Winemaker Description
Old vines offer restricted yields and vigor while concentrating energy on the grapes. This is evident here as the wine showcases intense red and black fruits, underbrush, roasted aromas and spice. The mouth offers a great density with a very long finish.
Expert Reviews
97 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes (90% Grenache and 10% Mourvèdre) comes all from the stony, pebbly soils of La Crau and was brought up in tank and demi-muids. Ripe black cherry fruits, iodine, ground pepper, and bloody, meaty nuances all emerge on the nose, and it's full-bodied, with a seamless, multi-dimensional texture, ultra-fine tannins, and a rock star of a finish. It's just a brilliant, elegant, pure, lengthy wine that does everything right. Drink this classic, traditional, structured wine over the coming two decades.
95 Points James Suckling | Although this is still a bit closed, the pomegranate and sour-cherry aromas are delightful and the hints of coffee, tobacco leaf and cigar box add complexity. Rich and concentrated, but very focused. Huge tannin structure, but beautifully crafted and the wine glides over your palate. Long, youthful finish. From the La Crau site, this is a blend of grenache from 70-year-old vines and mourvedre.
94 Points Wine Spectator | Seduces with plum puree, dried violet and cherry flavors, showing beautiful freshness and a textured feel. Reveals singed sandalwood accents that add depth and structure, gaining power as this builds toward the lengthy finish. Grenache and Mourvèdre.
93+ Points Robert Parker | The yin to the yang of the estate's Mourre des Perdrix bottling, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Vieilles Vignes is almost all Grenache (10% Mourvèdre) from stony, galets roulés sites in Coudoulet, la Crau (sud) and Cristia. It's all black cherries and mocha on the nose, then full-bodied and rich but rather coarse and open-knit on the palate. It's long on the finish and shows remarkable intensity, but it doesn't have the same degree of elegance as the other offerings from Charbonniere; perhaps that will emerge with further cellaring. A second sample (tasted nonblind) revealed more of that elegance, with an almost airy, ethereal feel on the palate that belied the wine's enormous concentration and power.
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