43% Roussanne, 33% Grenache Blanc, 15% Clairette, 6% Bourboulenc, 3% Piquepoul

Food pairings: Langoustines or lobster, fish with a beurre blanc sauce, and aged goat cheese.

Winemaking: The grapes were picked by hand and sorted, then pressed, and the must was clarified before fermentation. The wine was vinified 70% in wood and 30% in stainless steel, then aged for eight months, again 70% in wood (barrels and demi-muids). 2018 was a challenging year that gave a very small crop, with a harvest spread over five weeks; the whites that were made show good structure and fresh acidity.

Vineyards and terroir: The Grand Vin Blanc is drawn from three of the estate's vineyards: Nalys itself (36%), around the château on red Comtat sandstone and safres (sandy marine sediments); Bois Sénéchal (37%); and La Crau (27%), the famous plateau covered in galets roulés, the large rounded river stones left by the ancient Rhône.

Family and history: Already recorded in the land registers at the end of the 16th century, Château de Nalys is one of the oldest estates in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It takes its name from Jacques Nalis, farmer-general of the Archbishopric of Avignon, who was entrusted with a farmhouse surrounded by fields and vines here in 1633. A Châteauneuf family later ran the estate for seven generations, the best known being Doctor Philippe Dufays, who doubled its size and took its wines abroad. In July 2017 the estate was bought by the Guigal family of Ampuis, who have made Châteauneuf-du-Pape since Étienne Guigal founded the house in 1946.

In the pictures: The Nalys vineyard and the Bois Sénéchal vineyard of Château de Nalys (photos © Stéphane Chalaye Photographie, courtesy of Château de Nalys); and the conical vats in the Nalys cellar (photo courtesy of E. Guigal / Vintus).