2012 Châteauneuf-du-Pape

The Courtil family has been one of the most reliable producers of classically styled, elegant Châteauneuf for a some time now. They describe 2012 as "a quite classic vintage, in a way like 2010 but with easier tannins and the fruit to the front, which makes them very easy to drink already." I also had the chance to taste through some tanks and barrels of this estate's 2014 during my visit and the newest vintage looks to be a textbook example of the house style, with intense red fruit, blood orange and floral character and pinot-like texture.

The 2012 and 2011 Chateauneufs produced by Claude Courtil and his sons David and Jerome were among the most elegant wines I tasted during my November trip through the southern Rhone. I daresay they would go a long way toward renewing the lost faith of backsliding Chateauneuf believers who have bought into the notion that all the wines of the region are high in octane and over the top. Which isn't to say that the Courtils' wines are lightweights--far from it, in fact. The remarkable 2007 Cuvee Speciale, some of which is still aging in old barriques, checks in at 17% alcohol, which gives the Usseglios and Janasses a run for their money in the richness stakes. The key, Claude told me, "is to be sure that you're harvesting fruit before there's any sign of raisining, and not just in appearance. You have to taste the grapes to be sure that the freshness is maintained." Freshness is achievable at high sugar levels if you have the right soils and expositions, he went on, adding that "if you harvest here without full ripeness you have high acidity, sure, but the flavors aren't developed and the wine won't age positively."