances emerge from the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc, a blend of equal parts Clairette and Roussanne brought up all in stainless steel. It's medium to full-bodied, with remarkable purity and freshness, as well as flawless balance. I don't think it's going to make old bones.
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James Suckling
The attractive nose of apricot and orange blossom pulls you into this ripe and substantial, yet lively and delicate, white Chateauneuf. I love the mouthfeel of this graceful wine and the way the fine tannins support the long finish. A cuvee of 50% clairette and 50% roussanne, which were co-fermented and matured in tank and bottled in February after the vintage to retain freshness. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A 50-50 blend of Clairette and Roussanne, all made and matured in stainless steel, the 2022 Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc is a classic example of Vieux Donjon's white. Scents of tangerine, pineapple and white peach are tinged with just a hint of honeyed richness that somehow enhances rather than compromises the overall sense of freshness. It's medium to full-bodied in the mouth, with a silky texture and ample length.
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Wine Spectator
Seductive and expressive, with an appealing core of ripe peach and apple flavors that show tropical highlights, buoyed by lemon oil–edged acidity. There's beautiful range to the fruit profile, but also good focus to the lusciousness, showing impressive integration with the gentlest touch of butter.
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.