2008 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier

. Isabel Ferrando told me that for her own taste and for her own wines, "2009 is a more interesting vintage than 2007. They're fresher and better balanced but they also have the necessary concentration to age. The 2007s require patience: not as much as with 2005 but they aren't wines to drink now." Ferrando's preference for 2009 over the richer, riper 2007s is in line with her ongoing search for finesse, which now includes the use of more cinsault, which she says "gives an exotic floral quality and spiciness and accentuates the perfume of the wine." She also re-emphasized that she is extremely happy with the used demi-muids she buys from Yann Chave in the northern Rhone, "because you can get a longer and slower uptake of air and can have smoother temperature changes than with small casks. The oak influence is also less strong, which is especially crucial to maintaining the freshness and vibrancy of grenache."

"An outstanding vintage where the fruit and tannins are in perfect harmony" is how Isabel Ferrando described 2007 to me. "People with lots of patience will prefer the 2005s but they'll have to wait for those while the 2007s are lovely right from the start." Ferrando emphasized that she prefers wines that work well at the table. "But this is Chateauneuf, so the foods that work with these rich wines are the richest meats, especially game and also truffles and strong cheeses. There's just so much elegance that you can reasonably expect from Chateauneuf, and the task is to get balance and not have fruit that is overripe and over the top. Two thousand seven did that better than any vintage I've seen. Never forget that we're talking about big, powerful wines, some of the richest in France, so food should be chosen with that in mind."