“Full-bodied, richly concentrated and velvety-textured, the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Collection Charles Giraud is one of the top wines of the vintage. A blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvèdre, it offers up seductive notes of dried spices and cola, plus plenty of plummy fruit. It’s lush and long on the finish, folding in hints of clove, allspice and star anise. Nearly approachable now, it should cellar well through 2035.
Isabel Ferrando deserves enormous credit for raising the quality and image of this estate. In many ways, she epitomizes the wines she crafts, showing great generosity and elegance on the outside, while possessing a strong will and great ambition. The 2018 vintage wasn’t an easy one here, with crop losses reaching 50%. The highlight for me of this year’s visit was a chance to look back at a couple of the wines from 2009. There’s no doubt in my mind that the wines Ferrando is making now surpass what she was doing at that time, and she seems to agree. “In ten years, I’ve progressed. My sensitivity to the terroir is much more now,” she said.“ Robert Parker 97 Points