Domaine Raymond Usseglio & Fils - Châteauneuf-du-Pape Impériale rouge 2021

Bettane & Desseauve

About the domain :

A classic Châteauneuf estate, taken over by Raymond's son Stéphane in 2004, with vines scattered all over the estate, including very old Grenache on Pialons and Grand Pierre. The wines are as powerful and long-lasting as you'd expect. The cuvée de prestige, impériale, a small part of which is barrel-aged, is produced from old Grenache vines.

Decanter

About the wine:

A beautiful sensation of purity and clarity reminiscent of forest fruits, with a hint of smoke emerging on the nose. Medium- to full-bodied style, lots of fruit concentration, with expressive blueberry and blackberry intermingled. Long, clean, precise finish. It has a good dose of fine tannins, so give it time. The soils are mainly sandy in the Farguerol nord and Pied Long localities. Fermented and aged in concrete.

Guide Hachette des vins

About the domain :

Successive purchases have enabled Raymond Usseglio to increase the surface area of this Castelpapal estate, built up by his father Francis, who came from Italy in 1931 to work the land, to 33 hectares. Since 1999, the estate has been run by his only son, Stéphane. Organic and biodynamic certifications have been obtained.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the domain :

Stephan Usseglio has propelled this certified organic and biodynamic estate, which bears his father's name, into the top ranks of the region. In addition, he has continued to experiment, trying out different aging and fermentation tanks, single-varietal cuvées and blends outside the appellation boundaries to create innovative vins de France, which often offer considerable value. As part of his efforts to reduce alcohol levels, he plants clairette when he has to replace a dead grenache vine. "There's one or two degrees [of potential alcohol] less at harvest," explains Usseglio. The quality of the white wines has improved in recent vintages and has become one of the priorities of the estate, which now produces 25% white wines. There are top-of-the-range, limited-production versions of pure Clairette and Roussanne, but don't overlook the cuvée d'assemblage, which is also excellent. In 2021, Mr. Usseglio says, "We were lucky not to be hit by frost - only five hectares out of 25 were affected." Of course, he and his pickers had to avoid the same raindrops as everyone else during the harvest, but his 2021s turned out very well. In 2022, he says, "we had a good winter, then it was very dry, with small berries. With the cool nights, the vines didn't stop, and we already had some finesse at the end of August. Fermentations were rapid, malolactic was quick [and] the wines are accessible early, as in 2007". If the wines really do turn out like those of 2007, the 2022 vintage could be one of the greatest, and not just for this estate.

James Suckling

Jeb Dunnuck