2011 Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Yields in recent vintages have been "historically terrible" at this historic property, Paul Avril told me in November."In terms of production," he said, "we have basically made four vintages out of the last six, including 2013," pointing out that production in 2011 barely hit 18 hectoliters per hectare and that he had his team drop almost a third of the potential crop during the summer.Avril is fond of pointing out that he has never sold fruit or wine to the negoce and that he has never made a second wine or a super single-site or old-vines bottling either."All of the fruit that's left after selection in the vineyard and at the sorting tables goes into the one Clos des Papes," he said, adding that "it's for all intents, in a typical year, a 70,000-bottle special cuvee because it's a selection of a selection of a selection."He compares his 2012 Chateauneuf to his 2005 "because of its elegance" but also sees elements of his 2010 "because of its structure."He has no doubt that it will age gracefully, by the way.At the end of our tasting Avril opened his 2010, which is starting to close down as "the tannins are coming forward now."We also tasted his 2008, a wine (and vintage) that he thinks is going to surprise people.There's 30% mourvedre in the '08, he told me, "which is going to help it hold up far better than a lot of people expect."I found it to be quite complex already, with smoky, mineral-tinged red fruit character, good spicy cut and a long, focused finish.It can be drunk now but I'd bet on another three to five years of positive development.

Paul Avril told me that he sees 2011 as "a cross of 2008 and 2007" and said that the best wines are appealingly vibrant, "which will appeal to Burgundy drinkers"; they can also surprise people with their depth.Yields in '11 here were a mere 19 hl/ha, from 24 different parcels, and the final wine should clock in at 15.5% alcohol, which is nobody's--or at least no sane person's--idea of a wimpy wine.He compares his own 2011 to his 1999 and thinks that it will age well thanks to "very good phenolics and structure and a high percentage of mourvedre in the blend."Avril believes that his 2010 "will be closing up soon, maybe even by this coming spring" and he hopes that buyers of the wine "won't be tempted to open it just yet because all they'll see is potential, if they're lucky."He opened his 2008 for me; it's in a very nice place right now, if still youthful, with intense red fruit and floral pastille character and very soft tannins.I'll be surprised if it ever really closes back up, or if it will be an especially long ager, for that matter.The 1999, which Avril showed me as well, is a smoky, deeply pitched wine that's showing its substantial mourvedre component at the moment but its tannins are slowly melting away and the wine drinks quite well right now.Avril lamented the fact that many collectors own so much wine that bottles in their collection may not be drunk at their peak, or, worse, when they're on the downslope."We make it to drink, not to look at or bury", he said.