Domaine de la Janasse’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes 2018 is the estate’s flagship red, built around old Grenache vines and a style that aims for density without losing balance. The blend is reported as 85% Grenache, 10% Syrah, and 3% Mourvèdre (with the remainder largely Cinsault), sourced from vines roughly 60 to more than 100 years old. At 15.5% alcohol, it’s a powerful wine on paper, and reviewers largely agree it carries that weight with control.
The strongest notices are emphatically excellent. Joe Czerwinski for Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate delivers 97 points, calling it “magnificent” and “impossibly voluminous on the palate,” with “mixed raspberries and blackberries… salted licorice and dark chocolate,” finishing with “salinity” and “crushed stone.” Wine Spectator (96 points) similarly emphasizes texture and fruit, describing “a lushly textured set of crushed plum, boysenberry and blackberry fruit flavors” with “licorice snap” and “black tea on the finish,” and recommends time in the cellar (best 2023–2038). Vinous’ Josh Raynolds (95 points) highlights aromatic complexity—“ripe red/blue fruits, incense and exotic spices”—and likes its energy, citing “a core of juicy acidity” and a “long, sweet finish framed by velvety tannins.”
Other reviews reinforce the idea of a generous 2018 that still reads as classic Châteauneuf. Jeb Dunnuck (94 points) notes “the softer, elegant style of the vintage,” with “silky tannins and no hard edges,” calling it “already hard to resist” over the next 10–15 years. Decanter (93 points) calls it “full-bodied, generous and muscular,” adding that it was “fermented in concrete” and “matured for 12 months in foudre and demi-muid,” while acknowledging the alcohol runs high. Jeff Leve (95 points) sums up its appeal as “plush… ripe, fresh… lusciously textured,” calling it “one of the wines of the vintage.”
