2016 Chateauneuf du Pape Les Vieilles Roussanne
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Tasting notes
Light green-tinged yellow. Aromas of fresh tropical and pit fruits are complemented by suave floral and mineral qualities that build steadily as the wine stretches out. Concentrated yet energetic in character, offering juicy nectarine, pineapple and Meyer lemon flavors that tighten up and take on a suave floral nuance with air. Shows emphatic mineral thrust and a touch of honeysuckle on a strikingly long, smooth, smoke-tinged finish that echoes the pit fruit note.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Josh Raynolds
More reviews and scores
The 2016 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Les Vieilles Roussanne is a blockbuster made from a single parcel of old Roussanne vines. It was raised all in new oak, yet aside from a slight smokiness, you wouldn’t know it. Possessing a unique bouquet of buttered peach, pineapple, wood smoke and hints of meatiness, it deep, rich and unctuous on the palate, with fabulous mid-palate density that never seems over the top. With moderate acidity, I would opt for drinking over the coming 2-3 years, or after a decade. This is another great lineup from Chateau de Vaudieu, who have risen to the top of the heap recently. They make a perfumed, elegant style of wine, and have started releasing numerous single parcel wine from vines all located around the estate. While the 2016s are a clear step up, the 2015s has terrific purity and elegance.
The 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape Les Vieilles Roussanne was the only wine from Vaudieu I wasn't excited by. It's all Roussanne, all barrel-fermented and aged in new wood, but it does boast ample richness and weight on the palate. Honey and bergamot notes peek through the wood, but in the end, this came across as a big, broad, weighty white that could use more definition and vitality.