Clos des Papes Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2013

Professional Ratings

• 94 Wine Spectator
  Very juicy and lively in feel, with pepper, tobacco and bay leaf notes leading the way for a core of raspberry, bitter plum and red currant coulis flavors. The long finish lets the pepper and tobacco notes play out, with pleasant acidity embedded throughout. Very Provençal in feel. Best from 2017 through 2026.
• 93 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

  Ten years after the vintage, the 2013 Chateauneuf du Pape is drinking well. Truffle and mushroom-like notes accent cherry fruit, providing ample complexity on the nose—perhaps about at its apogee, although it should continue to drink well for several more years. Produced from tiny yields of just 13 hectoliters per hectare, it's intense and concentrated, finishing long and crisp, with hints of cranberry lingering on the finish.

• 92 Jeb Dunnuck
  From a difficult vintage, the 2013 Châteauneuf-du-Pape is nevertheless upfront and charming, with a cool climate-like feel in its kirsch and darker berry fruits, spice, pepper, and mineral aromas and flavors. It opens up beautifully with time in the glass, is medium-bodied and elegant, and has plenty to love. Drink it anytime over the coming decade.