{"product_id":"chateau-rayas-chateauneuf-du-pape-reserve-blanc-2005","title":"Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve Blanc 2005","description":"\u003cp\u003eChâteau Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve Blanc 2005 is a Clairette and Grenache Blanc from Rhône with quince, apricot and gentle spice, from old foudres. This is the rare Rayas white, dry and full in shape. Expect honeysuckle, white pepper, and the quiet depth that makes this estate feel unlike any neighbour.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe 2005 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve Blanc comes from one of the most singular domaines in the southern Rhône. Its white wine is built from Clairette and Grenache Blanc, grown on a mix of sand and galets roulés around the Rayas parcels. The estate is closely linked with sandy ground in a village famous for broad stony plateaux. That sand gives this bottle its unusual feel, with pale lift running under the breadth of the 2005 fruit. At 13.5% alcohol, the wine stays dry and composed, with a quiet power that feels true to Rayas.\n\nThe wine was aged in old large oak foudres. Those vessels add a broad, seasoned frame, with spice that sits inside the fruit rather than on top of it. The old wood reads as baking spice, faint honeycomb, and a smooth texture across the middle of the palate. Bottle age has drawn the Clairette toward quince skin and waxed lemon. The Grenache Blanc adds apricot flesh and a rounded almond note. A white-pepper line runs through the finish, with the old-foudre spice tucked into the last sip.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTasting Notes\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe 2005 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve Blanc opens slowly in the glass, moving from quince and dried apricot into honeysuckle, warm wax, and a faint note of crushed white pepper. The palate is full-bodied and richly textured, with great acidity that cuts a clean path through the fruit and keeps the old-foudre spice in sharp focus. There is a serious, almost stony edge behind the golden fruit, and it gives the wine a cool Rayas calm despite the natural weight of Grenache Blanc. Air brings out baking spices, almond skin, and a delicate savoury note that recalls the most elegant Jacques Reynaud-era bottles. Drink 2025-2035.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eServe this Château Rayas Reserve Blanc cool and give it a large white-wine glass, as the texture needs room to unfold from quince into apricot and spice. For a regional pairing, choose brandade de morue from Nîmes, where salt cod, olive oil, and potato meet the wine’s dry weight and peppery finish. Roast turbot with beurre blanc is another strong match, especially with fennel or a few caramelised shallots on the plate. Poulet de Bresse with morels brings out the wine’s old-foudre spice and its rounded almond note. Aged Comté or Beaufort also fits the 2005 profile, with nutty saltiness beside the honeysuckle and quince-skin detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProducer\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eChâteau Rayas is one of the few Châteauneuf-du-Pape estates identified as much by a patch of sand as by a family name. The domaine sits apart from the broad stony image of the appellation, with sheltered parcels where pale sand shapes wines of perfume and quiet power. Emmanuel Reynaud runs the estate today, following the era of Jacques Reynaud, whose wines earned a lasting reputation for delicacy in a region often judged by size and warmth. Rayas releases its wines in tiny quantities, and the white Reserve Blanc is far scarcer than the red that made the château famous. The cellar language is deliberately simple, with large old foudres giving the wines a seasoned texture and a gentle savoury edge. In this 2005 Reserve Blanc, that Rayas signature lands as honeysuckle, white pepper, quince skin, and a calm texture that feels hand-shaped and softly burnished.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chateau Rayas","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54252881150289,"sku":"PS-15406558609788","price":915.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0874\/0614\/9969\/files\/dwadasdddaldal_655298b2-487b-476c-83d0-636d5de3ed32.png?v=1783447577","url":"https:\/\/bottlehero.com\/products\/chateau-rayas-chateauneuf-du-pape-reserve-blanc-2005","provider":"Bottle Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}