Grands vins - Châteauneuf du Pape

Producing excellent wines, most of them aged in oak barrels : red wines need 5 to 10 years of age to be tasted, depending on the vintage, and gastronomic white wines can be tasted right after their sale. Even if the majority of domaines currently offers wines composed mostly of red grenache, the 13 grape varieties of Châteauneuf, especially the 8 red varieties, are all very different.

Among the most important producers : château beaucastel, domaine de la janasse, domaine du vieux télégraphe... and the highly sought-after Château Rayas.

Main grape varieties : Grenache blanc, syrah, mourvèdre, terret noir, counoise, muscardin, vaccarèse, cinsaut for red wines ; picpoul blanc, clairette, roussanne, bourboulenc, picardan for white wines.

Soils : On a base of urgonian limestone deposits (seashells) settled sand then clay, before the Rhône river formed stones with quartzite and silice from the Alps.

Style of wines :

Thank to their calcareous terroir, the white wines are aromatic with a beautiful freshness.

Clay with rolled stones, in the south of the appellation, creates warm, deep and structured red wines, representing the classic style of Châteauneuf-du-pape wines. Currently, the sandy terroirs southeast of the AOC are being upgraded and produce fine, airy and spicy wines.