Jerome Gradassi

History of Domaine Jérôme Gradassi

The estate’s story is one of a return to its roots. Born in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Jérôme Gradassi comes from a line of winegrowers: his great-grandfather began tending vines in the 1930s, and his grandfather planted or replanted the entire family vineyard between then and the 1970s. Jérôme himself, however, chose a different path and went into cooking.

Until 2004, he ran a small restaurant in Avignon with eighteen seats and one Michelin star. Then came the desire for a change of life. He took over three hectares of vines that had remained in the family, added two hectares of leased vines and embarked on a craft that cannot be improvised. His first vintage was 2004. Drawing on a keen sense of balance honed in the kitchen, he soon achieved promising results and decided to continue. Working alone on his five hectares, away from the spotlight, he built a strong reputation vintage by vintage among the most discerning wine lovers. His wines are often compared with those of Vieux Donjon for their finesse and precision. The estate remains tiny, production limited, and every bottle retains the artisanal character of work done entirely by hand.

Terroirs and Vines of Domaine Jérôme Gradassi

The estate’s five hectares are divided into six plots, all along the road to Orange in the areas of Palestor, Bois Dauphin and Cabrières. Remarkably for an appellation famous for its sea of rounded stones, these plots have almost none. The soils are clay and sand, remarkably consistent from one plot to the next, lying along the same band of earth that brings freshness.

These are known as cool soils, and they are the estate’s true hallmark. They withstand drought, retain moisture through Vaucluse’s scorching summers and produce elegant wines that favor finesse over power, with abundant garrigue aromas. Alcohol levels remain moderate for the appellation. The grape selection is deliberately narrow: 75 to 80% Grenache Noir, with Mourvèdre making up the rest, from sixty- to eighty-year-old vines planted by Jérôme Gradassi’s grandfather. The white, made in a run of just a few hundred bottles, is based almost entirely on Clairette, with a touch of Grenache Blanc and a portion of pink-skinned Clairette harvested well after the reds. Jérôme Gradassi uses no fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides and works the soils traditionally. He makes no secret of his decision not to seek organic certification, citing administrative constraints rather than any difference in farming practices, and uses sulfur only sparingly. The grapes are harvested by hand into crates.

Winemaking at Domaine Jérôme Gradassi

The winery is like the estate itself: tiny and unpretentious. The grapes are fermented as whole clusters, without destemming, in tiled concrete tanks carved directly into the rock. This underground setting retains gentle natural warmth for a long time, encouraging slow, steady fermentations.

The winemaking is traditional and restrained. Only native yeasts are used, maceration lasts about four weeks, and extraction is limited to manual punch-downs, without ever trying to force more from the fruit. Aging is deliberately brief—just ten months in barrels four to ten years old—leaving no trace of new oak. This approach yields lightly extracted wines with precise structure, appealing in their youth for their easy drinkability while also developing remarkably well in the cellar. The guiding idea comes down to three things: healthy grapes, the right ripeness and restrained winemaking.

The cuvées of Domaine Jérôme Gradassi

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rouge: the estate’s sole and signature cuvée, with around ten thousand bottles produced each year. It blends 75 to 80% Grenache Noir and 20 to 25% Mourvèdre from sixty- to eighty-year-old vines across six plots in Palestor, Bois Dauphin and Cabrières. Fermented with whole clusters in concrete tanks carved into the rock, macerated for four weeks with manual punch-downs, then aged for ten months in older barrels, it has a luminous ruby color, neither pale nor dark. The highly fragrant nose combines fresh red fruit, blackcurrant, pepper and sweet spices over a backdrop of garrigue. The palate is supple and rounded, with Grenache’s fine structure, beautifully integrated tannins and remarkable freshness for the appellation. This is an inviting Châteauneuf, remarkably approachable in its youth, yet it gains a velvety texture and complexity after ten or fifteen years in the cellar. Superb with lamb shoulder, a dried-fruit tagine or roast poultry.

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc: the estate’s rarest wine, with only a few hundred bottles produced each year. Made from around 95% Clairette with a touch of Grenache Blanc, it comes from the same plots along the road to Orange, on the band of clay that brings freshness. The nose is distinctly floral, followed on the palate by delicate white-fruit aromas and a hint of licorice. It is rich and full-bodied, yet always balanced by lovely freshness on the finish. A white wine for the table, to serve with oily fish, poultry in a cream sauce or a flavorful cheese.