Domaine du Pegau Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvée da Capo Tinto 2016

Domaine du Pegau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée da Capo Tinto 2016 is one of the rarest, most powerful and revered wines of the Rhône Valley in France. This special cuvée from the renowned Domaine du Pegau is made only in exceptional vintages. Critics consider 2016 one of the best vintages ever for the appellation.

The Wine Advocate
RP 99

Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski

As impressive as the Cuvée Réservée is, the 2016 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée da Capo takes the intensity to another level. Imagine turning the volume up to 11 or even 12. Waves of black cherries, plums and chocolate roll across the full-bodied, velvety palate, lingering almost forever on the finish. As big and bold as it is, it remains impressively elegant and refined. It should age gracefully through at least 2040.

Starting the tasting with the whites, Laurence Féraud pointed out that yields were affected by mildew in 2018, and not just the Grenache. Her white Châteauneuf-du-Pape production was roughly half of normal. She also said there will be no Cuvée da Capo in either 2017 or 2018. “In 2018, there's a certain fragility in the mid-palate. Bigger berries, thinner skins.” As compensation, consumers can look forward to a delicious, earlier-drinking 2018 Cuvée Réservée and a dense, long-lived version in 2017.

One of the highlights of this year's visit was the chance to taste the 2009 and 1989 Cuvée Réservée, both reassuringly excellent and still drinking beautifully. I'll publish reviews of the rest of Féraud's wines, her various Côtes du Rhône offerings, in Part 2 of the Southern Rhône report.