Château La Nerthe is one of the oldest estates in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, dating from 1560, with 220 acres of vineyards that surround the château. The grapes for Clos de Beauvenir are grown in a single vineyard that was previously an old castle garden. It is protected from the wind by plane trees that also provide shade during the day. A nearby spring, one of the few natural springs in the region, creates a microclimate that is warm during the day and cool at night. The vines are 40 years old on average and face south. The soil is loamy and sandy with a layer of galets, or large pebbles carried down from the Alps by glaciers in the last ice age. Hand harvesting and sorting is done early in the morning to take advantage of cooler temperatures. The grapes are slowly pressed for 3 hours to extract only premium juice. Low-temperature fermentation takes place in French oak demi-muids and the wine is then aged on fine lees for almost 9 months. Blending takes place shortly before bottling.