Gabriel Meffre
Châteauneuf-du-Pape “Saint Théodoric” 2023

The dry, mild weather of winter continued into spring. The rain arrived just as the buds began to open and the grapes were emerging, delaying the cycle somewhat but still allowing the vines to flower beautifully. The vines resisted the record heatwave in the second half of August. The harvest, which took place quite late, was still very hot and dry. The grapes harvested were perfectly healthy overall, with concentrated berries. All in all, a generous, late 2023 vintage with a particularly aromatic, elegant and fresh profile.

Manual harvesting allows for sorting at the vineyard level. Once at the winery, the grapes are completely destemmed, and the grape varieties can be vinified separately or blended. Vatting lasts around 3 to 4 weeks. This is followed by racking, malolactic fermentation and then ageing, which takes place in vats and barrels for a minimum of 6 months, prior to blending and bottle ageing.