Chateau Rayas is one the legendary properties from Chateauneuf du Pape. There are many knowledgeable wine lovers that feel Rayas is in fact the top wine in all of Chateauneuf du Pape. Thanks to the expertise of the Reynaud family who has been crafting wines in Châteauneu-du-Pape for four generations. Château Rayas wines are some of the most awarded and famous wines of the appellation.

Château Rayas is a very exclusive wine due to only being produced in small quantities. Only 30 bottles of this 100% Grenache batch have been released to Australia and we are delighted to hold one in our cellar.  

If there is one single wine in the appellation that signifies the true level of greatness possible in Chateauneuf du Pape, perhaps it’s Rayas. Like the First Growths of Bordeaux, Rayas could be the wine that stands above all the others in the Southern Rhone Valley.

The bouquet of Rayas is haunting. The purity of fruit in Chateau Rayas can be otherworldly and the textures are extraordinarily silky, elegant and sensuous.

Tasting Notes:

• Black raspberry, jam, kirsch and pepper aromas, medium body and sweet kirsch flavors with a touch of olive and herbal sensations in the elegant, textured finish. This is already drinking well.
• “Fully mature, but will plenty to offer Grenache lovers due to its silky, lushly textured character, pure, ripe and very ripe, red pit fruits, kirsch and earthy traits. There is a good combination of a sunny vintage, with earthy, barnyard accents and peppery red plum jam to top things off. This is not a wine I would age for decades. It is probably close to peak now.”
• “Probably close to fully mature, the earthy, sweet, kirsch and barnyard characteristics really stand out here. Silky, soft, medium bodied, elegant and wild, this is probably drinking at peak today.”
• “Avoiding all the trappings of this extreme vintage, the kirsch, black raspberry, spice and garrigue is all over the place. Lush, sensuous, clean and pure, with no sensation of heat of jammy flavours, this is drinking extremely well today.”

Pairings

Chateau Rayas is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken. Perfect to accompany our Taijama wagyu tenderloin with duck pate, grass fed fillet & lamb kidneys or Peking duck pancake. Chateau Rayas is also good with Asian inspired dishes; Korean sticky chicken, pad thai or laksa or hearty fish course, mushrooms ragout or roasted eggplant.