Thursday Virtual Happy Hour: Chateauneuf-du-Pape

Châteauneuf-du-Pape; the southern French wine region whose renown is such that it is even known among those for whom wine is a mystery. Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a historic wine region located between the towns of Orange and Avignon, in France's southern Rhône Valley. It is famous for powerful, full-bodied red wine, largely made from the classic southern Rhône grape trio of Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre.

The three grape varieties are behind the vast majority of the appellation's red wines. However, a total of eighteen red and white grape varieties are approved for use. Red and white grape varieties are permitted in both red and white wines of the appellation with no restrictions around the proportions.

Grenache is the principle variety of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It is well suited to the terroir and performs better here than in any other French wine region. Varietal Grenache is juicy with jammy red-fruit and black-cherry flavors with a high potential alcohol. It is aged in either vats or oak barrels for up to 18 months to create a rich and complex wine. The region is most notable for the GSM blend, with many producers creating Grenache dominant wines with Syrah and Mourvèdre in smaller proportions.

Syrah grows most successfully in the town's cooler sites, and brings structure and spiced black-fruit notes to the blend. The late ripening Mourvèdre flourishes only in the hotter, drier vineyards, and adds dark depths and bitter chocolate notes. These three varieties constitute approximately 90 percent of vineyards in Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

The vineyards here also produce white wines in smaller quantities which are tangy, weighty and intensely perfumed. These are made from a number of rustic southern French varieties. A few of the minor varieties are entirely unknown outside southern France.

## We have a choice of videos to watch including:

1. https://youtu.be/wql26dV4ie0?si=PdMvdArvlz0X4zyW - Great French Wines: Chateauneuf Du Pape - No Sediment (5:01)
2. https://youtu.be/2msMmx1-b-4?si=6qUP1labsC0absPq - The Story And History Behind Chateauneuf Du Pape - Elicite' (3:01)
3. https://youtu.be/xdToi9IrVaw?si=c3rzInI6AvwNg3kV - French Red Wine: Exotic Wine Travel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Dr, Matthew Horkey (10:08)

So, pick up a bottle and watch a couple of videos. Let us know what you’re drinking and eating, and, if possible, the region from which your wine comes. Do you have any comments (positive or negative) about the videos? And, as always, tell us what’s going on in your life - what's happening with you, how you're feeling about things, updates, successes, challenges - as much or as little as you’re willing to disclose. We are in this together. And - thank goodness - we have wine!

Cheers!!