A Quick Visit to Chateauneuf-du-Pape for Wine, Charm, and Castle Ruins

Every year we make a pilgrimage to Nice, France to pick up our residency cards. This year we decided to take a car from there and drive through the south and middle of France to get to Bordeaux. On the way, we made a number of stops and our first stop was Chateauneuf-du-Pape the premier wine region of Cote du Rhone.

Annual Nice Visit

On the heels of our Train Day From Hell, we settled in for a few days in Nice. We visit Nice annually to pick up our French residence cards, which allow us to stay in Europe for as long as we want. Without them, we would be subject to The Schengen Shuffle if we wanted to hang out on the continent for more than 90 days.

Although we only need to pay for our cards and pick them up, every year it seems more of humanity is in front of us in the. This year, we waited 2.5 hours for the privilege of getting our cards. There may come a day we don’t want to bother to get the cards, but we’re not there yet. There are worse problems to have, after all.

While we were in Nice, we took the opportunity to check out the beach and the town in the height of summer. We have never been there at this time of year before. Near the famous Place de Messina, there is a great fountain with lots of places to play in the water and get wet. It did look like fun. Then there was the somewhat crowded rocky beach, but no one seemed to mind. We also took the time to have one of our favorite local dishes, daube with mini meat ravioli. This meal has become a highlight of our visits to Nice. You can find more restaurant recommendations for Nice in A Little Food P*rn from Nice.

Media Blackout

Unfortunately, my phone seems to have been acting up during our time in Nice and for a week or so after and I have very few photos from the next few days. So, for much of the rest of the article, imagine I’m gesticulating a lot to attempt to fill in my descriptions.

On The Road Again

For the next couple weeks, we had decided to drive one-way in southern France. Accordingly, I went to pick up a rental car at the Nice airport when it was time to skedaddle, but they didn’t have my reservation. It seems I had reserved a car in a downtown location. The nice staff at Alamo sorted it out for us and we were on our way.

Digression – A one-way car rental can often be VERY expensive. For this trip, I learned some tricks about finding a good deal on one-way car rentals in Europe. Have a look at Secrets to Getting a Deal On a One-Way European Rental Car in case you are contemplating your own European vacation on wheels.

Castle Chateauneuf-du-Pape

Given the name of the town is the Pope’s new castle, one would think there would be some elaborate history related to it. Alas, no. The more relevant translation of “neuf” here is unused. Basically, Pope John XXII commissioned the castle in 1318, but died only a year before it was completed got almost no use from it, nor did any subsequent Pope.

The castle is now a ruin, but its remaining walls stand just above the current town of the same name, providing a commanding view of the countryside. It’s worth a brief stop.

It’s About The Wine

People don’t come to Chateauneuf for the ruined castle. They come, as did we, for the wine. Chateauneuf-du-pape wines are considered the apex of the Rhone Valley appellation.  Before our arrival, Diana found a great app called Rue De Vignerons, which allowed us to find and book wine tastings at many vineyards in southern France. It was kind of like OpenTable for wine tasting. It was a tremendous help because, with it, she could easily determine open hours and make reservations.

We arrived in Chateauneuf mid-day. The town itself is quite small and seems to just wind its way around toward the top of a hill. After a spot of lunch, we proceeded to hit 3 tasting rooms, all of which were very close and right in town. Some places were good, some meh. Our top spot was Domaine de Beaurenard, which had a pleasant tasting room and a congenial hostess. Later we checked into our hotel, but I hopped next door for an extra, free tasting at La Cave de Mathias. In addition to some nice wine, I struck up a long conversation with the hostess, who grew up in Colorado but had spent the last 25 years in the wine business in France, working for Kermit Lynch, a big American importer. Her American and French accents were impeccable, which made the chat much better.

Our Hotel and Dinner

We stayed at the Hotel La Mere Germaine, in the very center of this small town. I would recommend it even though it was a little hard to find and there was no parking. It was quite new and well-appointed. For dinner, we walked over to Le Comptoir de La Mere Germaine, just in time for our reservation on the lovely patio. Given the size of the town, there were not many dining options. If you visit in the summer, be sure to make a reservation. My roast veal dish was great and paired well with the local wine. I would certainly return for another meal.

Overall, we enjoyed our quick overnight in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, but it wouldn’t make sense to stay any longer except to use it as a base for wine tasting in the area. The town is just too small.