Domaine Sabon is a family-run business that was established in 1952 by Roger Sabon. Today the estate is composed of an 18 ha vineyard on the eastern bank of the Rhône river in the Châteauneuf du Pape appellation scattered on 14 different plots. On the western bank, the vineyard includes 12 ha in the Lirac appellation, 6 ha in CDR and 14 ha in VDF.

Since 2001 Didier Negron has made the wines at Domaine Roger Sabon, but recently he’s begun to move away from demi-muids and barriques in favor of aging his family’s wines in concrete and large French oak foudres. While the terroir of Roger Sabon, with its high concentration of sand and limestone, has always been inclined to a more ethereal and delicate style of Châteauneuf, Didier’s changes in the cellar have amplified these qualities – the wines have never been more engaging and lovely.

Le Secret des Sabon began as an experimental cuvée and which has evolved to be one of the top wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. With only about a single demi-muid produced each year, from presumably old vines with their correspondingly low yields, there isn’t much to go around. It is quite surprising to taste Secret after the Cuvée Prestige, as one normally expects the “top” win of the estate to be the biggest, but this is a red herring. While there is an unmistakably glyceryl weight to Le Secret, it is more high-toned than you would initially expect. Red fruit predominates with stony and herbal accents that hint at a long life ahead.

"I tasted the 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape le Secret de Sabon blind, alongside the other 2016s from this fine estate, and failed to discern a huge difference between it and the impressive Prestige or Reserve bottlings. I don't doubt that time will prove my rating to be conservative, hence the + sign. Winemaker Didier Négron retained some stems in this cuvée, and they show for the moment in its slightly herbal-minty notes, but they're balanced by ripe Grenache fruit that suggests apricot and plum. Lavender and thyme join in on the creamy, lush finish of this full-bodied but elegant offering. Drink 2020 - 2035.
96+ points."
(Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate #238, August 2018)