Châteauneuf-du-Pape means The Pope's New Castle, so imagine the 3 kings of the nativity here, making the Pope a lovely house-warming Christmas cake.
In the Pope's kitchen, The King's gifts of Gold, Frankincense & Myrr become Grenache, Syrah & Mourvedre grapes as the key ingredients in this full-bodied blend. There's also a rack with a further 10 spices on it should the Kings feel the need to add them. They know however, that their own gifts are pretty darn good, so they'll probably not need anything else!
The comforting, Christmas cake-esque flavours of Châteauneuf-du-Pape are much loved: yummy, sweet spice and dried figgy flavours combine deliciously with a rich and warming, full-body. The 10 'spices' mentioned above are the other 10 grape varieties legally allowed in the blend (some of them, white!) In practice however, they often don't make it in.
Named after the town (not the grapes) in France's Southern Rhône Valley, this area has a long vinous history dating back to when the Papacy was based in Avignon - hence the name. Pope John XXII in particular was apparently an avid wine drinker, and helped improve the area's winemaking practices no end. He even built the famous Chateau that has since become the symbol of Châteauneuf's winey gift to the world!
So there you go, Châteauneuf-du-Pape = 3 Kings making Christmas cake for the Pope! A vinous adventure with a bit of history thrown in....
Winebird x
