Weine von Clos des Papes - hohes Niveau in Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Rebsorten: Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Picpoul, Picardan, Bourboulenc, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis 2035, Füllstand hf high fill

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  95

Verkostet Oktober 2024:

2021 Clos des Papes Blanc mit heller, goldgelber Farbe. Aromen von Limette, Pampelmuse und Heublumen. Im Mund konzentrierte, frische Frucht, mittelkräftige Struktur, die weich am Gaumen haftet und feine Eleganz hinterlässt.

The Wine Advocate RP 95  Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski  Drink Date: 2023 - 2035

A more classic, age-worthy vintage for Clos des Papes's white wine, the 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc features compelling aromas of crushed stone, pink grapefruit and lime. Medium-bodied, fresh and focused, it's a relatively lean example that should easily age into the next decade, seeming to add richness along the way.

One of my favorite visits each year is with Paul-Vincent Avril at Clos des Papes. There's a white and a red. So, it can be simple. Or we can taste through each of the foudres and dig into the back-vintage vault. Avril is generous with his time and seems to actually enjoy talking about his wines, not something every winemaker can do so easily. That said, it's not always rainbows and unicorns, even at such a storied estate.

"In six vintages, I lost the equivalent of two," Avril said, running down the litany of woes. "In '17, coulure, -40%. In '18, mildew, -70%. '19 and '20 were good. In '21, nearly 40% lost to frost. In '22, hail, -40%." Perhaps in light of the hail losses in 2022, Avril claims there's not such a big qualitative difference between 2021 and 2022. "There's no dilution for me," he said. His finished alcohol levels are about 15.4% in 2022 and 15.1% in 2021. "It's a fine and delicate vintage. "That said, he admits to enjoying the 2022 as well. "It's the kind of vintage I like. Elegant, powerful but not too much, and the tannins are very ripe. In this area, the acidity is low, so for ageability you need the best tannins."

Certainly, it's impossible to go wrong with the recent vintages here, which range from merely excellent to potentially close to perfect. Avril holds back a portion of his production each year for later sales to restaurants in France. When I visited this year, the current offer was the 2010, which seems to be close to its apogee. As I reviewed it last in May 2022 (98 points), I haven't written another one here, but if anything, this bottle was less mature, with plenty of life still ahead of it.

Published: Sep 29, 2023

1. 14 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     
4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com

Rebsorten: Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Picpoul, Picardan, Bourboulanc, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis 2028+, Füllstand hf high fill

Wine Spectator  96

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  95

Verkostet Februar 2023:

2020 Clos des Papes Blanc zeigt im Glas helles Gold mit rötlichen Reflexen. Der Nase bieten sich Fruchtnoten frischer Stachelbeere und Ananas. Am Gaumen lässt der Clos des Papes klare, frische Frucht mit seidiger Textur erkennen. Das alles wirkt wohl etwas verspielt mit Eleganz, doch sein Potenzial entfaltet der Wein mit kraftvollen Körper im langen Fruchtfinale. Clos des Papes punktet einmal wieder mit einem Paradebeispiel eines weißen Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Chapeau Monsieur Avril!!

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider  94/100

"2020 Vintage Tasted: Jan 2023

Flowers, white peach, honeydew, orange rind, pineapple and spice. Fresh, lush, round, oily, elegant and polished, the sweetness in the fruit, especially the whit peach notes stand out on the palate and in the finish. The wine is a complex blend of close to equal percentages of all 6 allowable, white wine grape varietal. The wine was produced from yields of 25 hectoliters per hectare. Drink from 2023-2033."

The Wine Advocate  RP 95  Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski  Drink Date: 2021 - 2025

Clos des Papes has white varieties in only three of its 24 vineyard parcels, but the resulting wine is a blend of all permitted varieties, in roughly equal proportions. The 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc is outstanding, offering up scents of pineapple and tangerine, coupled with floral overtones. Full-bodied but clean and zesty, it's somehow plump and rich, but paradoxically light and refreshing. I enjoy these wines young, but proprietor Paul-Vincent Avril opened a still-delicious 2001 during this visit, so there is an argument to be made for aging this wine.

Like many of the producers I visited in late 2021, Paul-Vincent Avril seemed happy to receive a visitor after so many months of virtual isolation. "We've had a good summer—not too hot," he said. The estates parcels were, however, badly affected by frost in the spring. His team began picking on September 20, paused over the following weekend for rain, and he expected them to finish on October 2. "The phenolic maturity is there, the sugars are there," Avril said. "No, it won't be like 2019, but I think we will come in around 14.5–15 degrees [of alcohol]. I think, I don't like to say before the vintage is finished." Of the vintages reviewed here, Avril said he finds the 2019 "more powerful and rich," comparing it to 2016 and 2007, whereas he calls the 2020 "really elegant." Clos des Papes farms 24 different parcels in the appellation, and Avril said they all bring something important to the blend. "Chateauneuf de Pape is a blend—a blend of grapes and a blend of the terroirs." The 2021 vintage marked his 36th vintage, and he proudly said he'd never sold a single milliliter as bulk wine. I was left with the impression that he's not going to start now. Published: May 05, 2022

1. 14 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     

4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com

Rebsorten: 45 % Grenache, 40 % Mourvèdre, 10 % Syrah, 5 % aus zugelassenen Sorten, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis nach 2040, Füllstand hf high fill

Falstaff  99

Jeff Leve The Wine Cellar Insider  98

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  97+

Wine Spectator  97

La Revue du Vin de France  19

Verkostet Oktober 2023:

2019 Clos des Papes zeigt dichtes Purpurrot im Glas. Aromen roter Johannisbeeren, schwarzem Pfeffer, etwas Lakritze. Im Mundraum cremig frisch, fast burgundisch, Eleganz, reifes Tannin. Am Gaumen präsentieren sich Fülle und Druck, die langen Nachhall bescheren.

Falstaff 99

"Tasting vom 11.04.2022: Peter Moser

Kräftiges Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, dezente Ockerrandaufhellung. Zart nach frischen, reifen Herzkirschen, Nuancen von Pflaumen, zart nach Nougatkaramell, einladendes Bukett. Saftig, elegant, gute Frische, feine Fruchtsüße, reife, integrierte Tannine, schokoladiger Touch im Abgang, bleibt lange haften, steht am Anfang einer glänzenden Karriere."

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider  98

"2019 Vintage Tasted: Oct 2022

It is the sublime sense of symmetry and richness on the palate, along with the sensuous texture that hit all the right notes. There is a gorgeous purity to the sweet kirsch, length, and silky tannins that make this vintage stand out. This wine should age and evolve for 2-3 decades with ease. The yields were only 22 hectoliters per hectare. The wine is a blend of 45% Grenache, 40% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah, and the remaining 5% consists of various, allowable grape varieties. The grapes are as always 100% destemmed. Drink from 2025 - 2040."

The Wine Advocate  RP 97+  Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski  Drink Date: 2025 - 2040

Coming in at 16% alcohol (like the 2016), the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape from Clos des Papes carries it comfortably, showing no sign of overt heat or overripeness. Hints of leather and crushed stone appear on the nose, adding a pleasant nuance to the somewhat monolithic black-cherry fruit. It shows less nuance and complexity than the 2020 at this stage but shows plenty of promise, as its concentration is matched by freshness and a long, reasonably elegant, finish. This will likely need some time to come around.

Like many of the producers I visited in late 2021, Paul-Vincent Avril seemed happy to receive a visitor after so many months of virtual isolation. "We've had a good summer—not too hot," he said. The estates parcels were, however, badly affected by frost in the spring. His team began picking on September 20, paused over the following weekend for rain, and he expected them to finish on October 2. "The phenolic maturity is there, the sugars are there," Avril said. "No, it won't be like 2019, but I think we will come in around 14.5–15 degrees [of alcohol]. I think, I don't like to say before the vintage is finished."

Of the vintages reviewed here, Avril said he finds the 2019 "more powerful and rich," comparing it to 2016 and 2007, whereas he calls the 2020 "really elegant."

Clos des Papes farms 24 different parcels in the appellation, and Avril said they all bring something important to the blend. "Chateauneuf de Pape is a blend—a blend of grapes and a blend of the terroirs." The 2021 vintage marked his 36th vintage, and he proudly said he'd never sold a single milliliter as bulk wine. I was left with the impression that he's not going to start now. Published: May 05, 2022

1. 15,5 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     
4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com

Rebsorten: 55 % Grenache, 30 % Mourvèdre, 10 % Syrah, 5 % aus zugelassenen Sorten, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis nach 2040, Füllstand hf high fill

Jeff Leve The Wine Cellar Insider  100

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  97+

Wine Spectator  97

La Revue du Vin de France  19

Verkostet September 2023:

2016 Clos des Papes mit dichtem, dunklem Purpurrot. Intensive Aromen von Fruchtwürze begeistern die Nase: Eukalyptus, Muskat, Pfeffer, Vanille, Provencekräuter und Röstbrot... Weich und cremig beginnt der Ansatz im Mund. Am Gaumen kommt feine Frucht an, begleitet von seidigem Tannin, Würze und Eleganz. Dicht bleibt die Struktur am Gaumen haften, was dem Wein das ausgeprägt lange Finale beschert. Respekt Paul-Vincent Avril, ihm ist 2016 großes Kino eines Châteauneuf-du-Pape gelungen. Chapeau!!

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider  100

"2016 Vintage Tasted: Sep 2018

The spicy cherries might be the first thing you notice, but it only gets better from there with all the flowers, pepper, herbs and kirsch that kicks in from there. Full bodied, rich, concentrated and luxurious in texture, the sensuous layers of cherry, plum and kirsch seem endless as they build and expand in the finish. The fruit has a beautiful purity and intensity that makes you want to taste it again and again. There is a hint of licorice and salinity in the finish that comes out with air. The wine is a blend of 55% Grenache, 30% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah and the remaining 5% consists of various, allowable grape varieties. This is a monumental vintage for Clos des Papes that should not be missed by fans of this wine."

The Wine Advocate  RP 97+  Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski  Drink Date: 2020 - 2040

The 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape is full-bodied but balanced, with plenty of richness and concentration but also a certain paradoxical lightness. It offers complex garrigue and anise notes, a blend of cherry and raspberry fruit, a silky texture and a long finish that shows no sign of the wine's 15.8% alcohol. For technocrats, the wine's pH is 3.7, which is sufficient acidity to maintain a fine sense of balance. This lovely wine should drink well for at least two decades. Together with the 2015 and the 2017, it will be a compelling trio of wines to follow over the years.

Tasting in the cellar at Clos des Papes with Paul-Vincent Avril is an experience not to be missed, as he drops winemaking facts and philosophical nuggets into every discussion. With the focus on crafting only a single cuvée of red and white Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a visitor inevitably misses out on many of the decisions that led to the blending of any given foudre's contents, but it is easier to see a picture of the overall vintage, at least as seen through the lens of Avril's winemaking. Grenache yields in 2017 were approximately 15 hectoliters per hectare, versus 25 hectoliters per hectare in 2016, so there is much less wine, and the 2017 Clos des Papes will have a higher proportion of Mourvèdre as a result. Fortunately, the quality of the Mourvèdre was exceptional in 2017, Avril says. As readers seem to always demand updates at ten-year intervals, I asked Avril about his 2008. It's one of the wines of the vintage and remains delicious to this day. Without prompting, he also opened the 2003 (not overdone at all and still drinking well) and the 2000 (still yummy and in no danger of tipping over). "I like the wines between 15 and 20 years," Avril says. Sounds like good advice to me, although I find them wonderfully drinkable all throughout their roughly two-decade lifespan.

Published: Aug 31, 2018

1. 15,5 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     
4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com

Rebsorten: 50 % Grenache und 50 % Mourvèdre, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis nach 2035, Füllstand hf high fill

Wine Spectator  98

Falstaff Magazin  97

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  97

Jeff Leve The Wine Cellar Insider  96

La Revue du Vin de France  18

Verkostet September 2021:

2015 Clos des Papes zeigt sich in dichtem, leuchtendem Granatrot. Ausladend und komplex begeistern Aromen von Gewürzkräutern, Eichenholz und reifer, schwarzer Johannisbeere. Mit Belüftung werden Süßholz, dezent Rauch und eine Spur Lebkuchengewürz wahrnehmbar. Seidig weich gelangt die Frucht in den Mund, wo sie sich stoffig mit Druck ausbreitet. Frische, schwarze Beerenfrucht vereint sich mit festem Tanningerüst am Gaumen. Eine gehörige Portion Eleganz verleiht ihnen die perfekte Harmonie. Ein Wein der wohl über zwei Dekaden begeistern wird.

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  Rating 97  Drink Date 2017-2035  Reviewed by Joe Czerwinski

Bottled in May, the 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape is a floral, elegant, unbelievably complex wine. Roses and violets, cherries and stone fruit, cinnamon and allspice and more are carried across the full-bodied yet almost weightless palate, finishing in a swirl of silky tannins and lingering spice. Drink it over the next two decades.

1. 15 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     

4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com

Rebsorten: 50 % Grenache, 30 % Mourvèdre, 20 % Syrah, Ertrag: 17 hl/ha, perfekt gelagert und gereift seit Kauf ab Freigabe Weingut, zu genießen bis nach 2035, Füllstand hf high fill

Falstaff  98

Jeff Leve The Wine Cellar Insider  98

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate  98

Wine Spectator  98

La Revue du Vin de France  18

Verkostet Mai 2022:

2010 Clos des Papes mit dunkler, dichter, purpurroter Farbe. Der Nase zeigen sich Aromen von Melasse, schwarzen Johannisbeeren, Holunder, Kirschlikör, Lakritze und gebrochenen Steinen. Mit mineralischer Note wirkt die Frucht frisch und cremig im Mund. Ihre kräftige Struktur kommt mit Druck komplex am Gaumen an. Feines Tannin sorgt vollendet für Eleganz im Nachhall.

Falstaff  98

"Tasting vom 29.08.2013

Kräftiges Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarter Wasserrand. Attraktive schwarze Beerenfrucht, mit reifen Pflaumen unterlegt, ein Hauch von Veilchen und Erdbeerkonfit, süße Kräuterwürze. Hochelegant, reife Herzkirschen, frisch und lebendig strukturiert, mineralisch, fast salzig im Abgang, extraktsüß und minutenlang anhaltend. Bereits jetzt zugänglich, verfügt über sichere Entwicklungsmöglichkeit, ein Wein von sehr finessenreichem Stil."

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider  98 / 100

"2010 Vintage Tasted: Aug 2014

Full bodied, packed and stuffed with sweet, spicy berries, red fruits and floral notes. The wine is sweet, concentrated and dense. There is a lot of volume and depth in this wine. At 16% alcohol ,there is no sensation of heat at any point in the experience. I could be short changing this wine on the 98 Pt score, it's sublime and really leaves a lasting impression. A few years in the bottle should add a lot to this elixir."

The Wine Advocate  RP 98  Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski  Drink Date: 2015 - 2035

Unprompted, Paul-Vincent Avril pulled a 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape from the admirable library stock he maintains at Clos des Papes. Who was I to say no? A stupendous effort that seamlessly marries full-bodied richness with a sense of lightness and ease, it's really just now maturing, although it has been drinkable for some time. Leather accents raspberry and blackberry fruit on the nose, while the long, silky-textured finish adds delicate notes of star anise, peppery spice and black olive. This complex, elegant masterpiece should continue to drink well for another decade and then some.

Like many of the producers I visited in late 2021, Paul-Vincent Avril seemed happy to receive a visitor after so many months of virtual isolation. "We've had a good summer—not too hot," he said. The estates parcels were, however, badly affected by frost in the spring. His team began picking on September 20, paused over the following weekend for rain, and he expected them to finish on October 2. "The phenolic maturity is there, the sugars are there," Avril said. "No, it won't be like 2019, but I think we will come in around 14.5–15 degrees [of alcohol]. I think, I don't like to say before the vintage is finished."

Of the vintages reviewed here, Avril said he finds the 2019 "more powerful and rich," comparing it to 2016 and 2007, whereas he calls the 2020 "really elegant."

Clos des Papes farms 24 different parcels in the appellation, and Avril said they all bring something important to the blend. "Chateauneuf de Pape is a blend—a blend of grapes and a blend of the terroirs." The 2021 vintage marked his 36th vintage, and he proudly said he'd never sold a single milliliter as bulk wine. I was left with the impression that he's not going to start now. Published: May 05, 2022

1. 15 % Vol. Alc., Naturkork
2. Allergene: Enthält Sulfite
3. Flascheninhalt: 0,75 l     
4. Erzeuger/Abfüller: SCEA du Clos des Papes, Verantw. Vincent Avril, 13 avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, F-84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, Tel. +33 (0)4 90 83 70 13, email: clos-des-papes@clos-des-papes.com