Clos des Papes 1997 - Paul Avril - Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Clos des Papes 1997 - Paul Avril - Châteauneuf-du-Pape

About the domain:

Do we still need to introduce Clos des Papes to wine lovers like you? This Châteauneuf du Pape has been owned by the Avril family since the 17th century.

The 32ha estate is spread over 24 plots certified organic since 2011. These plots offer diverse terroirs; rolled pebbles of course (you know the big stones that capture heat during the day to release it at night), sand and gravel. Red wines represent 95% of the estate's production.

The vines are very old and renewed as infrequently as possible, so yields are low but the concentration and aromatic complexity are enhanced.

About the 1997 vintage:

The 1997 vintage is very irregular for the French vineyard. Nevertheless, the Rhone Valley and Beaujolais are doing particularly well despite a slight lack of maturity for certain appellations.

WUAT's opinion: We are very fond of the wines from this estate, the style is always very precise, fine, velvety but also concentrated in aromas. In addition, it ages magnificently well. With age, finesse takes over in a more "Burgundian" style, but the fruit is still there and is constantly evolving, even thirty years later.

You can keep them in the cellar almost indefinitely.