Winemaker Notes
Blend: 80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10% Mouvedre
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Châteauneuf Du Pape Reserve is largely in the same ballpark and has terrific notes of blackberries, smoked earth, garrigue, and pepper. It’s based on 80% Grenache and 10% Syrah and Mourvèdre brought up in foudre and cuve tronconique tanks. More concentrated as well as focused, it's medium to full-bodied, has brilliant concentration, ripe, present tannins, and a great finish. It's another awesome wine from this estate.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Inky in hue but resoundingly floral and packed with red berries and black cherries, the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve is full-bodied and rich, yet it never seems heavy or overdone, with silky tannins and refreshing savory hints of herb, Asian spices and cracked pepper on the lengthy finish. It's probably the best value among the various cuvées this year. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.
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Decanter
There's a little more Grenache in the blend compared to Sabon's Prestige, grown in La Crau and La Grenade, all destemmed, and fermented in half concrete, half tronconic vat. It's then aged in foudre and tronconic vat. The resulting wine is reminiscent of sun-warmed plums and berry fruits in coulis, with a touch of star anise. It's full-bodied and generous, with ripe fruits, good acidity and muscular tannins. The quality fruit and long finish demonstrate the skilled, non-intrusive winemaking here. Should be good value.
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.