Château Beaucastel's 1997 vintage comes from a year that produced succulent, lush Châteauneuf - charming wines made for drinking young. 

Beaucastel's vineyards are based on the famous rounded stones called galets that were deposited in times when the Rhône river raged as a torrent, tearing fragments of rocks from the Alps onto the plains. The galets soak up the intense heat during the summer ripening months and release it during the evenings. Water retention is poor which helps the Châteauneuf vines struggle and thus bear fruit more easily.

The Perrin brothers, the current owners of Beaucastel's 100 hectares, do not use chemical fertilisers, preferring to use a compost made on the property from a mixture of sheep manure and the previous year's pressings (marc) which helps to maintain the soil's own natural equilibrium.

Wonderfully spicy, bitter chocolatey nose with black cherry fruit flowing into the mouth. There’s also some complex leathery, gamey elements, rising from a gorgeously silky frame.

"...luscious cassis, licorice, and blackberries inundate the palate with no hard edges. A seductive, supple-textured, medium to full-bodied Beaucastel, this wine should drink well young, and last for 15 or more years..." eRobertParker.com (Feb 1999)