Winemaker Notes
Seamless dark berry and stony satin that flows across the palate with both energy and lift. Captivating secondary notes of spice and floral notes appear and disappear throughout the journey. So composed and easy, it will be completely fascinating to see how these wines age.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Smoldering incense and salty iron share the stage with ripe red fruit and a lacquer of toasty cedar in this polished, expertly crafted red, which is texturally stunning, with extremely fine tannins effortlessly carrying the weight. The oak signature will continue to fade into the backdrop with a bit of cellaring, and the powerful, tightly wound core of graphite and fruit will unfurl, so patience will be rewarded. Beautiful and complex.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
All Grenache from a north-facing parcel in Pignan, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Arioso spent three years in a combination of pièces and puncheons. Yes, the result does have certain cedary overtones, but it also boasts black cherries and hints of strawberries. It's full-bodied and intense, with an expansive mouthfeel and plentiful tannins, finishing dusty and long. With its combination of bold fruit and firm structure, it seems destined for a long evolution in the cellar. Rating: 94+
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.