History of the Estate

The history of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape vineyard goes back to the 14th century when the papacy, then residing in Avignon, chose Châteauneuf-du-Pape as its summer retreat. Seven successive popes encouraged wine growing and developed the vineyard.

The MESTRE family is among the most ancient in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Its members come from a long line of wine growers, the vineyard having been passed on from generation to generation. In the 1960s, Monique and Jean Claude MESTRE took over the family brand name and created their own vineyard with some of the vines from the tiny village of Côteau de l’Ange. In 1988, their daughter Corinne took over the Domaine de la Côte de l’Ange, accompanied by her sons Jules and Louis. 

Together they respectfully perpetuate this age-old wine-growing tradition.

Vineyard

Very special care is given to cultivating the vines. We practise bud pruning and green harvesting and we believe in sensitive and attentive handling, adapted to each situation.

To avoid the use of insecticides, we use sexual confusion, a method in which diffusers are strategically placed to confuse male butterflies and prevent them finding the females, thereby avoiding infestation with grape caterpillars.

The size, choice of manure and ploughing are adapted to each plot of land. Grape gathering is done by hand and the grapes are sorted according to the Castel Papale tradition, our aim being to produce the healthiest possible grape while at the same time showing scrupulous respect for the environment.

Wine making & Aging

We use thermoregulation, a technique which allows vat temperatures to be monitored and controlled during fermentation. While the wine is fermenting in the vat we also carry out remontage or pumping over (a technology used to increase extraction)  and délestage (a fermentation and maceration technique used to separate the juice and grape solids).

Red wines are made in concrete vats. Our wines are matured in large casks, barrels or truncated vats and adapted according to the structure of the wine. We make several batches with different combinations of Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah grape varieties.

As for white wine from the Grenache, Clairette, Bourboulenc and Roussane grape varieties, 70% is made in thermo-regulated stainless steel vats and 30% in new barrels.

We also produce landmark local wines known as Vins de Terroir.