Chateauneuf-du-Pape

My mother was a teacher. My wife is a teacher. My father is a teacher. My step-mother is a teacher. All of them have mentioned the “Ah ha!” moment students have, and list this as the reason they continue to participate in what is probably the earth’s most under-appreciated field of work.

I have had several of these “Ah ha” moments in my “wine life.”

• Four years ago I had a bottle of 1996 Araujo Estates, from the Napa Valley (With friends at a Super Bowl party, of all places) – Ah ha!


• A year prior, a dear friend brown-bagged a Chateau Lafite from 1978 on me. We drank it with hamburgers after too many beers, still – Ah Ha!


• On my honeymoon in Tuscany I drank Brunello di Montalcino in a castle with my amazing new wife -- Ah Ha!


• I swore I’d never pay $50 for a bottle of white wine, and then bought and drank a bottle by Didier Daganeau. I would have paid more. Lots more. Ah Ha!


• Yesterday, I visited Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Aaaaah Haaaaaaaa!!!!

In fact, probably the “Ah ha” to go to the top of the list

Chateauneuf-du-Pape (written as CDP from here on, as you can understand) is a wine appellation in the Rhone Valley, France. CDP is also a village. The appellation, although named for the village of CDP, truly exists around 5 small villages in Southern France – Chateauneuf-du Pape itself, Orange, Courthezon, Bedarredes, and Sorgues. There are 13 varietals planted and used in the appellation -- You can click on them to learn more (cool huh?) On the red side, Grenache Noir, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Picpoul Noir, Terret Noir, Counoise, Muscardin, Vaccarèse and Cinsaut are allowed. For whites the only choices are, Grenache Blanc, Picpoul Blanc, Picardan, Clairette, Roussanne and Bourboulenc. Typically, these wines are fruity, rather light in color, as far as reds go (unless you score a great one), and rather heavy on tannins. They are appealing, because of their balance of fruit, density, weight, extraction and acid. They pair well with all kinds of food. They are friendly, but usually need aging, because of the tannin content.

Yesterday, we arrived in the village of CDP at 7:00 pm. We would have dinner in the hotel, at 7:45. As I waited in my room, watching a futbol match, of course, as I’m quite the fan now, I got a knock at the door. Bernard, my guide on the trip (he makes wine for the winery I’m working with), alerted me that we’d had a change in plans. “Get ready, we’re going to Avignon.” A gentleman by the name of Didier, a local wine broker and winemaker, was taking us to dinner. Didier’s family has been in the Village for 6 generations. He is intimately familiar with the area, the wines, and the history. He also looks nearly identical to Don Johnson -- Not kidding.

Avignon is 10 km from CDP. It is a walled city, built to withstand attacks during the middle-ages. In the 14th century the Pope took his residence here, in a castle that, I can tell you first hand, is one of the most magnificent structures ever built. CDP is where the Pope made his Summer residence, as Chateauneuf-du-Pape literally means, "New Castle of the Pope." In fact, you can see the castle in Avignon from the summer castle in CDP (I did!). They used to send smoke signals to one another so that the Pope would know all was well in Avignon during his holiday just 10 km away (if only they'd had cellphones). The castle in CDP has not fared (faired?) as well over time. It was badly destoyed during the religious wars, and then further destroyed in 1944, when German troops set dynamite inside its walls. What you see in the picture is where their dynamite failed to detonate.

We had dinner in what, to this point, is the most impressive restaurant I’ve dined in. We drank a Chateau St. Jean, Chateauneuf-du-Pape from 1996. As my hero Dave Matthews put it: “My mind is blown.” Remy-Martins followed. And then bed – thank goodness.

Knocks came again at 8:00 am. Didier was back. “Get your things, we’re tasting in 10 minutes.” I shrugged, mainly from lack of coffee. “Come on man (French accent too), you’re in Chateauneuf – ha ha!” I’m still not sure he slept.

At 9:00 am I met a splendidly rustic looking Frenchman named Pascal Maurel. M.Maurel is the winemaker at a facility his family has owned for over 250 years. M.Maurel drives a dented white Fiat van. M.Maurel told us we had to wait to taste, because the only way to get to the cellar was through his Grandmother’s house, and she didn’t like to wake until 10:00. Lastly, M.Maurel has produced one or more wines that have scored 98 points, or better, from Robert Parker in each of the past 8 years. He had two 100 point wines in 2006 and two in 2005. In 2007 he made the number three wine in the world, and scored another 100. In 2005, he made the number two.

If we’re comparing winemaking to basketball, this guy is Michael Jordan…. Okay.. but if he’s not Jordan, he’s certainly Larry Bird.

First, we tasted the samples M.Maurel had for sale, that would possibly be purchased by the winery I’m working with. I won’t bore you. Suffice to say that I was told that 2008 is a “terrible vintage.” The wines were unforgettable. It gets better.

M.Maurel then looked at me, and in VERY broken English asked if I’d tasted his wines before. “No, unfortunately not,” was my response. He spoke French then, to Didier and Bernard. Didier looked at me then, and laughingly said, “You, Josh, are a very lucky man.” As it turns out M.Maurel had hosted a Wine Spectator tasting in the same tiny little room below his Grandmother’s bedroom that we now stood in, just the evening prior. He had the 2005, and two 2007 wines open. AAAAHHHH HAAAAAA!! You see where this is going?

Honestly, I can’t put into words everything these three wines had to offer. They were so rich, so concentrated, so fruit driven with raspberry, blackberry, blueberry (I love Grenache!) and yet so full of tobacco, tar, cigar box, new asphalt, dried meat and sweet, sweet oak. UNBELIEVABLE weight, with an oily mouth-coat and tannins that I’ve never experienced before – incredibly long, incredibly fine, and incredibly powerful.

Yeah. Like that.

We visited the vineyards after. The Rhone River has been important to France since before the time of record keeping. Over time, like all rivers tend to do, the Rhone moved around, swelling and changing course. The vineyards in this area are planted on land that used to be the bed of the Rhone River (I stole a rock for you Matt!). This is one of those things that you can’t believe until you see. We love to talk about “well drained soils” in the US – How’s this for well drained? You can imagine now, the power that these wines have. Every molecule of energy the vine can create goes into making the grapes sweet and concentrated.
Can you believe that picture??!! Click on it, and it will come up much larger -- you'll really get the idea.

We left CDP soon after. My most powerful and fulfilling experience thus far.

Hope everyone reading is doing well. I've been on the road all week this week, and have been thinking of everyone. I'm almost ready to come home. Almost.

Take care.

JB