2020 Clos Saint Jean Chateauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes is sold out.

Sign up to receive notifications when wines from this producer become available

Wine Spectator’s #1 Rhône wine of 2023

Wine Bottle
  • 95 pts Wine Spectator
    95 pts WS
  • Curated by unrivaled experts
  • Choose your delivery date
  • Temperature controlled shipping options
  • Get credited back if a wine fails to impress

2020 Clos Saint Jean Chateauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes 750 ml

Sold Out

Sign up to receive notifications when wines from this producer become available.
  • Curated by unrivaled experts
  • Choose your delivery date
  • Temperature controlled shipping options
  • Get credited back if a wine fails to impress

Once Considered Fools, They Brought Forth Icons

One of Châteauneuf-du-Pape’s single greatest terroirs was unknown prior to 1900, and its first planters were scoffed at as fools.

“You’ll never get your horses over those stones,” the neighbors muttered in 1905 as they watched Edmond Tacussel set out for a field covered with wobbly round river rocks, carrying a huge bundle of new Grenache vines.

That field is today known as La Crau, one of the most coveted plateaus in all of Châteauneuf, made famous by the likes of Vieux Télégraphe, the late Henri Bonneau, and Monsieur Tacussel’s own estate: Clos Saint Jean.

The winery’s cherished Vieilles Vignes bottling comes exclusively from 50–100-year-old vines in La Crau, where grapes ripen to perfection thanks to the heat radiating back at night from those ancient stones. Wine Spectator rated the 2020 95 points, making it their #1 Rhône wine of 2023 and placing it at #12 on their Top 100. 

Clos Saint Jean as a winery is a relatively recent success story of the last 20 years, thanks to the efforts of brothers Vincent and Pascal Maurel and their consulting enologist, the late, brilliant Philippe Cambie. Cambie, who also helped Clos du Caillou and Domaine Saint-Préfert become superstars, was one of the forces behind the proliferation of old-vine and single-climat bottlings in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. A beloved figure, he changed the AOP forever.

It’s not hard to see why this wine was crowned #1 by Wine Spectator. It’s just singing, loaded with dark plum notes, sun-kissed blackberry and cherry, embraced on a basket of lilac and violet with crushed licorice and spice notes. It’s a big Châteauneuf that maintains a sense of balance and grace.