The Pope's Wine

Finally getting into French wines today.  I'm pumped because this is a little out of my comfort zone (currently learning more about them and how the French wine system works). I know French wines have a delicious reputation and well, as wine experts would say, historically are some of the best wines out there.   Today I open up a Chateauneuf du Pape aka the pope's wine.  Back in the 13th century, Pope Clement V moved from Rome, Italy to France to the region Chateaunef du Pape.  He loved wine and was the first person to actually make wine in that region… which technically makes him the first winemaker ever in that area.   Chateauneuf du Pape (located in southeastern France) is a wine area in Rhone Valley near Avignon. Grenache is one of the most widely planted red wine grape varieties in the world. Chateauneuf du Pape only permits 13 types of grapes where the Grenache grape is always the base in the blend. In this bottle I open today, it is made of 70% Grenache, 15% Syrah and 15% Mourvèdre.   Here you will learn some history on the wine region, the terroir and my overall thoughts on this specific wine. I hope you enjoy this episode and get yourself some 'vin du pape' (pope wine)!       1:30 - Intro to today's wine 2:45 - History on the region 3:05 - Pope Clement V moves from Rome 4:44 - 13 different grape varietals can be used for this wine 5:45 - Quartzite and the alpine glaciers 6:45 - Grenache grape oxidizes easily in wood 7:25 - Grenache is vinified in cement tanks 8:05 - Foudre aka large barrels  9:40 - Open the bottle for wine tasting 10:20 - Climate/Seasons in the Chateauneuf du Pape region. 11:25 - Olfactory analysis 13:30 - Wine description after tasting it 14:05 - Rating for today's wine     Today's wine: 2020 Domaine de la Charbonniere Chateauneuf du Pape $42 https://vinonueva.com/products/domaine-de-la-charbonniere-chateauneuf-du-pape-2020      Connect with me on IG @sipandgrowpodcast   Get your FREE Wine Aroma Wheel at https://stan.store/nicoledipasquale    Check out my Italian Wine Guide at https://stan.store/nicoledipasquale