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The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Colombis comes from more sandy soils and is all Grenache raised in demi-muids. Wild strawberries, cherries, flowery incense, lavender, and loamy earth all make an appearance, and it’s full-bodied, has a deep layered texture, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It’s another wine that needs a few years of bottle age, but it will deliver the goods over the following 15+. This is Grenache at its most elegant and seamless.Jeb Dunnuck | 97+ JDDeep, shimmering ruby. Expansive, mineral- and spice-accented red and dark berry preserve, incense, cola and garrigue qualities on the finely detailed nose. Palate-staining cherry pie, raspberry, boysenberry, floral pastille and fruitcake flavors show uncanny energy for their depth. The spice and floral notes dominate a seriously long, sappy finish framed by velvety, well-knit tannins.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Colombis is all old-vine Grenache, vinified entirely as whole clusters and matured in demi-muids. On the nose, there are some minty-stemmy notes but also wonderful suggestions of garrigue and vibrant fruit—red raspberries, cherries and stone fruit. It’s full-bodied and silky on the mid-palate, then long, spicy-peppery and firmly tannic on the finish. While not unapproachable or unenjoyable even now, it should benefit from several years cellaring and live close to two decades. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPA really lovely expression of pure Grenache, it feels very naturally presented and unforced. Might take time to really express its complexity however, I would hold on to this for 10 years before opening. Very fresh and well balanced, with fine tannins. Largely sandy soils, a small lieu-dit to the west of the village. All fermented and aged in tronconic vats.Decanter | 95 DECSo silky this version seems expressive at first, but the core of cassis, cherry purée and raspberry fruit is tightly coiled, with both chalk and iron notes having their say, stretching out in unison through the finish. Black tea and garrigue hints peek in as well, which is a sign of what’s to come after cellaring.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

I was able to taste the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape multiple times, and it’s the finest vintage I’ve ever tasted from this estate, surpassing even the 2016. Lovers of classic, impeccably made Châteauneuf du Pape should back up the truck on this beauty. A wine of incredible richness and depth, as well as elegance, it has a gorgeous nose of peppery herbs, blackberries, garrigue, cured meats, and sandalwood. Full-bodied and concentrated, it builds incrementally on the palate and is perfectly balanced, with sensational purity, ripe tannins, and a great, great finish. There’s nothing over the top or out of place, and traditionally made Châteauneuf du Pape doesn’t get much better. It needs 2-4 years of bottle age and will shine for well over two decades. Bravo!Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDVery full-bodied with a lovely sweetness to the fruit, fine tannins and great freshness. Really shot through with juicy, sweet, chocolatey tannins and great concentration. Very well balanced however, not heavy or aggressive with a stony minerality on the finish. The most impressive barrel sample of Vieux Donjon I’ve ever tasted, this is profound stuff. This traditional estate owns 18ha of Châteauneuf, with considerable plantings of old-vine Grenache. Fermented in concrete vats, then aged in concrete and old foudres. Drinking Window 2025 - 2048.Decanter | 98 DECA brick house, this sports a chiseled edge as a mix of juniper, cassis, plum, bay leaf, charcoal and graphite notes all align thanks to the racy structure and vibrant energy. Built for the cellar, with a lovely old school whiff through the finish. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. Best from 2024 through 2038. 6,500 cases made, 1,200 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSDark violet. Highly fragrant red/blue fruit preserve, potpourri and garrigue aromas and building licorice and exotic spice accents on the nose. Impressively concentrated and penetrating on the palate, offering alluringly sweet cherry, boysenberry, candied lavender and spicecake flavors that tighten up steadily through the back half. Shows plenty of power but comes of lithe and finishes extremely long, smooth and spicy, with polished tannins lending subtle grip.Vinous Media | 95 VMOne of the few estates in the appellation to make just a single red wine, Vieux Donjon’s 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape starts off promising. Dark in the glass, it offers up notions of loam and dark fruit, suggestive of blueberries and plums. It’s full-bodied, dense and concentrated, with a rich, velvety feel and long finish, both of which suggest further rewards from cellaring, even if it’s not as flattering out of the gate as the stellar 2018.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RP(Châteauneuf du Pape- Le Vieux Donjon) As I mentioned last year, Le Vieux Donjon is rich in old vines, as more than six of their seventeen hectares of vineyards are planted to vines in excess of one hundred years of age! As there is no reserve wine here, all of the old vines go into their single bottling of Châteauneuf du Pape rouge, with the vast majority of the blend being composed of this very old vine grenache. The elevage is done primarily in old foudres, with only twenty percent of the blend seeing their aging in cement vats. The 2019 vintage at Vieux Donjon is ripe in the style of the vintage, coming in at fifteen percent octane and offers up a complex aromatic constellation of sweet blackberries, black raspberries, hickory smoke, spit-roasted venison, balsam bough, rosemary, lavender, stony soil tones and just a hint of Christmas spice in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, pure and full-bodied, with a lovely sense of (relative) elegance from the very old vines, a plush core of fruit, firm, chewy tannins, fine mineral drive and a long, very complex and impressively balanced finish. There is a bit of heat here on the finish, but it is quite minimal and this may well be the first fifteen percent octane wine that I would happily drink, as these very old vines have done a nice job of mitigating the most strident aspects of this drought vintage. (Drink between 2032-2075)John Gilman | 92 JG

The 2019 Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvée Réservée looks set to rival the best examples of this bottling. Made up of approximately 80% Grenache, with 6% Syrah, 4% Mourvèdre and smaller amounts of other permitted varieties, it’s impressively complex on the nose, with scents of black cherries, blackberries and black olives, plus mysterious wafts of violets and garrigue. Full-bodied, rich and concentrated, it finishes long and velvety, a sure-fire bet for cellaring.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95-97 RPThis youthful Chateauneuf has a very complex nose of graphite, raw meat and lilies. With aeration the black-cherry note steadily grows in intensity. Bold, leathery and earthy palate with fine tannins that build steadily on at the extremely long and straight mineral finish. Drinkable now, but best from 2024.James Suckling | 95 JSThe 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée Réservée was hard to read and incredibly reductive, which is a trait I’ve never seen from this estate. Black fruits, licorice, and roasted garrigue are all present in this medium to full-bodied, structured, tannic, firm wine. It’s a head scratcher, but hopefully I’ll be able to taste this again next year before it’s released. Given the quality of the vintage, it should be better than this showing.Jeb Dunnuck | 91-94 JD

A bigger, richer wine, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Lieu-Dit Pignan is loaded with ripe blackberry and black raspberry fruits as well as classic pepper, garrigue, and violet notes. It’s a beast of a wine on the palate and is full-bodied, deep, powerful, and concentrated, with no shortage of fruit or texture. Give bottles 2-3 years and enjoy over the following decade. This cuvée is 75% Grenache and 25% Mourvèdre that was completely destemmed and aged in concrete, with 20% in older barrels.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDFrankly rich and ripe, with a cascade of dark plum, boysenberry and blackberry pâte de fruit flavors that cruise through, with notes of bittersweet cocoa, anise and fruitcake filling in along the way. Lush in feel, this flirts with exotic in the end and should age on a faster track. For fans of the showy style. Drink now through 2030. 350 cases made, 50 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 92 WS From one of the appellation’s sandy lieux-dits—Pignan (Nord)—the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Lieu Dit Pignan is a blend of 70% Grenache and 30% Mourvèdre, aged in demi-muids. Scents of tar, espresso and mocha lead into notes of black cherries and black raspberries on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is velvety and moderately rich, tannic but ripe, with a long, nicely textured finish.Drink Date 2023 - 2035Robert Parker The Wine Advocate | 92 RP

Proprietor Paul-Vincent Avril expects to bottle 100,000 bottles of something approximating this "final blend," tasted out of foudre. A blend of 55% Grenache, 35% Mourvèdre and 10% Syrah and other permitted varieties, the 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape looked exceptional on this day, offering up scents of framboise and kirsch alongside dried flowers and Asian spices. Full-bodied yet weightless, silky and long, this is special stuff, complex and balanced.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPA very Clos des Papes vintage,’ says Vincent Avril, and I know what he means - a vintage that naturally delivers the kind of fresh, elegant wines that this estate is famous for. A tasting of several foudres point to a wine with natural, easy balance. The Mourvèdre is excellent here this year, and adds great depth to the fresh and delightful Grenache that has notes of black tea, black cherry and iron. Elegant and very fine. (Drink between 2023-2042)Decanter | 98 DECBeguiling, with a plume of black tea and incense leading off, followed by black cherry reduction, cassis, melted black licorice, warm earth, singed tobacco and garrigue accents. Offers breadth and depth with a seamless feel, capped by a subtle mineral edge that lingers lengthily amid the beautiful fruit. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Best from 2024 through 2040. 8,000 cases made, 800 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 97 WSLooking at the reds, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape is a silky, elegant wine that shows the vintage to a T. I was able to taste through all the foudres of the cuvée as well as one that’s a final blend, with all showing beautiful red and black fruits, peppery garrigue, and floral nuances. The purity of fruit is remarkable, and this will be a medium to full-bodied, finesse-driven, yet still concentrated vintage for this cuvée that readers will love.Jeb Dunnuck | 94-96 JD

The flagship from this great estate is the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Boisrenard, which is based on 80% Grenache and small doses of 17 other varieties. This deeply hued beauty offers a stunning bouquet of blackberries, scorched earth, licorice, ground pepper, and sappy garrigue. I always find a Burgundian-like texture on this wine, and the 2020 is no exception – this is one to put into a blind tasting of Grand Cru Red Burgundies and shock your friends. Medium to full-bodied, ultra-pure, with grippy, sappy tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish, it’s pure class all the way. It’s going to need at least 4-6 years of bottle age, but this is a wine you don’t want to miss, and one of the finest wines I’ve tasted from this estate.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDFull and generous on the palate, no lack of fruit or depth here. Powerful and plentiful fine tannins and a great, rising sense of energy and freshness. Impressive, with real finesse and precision - no excess weight, but great surging intensity and freshness. Contains at least 1% of all the 18 possible varieties of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Grapes are grown across a variety of soil types in the lieux-dits Beau Renard, Cabrières and Coteau de l’Ange, vinified mostly in tronconic wooden vats, then aged in oak barrels of various sizes and ages, including 5% new oak. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2037Decanter | 96 DEC

Now the flagship of this estate, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape is 75% Grenache and the rest Cinsault, Mourvedre, and a little Syrah. Sporting a deep ruby/purple hue, it offers a beautiful array of black raspberry and darker cherry fruit as well as lots of graphite, chalky minerality, Provençal garrigue, and spice. Beautiful on the palate as well, this medium to full-bodied effort has a layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel, rock-solid underlying structure and concentration, building tannins, and a gorgeous finish. It needs to be forgotten for 2-4 years (although it certainly offers incredible pleasure even today) and will keep for two decades. Tasted twice.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDIsabel Ferrando informed me during my visit that she planned to eliminate the Reserve Auguste Favier and Collection Charles Giraud bottlings, folding those lots and the "tradition" Saint-Prefert Châteauneuf into a single, combined wine under the Famille Isabel Ferrando label. The resulting blend she showed as the 2020 Famille Isabel Ferrando Chateauneuf du Pape is a fine effort, with layers of cola-like spice and hints of garrigue layered against a lush backdrop of cherries and raspberries. Medium to full-bodied and almost creamy in texture, it finishes long, silky and mouthwatering.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPThis cuvée replaces the three historical red cuvées of the domaine (Classique, Auguste Favier and Charles Giraud). Quite introverted for now, seems to have everything required but needs time to knit together. Freshness, energy, fine and plentiful tannins with good acidity. While the alcohol is warming it is balanced. Could be very good in time, hard to judge now, but early signs are good and I’d like to see this again in bottle. From the galets roulés of lieu-dit Les Serres, fermented in concrete and then aged in concrete, old oak and amphora. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2036Decanter | 95 DECApproachable out of the gate, with gorgeous red fruit, wild strawberry, licorice root, dusty earth and lavender flavors joined by floral highlights. Beautifully textured and silky on the palate, with mineral intensity building on the palate, imparting nice persistence and length. A polished yet honest, characteristic wine. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2032. 3,300 cases made, 1,007 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

One of the gems in the vintage is the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Barbe Rac, a 100% Grenache that was destemmed and brought up all in concrete tanks. Darker berries, ground pepper, graphite, and savory garrigue are just some of its nuances, and this beauty is full-bodied, has a layered, seamless mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and an awesome finish. It’s a brilliant bottle of wine that readers will love. It deserves 3-4 years of bottle age and will shine over the following two decades. Bravo.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDA seductive 100% grenache with cherries, mixed berries, licorice and sweet spices on the nose. Full body with creamy tannins. Round and velvety with a caressing touch of strawberries and raspberries at the center. It has volume and texture with a succulent and precise long finish. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 94 JSThere’s an appealing high-toned spice over the very ripe blackberry fruit here, like star anise. Very rounded and generous, but with some good intensity and freshness at its core. Concentrated and ripe but with good acidity. The alcohol is warming on the finish, but it’s not overly unbalanced. A fruity and immediate style of Barbe Rac.Decanter | 93 DEC

The 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus Ex Machina is a strong candidate to be wine of the vintage. A blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvèdre, it combines scents of black truffles and black cherries with hints of cedar and vanilla (the Mourvèdre is aged in new oak, the Grenache in concrete). It’s full-bodied and concentrated, supple and almost creamy in feel, then long and velvety on the finish. Bravo.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPPossibly the wine of the vintage (at least at this early stage), the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape Deus-Ex Machina is a 60/40 split of Grenache and Mourvedre, with the Grenache brought up in foudre and the Mourvedre in demi-muids. Its vivid ruby/purple hue is followed by rock star notes of kirsch, blackberries, cured meats, woodsmoke, and dried flowers. Rich, full-bodied, and concentrated, it’s an incredible effort in this challenging vintage.Jeb Dunnuck | 94-96+ JD