Domaine de la Janasse Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes 2023 750ml

Killer stuff that I'd put up with anything in the vintage, the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes offers blackberries, darker cherries, roasted garrigue, pepper, and stony minerality. Based on 85% Grenache with some Syrah and Mourvèdre, it was partially destemmed and aged 12 months in 70% foudre and 30% demi-muids. It's medium to full-bodied, has a pure, layered, elegant mouthfeel, ultra-fine tannins, and a great finish that builds beautifully with time in the glass. This riveting 2023 will offer incredible pleasure over the coming 20 years or more. There are roughly 1,500 cases produced. Drink 2025-2045.

Lastly, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes is another tour de force from this estate, who are clearly firing on all cylinders today. A blend of 85% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre, and the rest Syrah that’s brought up in a mix of foudre and barrel, its deep purple hue is followed by a rich, powerful, full-bodied wine offering ample cassis and darker berry fruits, notes of ground pepper, cured meats, and scorched earth, ripe, building tannins, incredible balance, and a great finish. It’s going to flirt with perfection at maturity, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it still drinking brilliantly at age 30.

Much more powerful and closed, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes comes more from the La Crau and La Janasse lieux-dits and is the usual blend of mostly Grenache with a touch of Syrah. Blackberries, graphite, scorched earth, pepper, and sappy garrigue all emerge on the nose, and it’s full-bodied, has beautiful concentration, polished tannins, and a great finish. Nothing is out of place, and this perfectly balanced, authoritative, powerful, and incredibly impressive 2020 will benefit from 3–4 years of bottle age and evolve for 15–20 years in cold cellars.

Tightly coiled for now, this features an intense, vivid core of anise, blackberry coulis, plum paste and macerated fig fruit, with black tea, smoldering tobacco and warm ganache notes. Long and dense, but very silky, with gorgeous violet and pastis details lingering in the background. Should unwind with time. Best from 2017 through 2035. 390 cases imported. (James Molesworth)

Up in the top handful of wines in the vintage (which should come as no surprise to anyone who follows this estate), the 2012 Châteauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes is a full-bodied, beautifully concentrated, rich and layered Châteauneuf that doesn’t put a foot wrong. Made from 85% Grenache, 10% Mourvedre and the rest Syrah, it offers blockbuster notes of blackberry, liquid-violets, spice and serious minerality to go with awesome mid-palate depth and layers of sweet tannin. Like the Cuvee Chaupin, it will be better in another handful of years and thrill through 2027. (Jeb Dunnuck)

The 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Vieilles Vignes looks as if it will be a worthy successor to the awesome 2015 and 2016 bottlings. From tank, the Grenache shows lovely cherry-berry fruit, ample weight and richness and a long, silky finish, while the Mourvèdre from a new oak barrel stood up to the wood well, offering more red fruits, less alcohol and hints of toast and baking spices.

Saturated ruby. Displays intensely perfumed, spice-accented black and blue fruit, floral oil and candied licorice qualities on the nose. Offers powerful cherry liqueur, black raspberry, fruitcake and exotic spice flavors that tighten up through the back half. There’s surprising energy here given the wine’s volume. Velvety tannins frame a strikingly long, spicy finish that strongly echoes the cherry and floral notes. (Josh Raynolds)

Warm and lush in feel, with steeped dark plum, blackberry and açai berry fruit flavors infused with singed savory, licorice root and warm earth notes, offering a late echo of bittersweet Valrhona chocolate. Good underlying grip keeps this honest enough too. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2035. 1,200 cases made, 400 cases imported. (James Molesworth)

Dark violet. A deeply perfumed bouquet evokes ripe red/blue fruits, incense and exotic spices, and a floral accent builds as the wine opens up. Sweet and expansive in the mouth, offering lush black raspberry, boysenberry and spicecake flavors that are energized by a core of juicy acidity. Shows excellent clarity and solid, spicy thrust on a long, sweet finish framed by velvety tannins. (Josh Raynolds)

This is brimming with dark cherry, blackberry and boysenberry compote flavors that spill forth, laced with generous licorice snap, tar, graphite and black tea notes. A nice tug of iron appears very late on the finish, as the fruit lingers on. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Best from 2024 through 2040. 1,500 cases made, 392 cases imported. (James Molesworth)

Deeper ruby/purple-colored, the 2017 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes includes slightly less Grenache than normal and is 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre, and the rest a mix of permitted varieties. It offers more blackberry, cassis, peppery herbs, and crushed rocks, with a beautiful sense of minerality. Rich, full-bodied, concentrated and focused, it shows an elegant, vibrant side to the vintage yet still has the expected Janasse power and depth.

This concentrated, formidable red starts off all about ripeness -- with sappy, steeped cherry -- but quickly turns focused and serious, showing a firming spine of graphite minerality. There’s sanguine energy in play that courses alongside the notes of fruit and sweet alder smoke. Tightly wound still, with iron bolts grounding the weighty finish. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Best from 2027 through 2038. 3,333 cases made, 112 cases imported.

Inky ruby. Explosive aromas of dark berry preserves, incense and lavender, with a smoky overtone and bright minerality. Pliant and seamless in the mouth, offering intense, palate-staining cassis and blueberry flavors that are energized by juicy acidity. Shows real power and focus on the strikingly long finish, which features velvety tannins and a hint of candied flowers. There’s 15% alcohol here, which is actually quite low for this bottling, and I don’t detect any undue heat. (Josh Raynolds)

Ripe and fresh, with an engaging beam of cassis, dark plum and boysenberry puree flavors, supported by light anise, graphite and sweet tobacco notes. Shows good juicy energy and a seriously long finish. Drink now through 2035. 504 cases imported. (James Molesworth)

Showing nicely, the 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes shows the softer, elegant style of the vintage yet still has ample depth of fruit as well as a classic profile. Notes or red and black fruits, peppery herbs, nori, licorice, and scorched earth all give way to a full-bodied, beautifully balanced 2018. It’s already hard to resist, with silky tannins and no hard edges, and it says weightless on the palate. It’s not going to be the longest-lived version of this cuvée but it’s going to put a smile on your face anytime over the coming 10–15 years. (Jeb Dunnuck)

More structured than the Chaupin bottling, the 2023 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes bursts from the glass with aromas of baked mulberries, dark cherries, rose petals and exotic spices, framed by subtle notes of garrigue. Medium- to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, it’s built around a serious chassis of ripe, powdery tannins and a fleshy, layered core of fruit. Despite its present depth and controlled power, the wine remains somewhat introverted in its youth, promising to unfurl beautifully with time. This is a brooding, age-worthy Vieilles Vignes that will richly reward cellaring.