RhĂ´ne

The history of this famous appellation on the southern Rhône is closely connected with the Roman Catholic church. In the period of 1309 to 1377, the city of Avignon was the headquarters of the popes, and from 1378 to 1408 was the home of two anti-popes. Clemens V. (1264-1314) was the first pope to be enthroned in exile here in 1309, he was followed by six more popes. One of them was pope John XXII. (1244-1334), who was born in Cahors, and who chose to have his summer residence at the Châteauneuf palace. He had the castle expanded to a palatial summer residence, and also initiated important impulses for viticulture in the area. He had wine growers from Cahors brought in, who were the first to plant vines here, and produced a red wine known as „Vin d´Avignon”. This was, in a sense, the precursor of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine, a name that only came into common use in the 19th century. As a reminder of the history, each bottle bears the coat-of-arms of the city of Avignon, with ist two crossed keys (those of Saint Peter, the first pope).

The broders of the growing region, which has a total vineyard area of around 3.500 hectares, were defined by a court order in 1929, recognition as the first Appellation Contrôlée followed in 1935. The region is in the southernmost part of the AC Côtes du Rhône, on the left bank of the Rhône. The appellation includes the whole area of the commune of Châteauneuf, from which it takes its name, as well as some of the vineyard sites in the four communes of Bédarrides, Courthézon, Orange and Sorgues. There are many different types of soil, some have reddish-brown soil with a covering of stones, but there are also sand, gravel and clay soils. It is worth mentioning a very specific AC regulation that is intended to ensure that only completely healthy and totally ripe grapes are used, in order to ensure top quality in the wines. The regulation demands that a minimum of 5% of the grapes must be selected and sorted out, this is called le râpé, the wine made from these must be declared as a vin de table, a table wine. With a minimum alcohol level of 12,5% vol., Châteauneuf-du-Pape has the highest minimum level stipulated for any French wine.

There are red and white versions of this wine. 13 grape varieties are permitted for production. Ten of these varieties were defined in 1923 by Baron Le Roy de Boiseaumarié (1890-1967), the owner of Château Fortia, - three additional varieties were added in 1936. The red varieties are Cinsaut, Counoise, Grenache Noir, Mourvèdre, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir, Syrah, Terret Noir and Vaccarèse. The white varieties are Bourboulenc, Clairette Blanche, Grenache Blanc, Picardan, Piquepoul Blanc, Roussanne and Terret Blanc. Grenache, Piquepoul (Picpoul) and Terret are available in both red and white versions, they are counted as being three (not six) varieties. It is totally in the winemaker’s discretion which varieties he chooses to use. The general blend in use today includes Grenache Noir (50-70%), Mourvèdre (10-30%), Cinsaut, Counoise, Syrah and Vaccarèse (up to 20%), as well as the white varieties Bourboulenc, Clairette Blanche and Piquepoul Blanc (up to 10%). However, there are also pure varietal wines made from Grenache Noir on the market, such as that made by Château Rayas, while there are also estates such as Château de Beaucastel that use all 13 varieties in the blend. The red variant accounts for around 95% of total production volume. In the past, the white version was made as a wine with long maturation potential, more recently it has been made in an early-drinking style. The different soils as well as the variation options in terms of the blend make it almost impossible to give a general description of the wine, but it is possible to distinguish two basic types or styles. The traditional style is spicy, has a very deep colour, has high alcohol of up to 14% vol., and has a maturation potential of several decades. The second style is made using the macération carbonique method, has a jammy taste and bears some resemblance to Beaujolais. French president Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970) was a fan of these wines. Among the best vintages are 1990, 1995, 1998, 1999 and 2001.

Well-known producers include Chapoutier, Château de Beaucastel, Château Fortia, Château de la Gardine, Château Mont-Redon, Château Rayas, Clos des Papes, Cuvée du Vatican, Domaine Paul Autard, Domaine La Bastide Saint Dominique, Domaine de Beaurenard, Domaine Bois de Boursan, Domaine Bosquet des Papes, Domaine Chante Cigale, Domaine Chante Perdrix, Domaine de La Charbonnière, Domaine des Chaussand, Domaine de Cristia, Domaine de Fontavin, Domaine Galévan, Domaine de la Gardine, Domaine Giraud, Domaine du Grand Tinel, Domaine de La Janasse, Domaine Patrice Magni, Domaine Le Mereuille, Domaine de la Nerthe, Domaine du Pégau, Domaine des Pères de L´Eglise, Domaine de la Roncière, Domaine de Saint Paul, Domaine de Saint Siffrein, Domaine Jean Trintignant, Domaine de Villeneuve, Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe, Domaine Saint Benoît, Domaine de la Solitude, Maison Delas Frères, Mas de Boislauzon and Salavert Les Domaines Bernard.