2017 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc La Crau

Sixth-generation family member Nicolas Brunier welcomed me to the historic Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe, one of Châteauneuf-du-Pape's oldest and largest wineries, renowned for its tradition of producing age-worthy, high-quality wines. The Brunier portfolio within the Châteauneuf-du-Pape AOC includes the red Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe La Crau, Piedlong and Télégramme, as well as the Vieux Télégraphe Blanc and Blanc Clos la Roquète. First up is the flagship La Crau, with vines averaging 70 years of age. This Grenache-based blend ages for up to 22 months in large 60-hectoliter French oak foudres. Having known this wine since childhood—my father regularly purchased it starting in the 1980s—I was curious about how the Brunier philosophy regarding the use of whole clusters has evolved over time. “My grandfather used 100% whole clusters, but mainly because he didn’t have a destemmer,” Nicolas Brunier explains. “When my father, Frédéric, and my uncle, Daniel, took over, they purchased a destemmer and reduced the whole-bunch proportion to around 5-10%. Today, it's back to around 20%, but only for old-vine Grenache and Syrah, where we find the stems are of the best quality. Stems enhance the wines’ aging potential, but we don’t want the wines to be too tannic when young, so it’s about finding the right compromise.”

Next up is the red Piedlong, from 50-to-70-year-old vines in a stony lieu-dit. The Brunier family acquired this plot in 1986 with Domaine de la Roquète. Vinification actually takes place at the Domaine de la Roquète facility. Discussing the differences between La Crau and Piedlong, Brunier notes that the Grenache from La Crau differs significantly from that of Piedlong: “They are harvested about 15 days apart, with Piedlong being the later-ripening site. The Grenache from Piedlong is more floral, while La Crau’s is more fruit-driven. In terms of aging, La Crau usually goes through a phase of closure between four and ten years, while Piedlong stays open and doesn’t close down.” Finally, Télégramme is a blend of both younger (40-year-old) and older vines, as well as a blend of terroirs, while Piedlong and La Crau are vineyard selections. In terms of winemaking, Télégramme undergoes a shorter élevage of up to 16 months in French oak foudres.

Turning to the white wines, the partially barrel-fermented Vieux Télégraphe Blanc blends roughly 40% Clairette with 25% Grenache Blanc, 25% Roussanne and 10% Bourboulenc. Last but not least is the white Clos la Roquète, which blends one-third each of Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and Clairette, all grown in the La Roquète lieu-dit. It matures in a combination of barriques, demi-muids, and foudres and is bottled after ten months. Readers should note that there is no 2022 Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau due to damage from summer hail. On the bright side, the Bruniers did bottle a 2022 Télégramme and Piedlong, with the latter showing particularly well. While the sampled 2023s show promise with fragrant and inviting profiles, I doubt they will reach the same depth and structure as the 2022s. The serious 2010 La Crau more than lives up to the winery’s stellar reputation, though it is still a few years from its prime drinking window. Finishing with the whites, the sapid 2017 Vieux Télégraphe Blanc has evolved immensely well. If I owned a bottle, I’d see no reason not to pop the cork—it’s drinking beautifully.

Fermented in concrete tanks and aged entirely in oak barriques, demi-muids and foudres, Vieux Télégraphe’s white Châteauneuf is made from a blend of Clairette, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and Bourboulenc whose vines average roughly 40 years of age. Sourced entirely from the famed La Crau lieu-dit, like this estate’s flagship red Châteauneuf, it’s not an especially easy wine to track down outside of the region, where it’s in great demand by top restaurants. Exacerbating that pressure is the fact that, of the Brunier family’s 70 hectares in La Crau, only five are planted to white grapes.