Alain Jaume - Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieux Terron 2024

A leading figure in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Tavel, Alain Jaume runs a family-owned business focused on high-quality wine trading as well as their own exceptional vineyards in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the Côtes du Rhône. Their greatest source of pride is the “Grand-Veneur,” a classic Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Clos de Sixte, the family estate located in Tavel, offers a fine representation of the appellation, while in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the old-vine cuvée ranks among the appellation’s finest wines. The estate’s future is brilliantly secured by Alain Jaume’s children.

Everything about this superb Grenache (80%) is classic and exquisitely crafted, born from a terroir of red clay mixed with silica pebbles and partially aged for sixteen months in barrels. The nose, open and complex, offers a generous bouquet of red fruits sprinkled with smoky and spicy notes of cumin. Concentrated, fragrant with garrigue, and underpinned by powerful, fine-grained tannins, the palate delivers a Châteauneuf-du-Pape with distinct character and great promise.

Originally from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Alain Jaume and his sons, Sébastien and Christophe, carry on a winemaking tradition that dates back to 1826. They manage a 155-hectare vineyard using organic methods, spread across four estates: Grand Veneur in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Clos de Sixte in Lirac, Ch. Mazane in Vacqueyras, and Dom. la Grangette Saint-Joseph in the Côtes-du-Rhône AOC, all complemented by a wine trading business. A sure bet.

In the Jaume family, they have been winemakers “…ever since Mathieu Jaume decided to plant vines in Châteauneuf-du-Pape in 1826.” Odile and Alain Jaume and their sons, Christophe and Sébastien, now manage a 70-hectare vineyard (Domaine Grand Veneur, Clos de Sixte) that also produces wines under the Lirac and Côtes du Rhône appellations. As expected, Grenache Noir and Syrah dominate the vineyard’s grape varieties. The estate began the transition to organic farming in 2009.