2018 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Famille Isabel Ferrando (St.-Préfert)

One of the whites of the vintage is the 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc, a gorgeous, rich, layered effort that stays perfectly balanced and pure. Classic notes of white flowers, honeysuckle, white peach, and ample minerality all give way to a medium to full-bodied white that has loads of texture, good freshness, and a great finish. This is a brilliant Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc that makes a mockery of so many of the overly lean, fresh, so called elegant whites being produced today.

The 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc is a blend of 80% Clairette and 20% Roussanne, all barrel-fermented and aged in 30% new oak (briefly, as the wine was bottled in January). It features scents of honey, marmalade and delicate hints of peach and pineapple. Medium-bodied, it's silky in texture, with brine and citrus zest on the finish.

Bright, with white peach and white nectarine flavors bursting through, laced with verbena and honeysuckle notes and ending with a fresh finish. Clairette and Roussanne.