Chateauneuf du Pape 2016 Amiral G, Chateau de Vaudieu

The Château Vaudieu, located in the heart of the Châteauneuf du Pape Appellation, was built in 1767 by Admiral Gérin, a lieutenant in the Marseille admiralty. It is one of the three genuine castles of the XVIIIth century in Châteauneuf du pape. For over 250 years, the "Val de Dieu" (Valley of God), an area suitable for cultivation from which the name "Vaudieu" was to come, has sheltered a vineyard within its landscape of hillsides and terraces that enjoy the best possible exposure.

In the mid 19th century, during the phylloxera crisis, this estate was one of the four great Chateauneuf du Pape vineyards, able to produce a quality wine. It was under the leadership of Garbriel and Juliette Meffre that the vineyards reached their current size of 173 acres. Upon the death of Gabriel Meffre in 1987, his daughter Sylvette Bréchet took the destiny of this magnificient property in hand. In 1990 she was joined by her son Laurent, and then by Julien in 2006. With their involvement, the winery was modernised in order to separately handle the grapes from the 32 vineyard plots that were re-demarcated in order to achieve the best potential from each terroir.

This special reserve wine is named for Admiral Gérin. 100% Grenache, the grapes come from one of their best plots located on one of the highest hills of the appellation. Under oenologist Philippe Cambie, the  grapes  are 100% destemmed and crushed and then transfered to a concrete tank. The temperature is maintained around 25°C. during the alcoholic fermentation. The maceration lasted about 30 days.  The wine aged 18 months in 600 liter new oak barrels.

This 2016 received rave reviews including 97 points from the Wine Spectator who said "A terrific young version, this is brimming with dark plum, boysenberry, blueberry and raspberry puree flavors that stream through, flanked by singed mesquite, black tea and warm anise notes. A graphite bolt lends support and drives the finish. The fruit is beautiful and approachable now, but this will cruise in the cellar. Best from 2020 through 2040."

Vinous scored the barrel sample 95-97 saying "Vivid ruby-red. Highly perfumed red berry liqueur, sandalwood and Asian spice aromas show outstanding clarity and pick up a sexy floral nuance with air. Silky, open-knit and juicy on the palate, offering intense, deeply concentrated raspberry preserve, cherry cola and floral pastille flavors and an exotic suggestion of five-spice powder. The floral quality repeats emphatically on a smooth, expansive, wonderfully persistent finish that shows just hint of fine-grained tannins. This wine exudes sex appeal and should be delicious soon after release, but it also has the depth and balance to carry it for years to come."

and Jeb Dunnuck scored it 99 saying "The 2016 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Amiral G. is based all on Grenache and comes from a single plot of very old Grenache vines (all rolled stone soils) that was destemmed and brought up in demi-muids. Just screaming "Grenache!" at the top of its lungs with its sweet bouquet of black raspberries, candied violets, baking spices, and crushed rock-like minerality, this beauty hits the palate with full-bodied richness and density, a weightless texture, no hard edges, and awesome length. It's a sensational, borderline perfect wine that has everything you want from a bottle of wine. Give it a year or three, and it's going to cruise for 15+."