2018 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rouge, Clos des Papes, Paul Avril & Fils, Rhône
- Red
- Dry
- Full Bodied
Ready - youthful
- Richard Hemming MW
- 17.5/20
- Matt Walls
- 95/100
- Josh Raynolds
- 95/100
- Joe Czerwinski
- 95/100
Product: 20181110487
Description
The blend is only 45% Grenache this year, thanks to the variety’s susceptibility to mildew. The resulting wine has a dark red berry profile with fennel and white pepper spice. It’s poised, despite the wine’s concentration, garrigue aromas combining with liquorice and black cherries. There’s a silkiness to the palate; the fine-grained tannins feeling incredibly well-integrated, even in the wine’s youth. The finish is generously long.
Drink 2022 - 2040+
Berry Bros. & Rudd
Colour Red
Sweetness Dry
Vintage 2018
Maturity Ready - youthful
Body Full Bodied
Producer Paul Avril et Fils
Critics reviews
Richard Hemming MW 17.5/20
Tank sample. Such purity and clarity of fruit, with a tar and medicinal complexity plus a lightly spiced finish. It shows the typical Clos des Papes delicacy and tone: reverberant but not shrill. There's lots of bass, in fact. Perhaps not the longest-lived, from the soft structure?Drink 2022 - 2032richard_hemming_mw, JancisRobinson.com (November 2019)
Drink 2022 - 2032
Matt Walls 95/100
The 35% Mourvèdre is quite present on the nose, which shows deep black cherry kirsch aromas, sweet strawberry and a potpourri, floral lift. This is a soft, succulent, juicy style, with bright and concentrated strawberry fruit, and although the alcohol is a little raised, there's a lovely freshness to the wine. More Mourvèdre than usual due to the rampant mildew that the southern Rhône suffered in 2018, which attacked the Grenache more severely than the Syrah and Mourvèdre.Drink 2020 - 2039matt_walls, Decanter.com (October 2020)
Drink 2022 - 2032
Josh Raynolds 95/100
Bright violet. Expressive, smoke-accented cherry, Chambord, licorice, succulent herb and exotic spice qualities on the nose. Weighty and broad on the palate, offering intense red fruit, floral pastille, allspice, cola and botanical herb flavors that turn sweeter as the wine opens up. The floral note gains strength with air and drives the impressively long, penetrating finish, which features polished tannins and resonating cherry and floral notes.Drink 2025 - 2035josh_raynolds, Vinous.com.com (October 2021)
Drink 2022 - 2032
Joe Czerwinski 95/100
Bursting with striking red-fruit aromas and delicate cinnamon, clove and star anise notes, the 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape is another terrific vintage from this estate. While certainly full-bodied and powerful, it's also lithe and silky, with an almost airy feel on the palate that translates into great elegance on the lengthy finish.Drink 2020 - 2030Joe Czerwinski. Wine Advocate (September 2020)
Drink 2022 - 2032
About this wine
Paul Avril et Fils
With Vincent Avril at the helm, Clos des Papes is one of the most highly regarded properties; not only in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but in the world of wine. This family estate has been certified organic for 15 years, with high attention to detail translating into impressively low production levels. Given that the vines here average over 50 years of age, they are firmly prepared and able to withstand many ordeals, including Mistral winds at 140 kilometres an hour, severe heatwaves and drought conditions. Thankfully, they were spared from the latter two in 2020.
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Châteauneuf-du-Pape
The largest and most important appellation in the southern Rhône, with more than 3,200 hectares of vineyards and over 80 growers, Châteauneuf-du-Pape produces more wine than the whole of the northern Rhône combined. The gloriously rich red wines, redolent of the heat and herbs of the south, are enhanced by the complexity which comes from blending several of the 14 permitted grape varieties including Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah.
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Registered company 05492886. BB&R Limited, trading as Berry Bros. & Rudd, 3 St James's Street, London, SW1A 1EG. All rights reserved. You must be 18 or over to order. Calls may be recorded.
