Domaine Jean Royer

France, Rhône

Jean-Marie Royer inherited his vines in 1985 and set about improving the grape varietal mix and the vinification from then. Since more than half of the domaine is in unclassified ('Vin de Table') or 'Côtes du Rhône, he has developed a marque 'Le Petit Roy' sold as Vin de Table' for everything that does not make it into the Châteauneuf cuvées. The Petit Roy has always been a big hit in the shops ever since first joining our list.

His Châteauneufs are just gorgeous and offer refreshingly fantastic value for money. He has undoubtedly been much helped his close friend, the late star oenologist Philippe Cambié, who he went to school with and also played rugby with for many years. Cambié was more famous for a full-on rather extracted style, but Jean-Marie imposed his own, fresher, brighter style on all his wines which are crunchy and well-defined, helping cement these elegant expressions of Grenache as some of the finest from Châteauneuf.

For years now, fans of unadorned, graceful Châteauneuf-du-Papes have been beating a path to Jean Royer’s door. Consumers are going to be quite pleased with the 2018s. Royer owns 12 hectares of vineyards, almost all of them in the appellation. All of the bottlings are noteworthy for their detail and finesse, even in ripe vintages. They show quite well upon release. The 2018s don’t really tend to shut down, making them ideal wines for readers who lack the patience for cellaring. Josh Raynolds, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar  (Oct 2021)


I was surprised not to see any 2017s presented by Jean-Marie Royer as they showed beautifully last year. His 2018s are impressive and have plenty of upside as well. Lovers of pure, elegant, yet sexy Grenache owe it themselves to try these wines. Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com  (Aug 2019)


Vigneron Jean-Marie Royer pulls from a number of prime terroirs, most consisting of sandy soils. While 2015 was challenging for the sandier parts of the appellation, he’s turned out a bevy of beautiful wines. His 2016s are some of the finest I’ve tasted from the estate. Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com  (Aug 2016)


Vignobles Jean-Marie Royer is a very small estate of just over 12 acres, located in the southwestern sector of the appellation, not far from St.-Prefert, with their holdings in the two best known sectors of that area, Bois de la Ville and Les Grandes Serres. Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com


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