Tulle de villefranche (more information)

Around 1750, La Nerthe was a domaine covering 50 hectares, planted in part with vines and including the rudiments of the current château begun in 1736. At this time, the domaine's renown had already spread throughout Europe and "the excellent wines" of La Nerthe were exported to England, Germany, Italy, Spain and even to Boston, home of the "insurgents".
In 1782, Darluc, the author of "Histoire Naturelle de Provence" (Natural History of Provence), singled out this domaine's "first class wines", affirming unequivocally that " ….. the best wines are harvested in the Clos de La Nerthe….they have smoothness and charm. The time to drink them at their perfect maturity is when they are between three and four years old. "
In 1784, La Nerthe wines were already being bottled at the domaine! And the Marquis de Tulle de Villefranche, one of the artisans of the promotion of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, had already developed his own network of distributors.
This network was so well exploited that by the beginning of the 19th Century the wines of Châteauneuf were selling for 30 percent more than those of neighboring villages. La Nerthe, the most expensive among them, was naturally recognized as the leader of all Châteauneuf wines!