Château de Nalys is one of the oldest estates in the appellation of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The property was already listed in the land register at the end of the 16th Century.

The Château de Nalys was named after its first occupant, Jacques Nalis, a farming official for the Archbishop of Avignon. From 1633 onwards, he was entrusted with the development of a farm surrounded by land and vines, the cradle of the estate today. The Nalis family produced wine and remained in charge of the domain until the French Revolution. Afterwards, the domain was sold to a local family from Châteauneuf-du-Pape who continued to work the land and reside at the property for seven generations. One of the last in the line of family members, and certainly the most illustrious among them, was Doctor Philippe Dufays. A medical doctor by training, he arrived in the region during the Second World War and married the heir of Nalys. A passionate man, ‘the Doctor’, as he was known by his friends and family, dedicated all his resources and energy to the property. Over nearly 20 years, Doctor Dufays extensively developed Nalys, doubling the size of the estate and establishing sales in a number of foreign markets. Following the accidental death of his son in 1975, Doctor Dufays decided to walk away from Nalys, and sold it to the agricultural insurance company Groupama.

In 2017 the Guigal family acquired Château de Nalys after a decade long search, convinced of the exceptional quality of its terroirs and its prestigious past.

Today, Nalys stands as a jewel in Maison Guigal’s crown in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, where the Château de Nalys enjoys an exceptional position opposite the historical village and its famous Papal Palace. With its sixty hectares, this beautiful property is made up of three similar-sized plots: “Nalys” in the area of “Grand Pierre”, home to red sandstone soils of Comtat and saffres; “Bois Sénéchal” (official lieu-dit “Seneseau”); and the famous terroir of “La Crau”. The latter two plots are endowed with ancient stony alluvium soils and the famous pebbles of the Rhône region, the “galets”. Exercising rigorous standards, this historic property carefully cultivates the famous 13 grape varieties of the appellation on its exceptional terroirs, producing four wines: Château de Nalys Grand Vin (red and white) and Saintes Pierres de Nalys (red and white). Marcel and Philippe Guigal are deeply involved in all aspects of winemaking at the Château de Nalys. Ever conscious of the environment and sustainable practices in all aspects of Guigal’s winemaking, the family are in the process of converting the Nalys estate to certified, organic viticulture and are already farming organically.