Châteauneuf du Pape Piedlong 2022 Famille Brunier

The Châteauneuf-du-Pape Piedlong 2022 from Famille Brunier is among the most singular and characteristic cuvées from this great house of Bédarrides. It bears the mark of old-vine Grenache anchored by an unusually high proportion of Mourvèdre, lending it spiced, smoky depth that few Châteauneufs can claim. From the highest point of the appellation, it embodies the precision and balance that has defined the Brunier signature across six generations since Henri founded the estate in 1891.

The terroir of Piedlong

Piedlong is one of the most confidential and exceptional sites in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the appellation's highest point within the Bédarrides sector. The geology comprises quaternite pebbles, micaceous fossiliferous sands and reddish molassic sandstones, formations some three million years old. This elevated terroir, scoured by Mistral winds that cleanse the vines and intensify aromatic concentration, is paired with adjacent Pignan parcels to compose the final blend. The assembly is characteristic and consistent: 90% Grenache at seventy years old and 10% Mourvèdre at fifty years. This unusually high Mourvèdre proportion is the very key to this cuvée's distinctive personality. Grenache brings natural generosity, roundness and solar fruit; Mourvèdre, the essence of Bandol, adds liquorice, lavender, griottine and violet notes, formidable tannic structure and exceptional ageing potential. Vinification is traditional and precise: light crushing with selective destemming, thirty days minimum of fermentation in concrete and wooden vats under temperature control, pneumatic pressing, systematic malolactic fermentation, then twenty to twenty-two months of ageing in sixty-hectolitre French oak foudres. Bottled without fining or filtration.

Tasting profile, 2022 vintage

The 2022 vintage, hailed throughout southern Rhône for its generosity, expresses itself on Piedlong with depth that spans the full aromatic palette of the blend. The robe is dense, dark garnet with brilliant depth. The nose strikes immediately with richness and complexity: the Grenache-inflected aromatic palette sings between fruit and florals, faded rose, pot-pourri, cherry brandy, wild dark berries, before Mourvèdre unfolds its signature: liquorice, lavender, griottine, violet, garrigue, camphor and black olive, a spiced and smoky bouquet of rare depth and elegance. On the palate, the texture is extended and well-diffused, round and vinous with remarkable tannic density. Ripe, muscular tannins born from extended maceration and old-vine Mourvèdre carry a finish of impressive persistence and nobility. A wine for the cellar, best left untouched until 2026 to 2028, with fifteen years ahead of it.

The domaine

Famille Brunier has stewarded Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe across six generations. Henri founded it in 1891, followed by Hippolyte, Jules, Henri II, then Frédéric and Daniel, who returned to the estate in the early 1980s as the fifth generation. Today Nicolas, Edouard and Manon joined them between 2015 and 2018. The Brunier vineyard spans 98 hectares within Châteauneuf-du-Pape, largely across the mythic plateau of La Crau, with Piedlong parcels as its highest point. The family also owns Domaine Les Pallières in Gigondas, in partnership with Kermit Lynch, and Domaine Massaya in Lebanon. The family's wine style, conceived with admirable rigour, resists the fashion for power: it favours balance, freshness and refinement, even when alcohol is generous.

Food pairing

This Châteauneuf-du-Pape Piedlong pairs beautifully with venison Wellington, slow-cooked lamb with Provençal herbs, wild hare, lamb with black olives, or game birds such as woodcock. It also harmonises well with aged cheeses of quality such as very old Comté or Roquefort. Decanting for at least two hours is advised in its youth. Served between 16 and 18°C, it will gradually reveal the full spiced depth and pedigree of a Châteauneuf-du-Pape of singular character.