Châteauneuf-du-Pape

The wine

Châteauneuf-du-Pape has reigned over the southern Rhône valley since the 14th century, when the Avignon popes built their summer residence here. The appellation allows a unique blend of thirteen grape varieties (grenache, syrah, mourvèdre, counoise...) on soils carpeted with pebbles rolled by the Rhône. These galets store heat by day and release it at night, producing warm, rich, spiced reds with aromas of garrigue, dark candied fruit and kirsch. The rarer whites, from roussanne, grenache blanc and clairette, offer white-fleshed fruit and flowers. They shine with game, daubes, braised meats and blue cheeses.