Had a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to a large Reynaud retrospective tasting including some legendary vintages of Rayas, the only Pignan Blanc they ever made, and many other fascinating wines.
Very wine except for the first (2000 Fonsalette Blanc) showed very well and most needed some air and would have been even better if followed over a whole evening with a small group. Still, this was one of the most fascinating tastings I attended in recent memory.
THE REYNAUD FAMILY: FOUR DECADES OF RAYAS, PIGNAN & FONSALETTE - Cafe Vivant (9/15/2026)
- 2000 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Blanc Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Much darker than the other whites and clearly oxidized on the nose. The palate is in slightly better shape, but unfortunately this was an off bottle. (NR/flawed) - 1991 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Apparently the only vintage Rayas created a Pignan Blanc, so this is quite the unicorn. The nose is really nice with rich and mature notes of stone fruit, hay, white mushrooms, and a bit of creaminess. Medium acidity on the palate with more stone fruit, lemon, and minerals that add lift. Great finish. What a fascinating wine! Complex and surprisingly fresh (especially on the palate), this is a cerebral wine and I wish I could have followed this over a few hours. (94 points) - 2000 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc RÊserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Lovely nose and next to the 1991 Pignan this is much more understated and subtle, but still with riper fruit notes, peach, citrus, and white flowers. Medium acidity on the palate with flavors of stone fruit, ripe yellow fruit, a bit of citrus, and dried flowers. Long finish. Great wine that strikes a really nice balance between richness and elegance. It seems a bit less powerful than the Pignan but made up with nuance. (94 points)
- 2000 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
This had the most fragrant nose of this flight with red cherries, a bit of flowers, and just a hint of the characteristic "Reynaud strawberries" that emerged with air. Medium acidity on the palate with good structure, more cherry flavors, red berries, and a hint of warmth. Nice finish. that lingers. A very nice wine that is drinking well now without too much depth. (92 points) - 1993 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette CuvÊe Syrah - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Nice nose with quite red fruited profile for Syrah, notes of cherries, tart fruit, a bit of pine needles, and violets. Good structure on the palate with more red fruit, cherries, a bit of underwood, and savory. Good finish. Definitely a brighter style of Syrah (probably also due to the vintage) and a wine that needed quite a bit of air to show. (92 points) - 1990 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
The most muted and closed of the three in this flight with cherries and a bit of forest notes on the nose. Medium acidity with a good amount of red fruit, cherries, and a bit of red flowers on the palate. Nice finish. A nice wine, but I feel like this was not showing everything. Surprisingly light on its feet (although not thin) for a 1990. (91 points)
- 1998 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Lovely nose with fragrant notes of cherries, strawberries, a bit of noticeable alcohol, some tea, and violets. Medium acidity on the palate with lots of red fruit, cherries, and strawberries and just a hint of tertiary notes starting to emerge. Nice finish that lingers. Beautiful wine that has quite a bit of power and structure. It's clearly riper than the 94 and 93 next to it, but remains well balanced. This should last for a long time. 94+ (94 points) - 1994 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This was quite the surprise! Very pretty nose with forest notes, red fruit, flowers, strawberries, and a hint of smoke. Nice acidity on the palate with plenty of berries, cherries, forest floor, violets, and dried flowers. Great finish. What a fantastic showing and pleasant surprise. It started out very nice and then became more and more expressive with air. I heard from the somm that this is by far the best 94 he's ever opened, so clearly there seems to be some bottle variation... (95 points) - 1993 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
More restrained nose than the other two wines next to it with red berries, pine, and wet leaves. Medium acidity on the palate with again rather muted and quiet flavors of red cherries, berries, and a hint of leather. Good finish. A good wine that would probably have shown much better on its own but the other two vintages stole the show today... (92 points)
- 2000 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Beautiful nose that started out a little shy but really blossomed with air. Notes of red cherries, berries, pomegranate, and flowers that got more and more expressive with air and higher temperature. Lovely mouthfeel with tons of strawberries, raspberries, dried rose petals, and a hint of sous bois on the palate. Long finish. Absolutely lovely wine. It's elegant yet powerful with nice complexity and delineated flavors. (96 points) - 1996 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This was also a bit closed at first and started to show wild strawberries, flowers, red plums, and forest notes with air. Good acidity (probably the highest of the reds) on the palate with more strawberries, pine needles, and a hint of savory. Great finish. I quite liked this vintage. It feels a bit more savory and with less fruit sweetness than the other wines and it kept changing in the glass. 95+ (95 points) - 1993 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Very fragrant and probably the most floral on the nose with interesting notes of strawberries, violets, and roses. Medium acidity on the palate with red fruit, berries, a bit of forest floor, and sweet red fruit. Quite long finish. Beautiful wine that showed incredibly young. Another wine to follow with a small group over the course of an evening. (95 points)
- 1990 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Incredible nose with tons of depth and notes of flowers, a hint of herbs, wild strawberries, cherries, and riper red fruit. Great balance on the palate with enormous power and intensity, flavors of red cherries, strawberries, some jam, but also pure fruit. Very long finish. There is so much going on in this wine, it's very complex and has a lot of weight, but it never feels too ripe or heavy. Beautiful experience! (98 points) - 1985 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Super interesting nose with noters of red fruit, savory, herbs, and dried flowers. There is a lot of depth, but the flavors are much more subtle compared to the 90. Very pretty palate with good acidity, red fruit, a distinct iron note, strawberries, cherry jam, a hint of alcoholic heat, some floral notes, and generally riper fruit profile than the nose suggests. Long finish. This wine demands attention! Incredibly beautiful and complex. It was a close call with the 90 for WOTN and I feel like if I could have just focused on these two for an entire evening, the 85 may have taken the crown. But with a small sample over a relatively short period, the 90 was just a bit more impressive and explosive. (97 points) - 1978 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Certainly the most mature of the wines and I was a bit worried at first that this was a bit too old given a slightly musty note on the nose. Thankfully this blew off almost completely with air and the wine picked up more fruit and freshness. Notes of cherries, leather, sweet plum, and ripe strawberries. The palate is really nice and shows a bit less age with cherries, also a bit of iron, underwood, dried petals, and a hint of leather. Great finish. What an incredible experience and privilege to be able to taste this wine. Really glad the bottle cleaned up, but I still think this would have been even better a decade ago. This really would have been worth following over a few hours to see how it changes in the glass. (96 points)
