Châteauneuf-du-Pape

This is an assemblage of Grenache Blanc, Clairette Blanc and Bourboulien. Quince, honey and orange blossom aromatics are generously supported by toasted almonds and savoury spice. The wine has a waxy, glycerol palate with a breadth and density that is refreshed by a zesty core. Drink now to 2025.
Fiona Hayes, Rhône Buyer

This has a dark fruit profile of blackberry compôte and plums. Purple fruits open up rather dramatically in the glass, revealing wild strawberries and a redberry perfume. Energetic, fresh acidity combined with fine-grained tannins and a silky texture mean this Châteauneuf-du-Pape is one of the more easily accessible in youth, but its structure and layers of complexity foretell its ageability. Drink now to 2028.

Sourced diversely over the north of the appellation, the wine’s final blend is classic beyond peradventure (65 percent Grenache, 20 percent Syrah, 10 percent Mourvèdre and five percent Cinsault) and looks set to be an exceptional domaine cuvée, with 80 percent de-stemmed and 80 percent vat-aged grapes. Its high-toned fruit aromas sit more than comfortably with intimations of garrigue and Asian spices. The palate is dominated by blackcurrant and cassis…a silky symphony in a bright key. Drink 2020-2028. 
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

The brother and sister team of Christophe and Isabelle Sabon continue to work wonders at Janasse. They farm 80 hectares of vineyards spread over a number of wine appellations: Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which is all located in the north-east of the appellation in the commune of Courthézon, Côtes du Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages, but also Vin de Pays de la Principauté d'Orange and Vin de Table. Concrete tanks are used for the Grenache and oak for the Syrah and Mourvèdre; in other words, everything is fairly traditional. Isabelle Sabon compares the 2015 to 2005 and 2010. Its tannic profile sits somewhere in the middle, as, possibly, does its quality. For all that, they are three outstanding vintages.

A chamber piece, appropriately enough, a whimsical sonata in praise of the Grenache grape, from the southerly and relatively cold vines of Chaupin. Spring flowers and bright acidity add feminine charm to the ripe fruit and ensure that the wine is immediately etched on the memory.
Drink 2019-2014.
Simon Field MW – Wine Buyer

Thirteen plots, with a concentration on the famous
Crau plateau, have gifted this blend which is made up
of 80 percent Grenache, 10 percent Mourvèdre, seven
percent Syrah and three percent Cinsault. Gentle
extraction after a modest cold soak has been followed
by eighteen months ageing, shared between vat and
350 litre casks, none of which are new. Benchmark
Châteauneuf aromas of black olive and the scrub cede
to a dark and savoury palate, hugely textured and
with layers of potential. The 2016 calling cards of pure
acidity and elegant tannins are both present and the
finish is imperious. Drink 2020-2028.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Of the 13 plots which make up this wine, the key ones are Beaurenard in the north-west, Charbonnière on the central Crau plateau and Gallimardes in the south... in other words, this has a richly diverse provenance. The blend is 80 percent Grenache, 10 percent Mourvèdre, seven percent Syrah and three percent Cinsault. The wine displays classic aromas of thyme, sous-bois and macerated plum and an equally classic palate, which is long and unnervingly complex. Drink 2020-2028. 
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

The forebears of sisters Sophie and Catherine Armenier have been making superb wines since 1344 it seems, maybe modifying their techniques a little along the way, but not too much. Biodynamic in all but the letter, they are based close to Beaucastel, but their plots, albeit more modest in total surface area, are more widely spaced over the appellation, with the most significant holdings in the areas around Courthézon and on the central Crau plateau. Low yields are key to the exceptional quality of the wines.

Christophe describes this as “the best Chaupin ever”,
and if there was ever an illustration of Grenache
that is richly wrought, powerful and luxuriously
textured, yet still structured and not tipping over into
a decadent over-indulgence, then this would be it. The
herbal hints at the back of the palate ground the wine
magnificently; otherwise it’s an ethereal paean to
Provencal pleasure. Drink 2022-2028.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Careless of the apparent vagaries of the vintage, Vincent Avril has produced an outstanding wine in 2014. Despite the virtual exclusion of the troubled Syrah, the wine has a warm and welcoming colour and a typically generous Papes nose of kirsch, Morello cherry, lavender and forest floor.

This generosity pursues us all the very to the very long finish, its most engaging characteristics being the harmony of sweet fruit and savoury tannins and the weight in the mouth which marries Burgundian poise with Mediterranean warmth. An exceptional piece of work, the final blend of which is 50% Grenache and 30% Mourvèdre, the balance shared principally between Counoise and Vaccarèse.
Drink 2017-2025+
Simon Field MW Wine Buyer

Incorporating 20% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah and 6% Clairette, the Grenache-dominated 2013 Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvee Vieilles Vignes is gorgeous. Slightly more rich and textured than the Cuvee Chaupin, it boasts tons of blackberry, cassis, ground herbs, crushed flowers and creamy licorice in its full-bodied, layered and ripe personality. The tannin quality here is first-rate, and this will benefit from short-term cellaring and evolve for over a decade.
Jeb Dunnuck - Wine Advocate Issue#215 Oct 2014

The Vieilles Vignes cuvée is made up of four different plots, each with its own distinctive terroir adding complexity to the ensemble. Most of the vines are from 1940 and 1965, with the youngest 20 percent from 1976 and 1993. The blend is 80 percent Grenache, 15 percent Mourvèdre, three percent Syrah and two percent unattributed. The wine is, as usual, superb, with an evocative garrigue nose and a palate which somehow marries a dark-chocolate plush with an almost ethereal, poetic finish.
Simon Field MW - Rhône Buyer

Christophe Sabon took us on the most fascinating vineyard tour in October 2014, underlining once again why he is held in such esteem in the appellation, and why Janasse make such widely praised wines across the spectrum. His sister, Isabelle, who operates the commercial side of the business, places 2013 stylistically between 2010 and 2011; she advises that the wines are a little more powerful than 2011 and perhaps a little rounder than 2010. Praise indeed, but a commentary that seems to be justified by the wines themselves.

Beyond the Grenache, there is now 35 percent of Mourvèdre in the blend, sprucing the finish with balanced acidity, with vestigial Vaccarèse and Counoise and, these days, a shade less than 10 percent Syrah. Mediterranean to its core, in other words, with notes of laurel, eucalypt, liquorice and spice framed by beautifully ripe tannins, and a luxuriant core of Grenache, all cashmere silk and seamless indulgence. Black cherry, blueberry and myrtle dominate the fruit character on the mid-palate and the finish is long and refreshing. Drink 2022-2030+.
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

Just what is it that has made Clos des Papes the most sought-after address in this village? Vincent Avril has much to say, but the key parts of his exposition to me are exceptionally low yields, widely fragmented plots and a refusal to venerate Mammon by introducing of a series of deluxe cuvées. The wine is therefore the definitive statement of a village that is celebrated for blended complexity, deliciously ironic in a man who appears to have a distinctly Burgundian temperament (in a good sense, needless to say!). This aside, Vincent does not actually vinify by plot, but segregates three or four key blends in the March following harvest, blends which are marked by greater or lesser influence of the minority shareholding grapes and which therefore signal both the character of the vintage and the relative importance of Grenache in the ensemble.

Well, this year I marginally prefer the Vieilles Vignes,
although I infer that the Sabons might vote for the
Chaupin. Hard to choose really. I love the dense, richly
complex, nervously adolescent splendour of this wine,
its strutting potential and plush, unending generosity,
a long and happy future definitively secured. Drink
2023-2030+.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Roussanne, as always, dominates the blend of this rare beast, its 60 percent stake, all barrel -fermented. The result is honeyed, almost savoury in its complexity, incalculably brilliant in short. Drink 2020-2025+.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer