92 -95 points,

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, February 2003

The Avrils consider the 2001 Chateauneuf du Pape the finest they have made since 1990. Produced from meager yields of 25 hectoliters per hectare, it tips the scales at 14.5% alcohol. Backward and promising, with a deep ruby/purple color and a sweet nose of black fruits intermixed with plums, saddle leather, minerals, and truffles, this pure, full-bodied, moderately tannic, classic vin de garde will require patience. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2020.

95 points,

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, February 2004

Paul Avril feels that purchasers of the 2001 Chateauneuf du Pape should “wait ten years” before drinking it. A blend of 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah, and 5% Counoise, all aged in large wood foudres prior to being bottled without filtration, was produced from low yields of 27 hectoliters per hectare. A deep ruby/purple color is accompanied by a sweet bouquet of figs, raspberries, new saddle leather, autumnal forest floor, and resiny notes. Full-bodied with beautiful purity as well as a strikingly rich mouthfeel, this seriously endowed Chateauneuf admirably conceals its 14.5% alcohol. A structured finish and impressive extract levels suggest considerable longevity. This firmly tannic, intensely concentrated 2001 boasts great aromatic and palate presence, but it remains young and unevolved. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2020+.

93 points,

Wine Spectator, January 2005

Lots of black currant, mineral, grilled herb, olive paste and bittersweet cocoa notes. A sinewy texture up front steadily puts on muscle and flesh through the back end, allowing additional hints of chestnut, tar and grilled beef to emerge. A beauty. Drink now through 2015. 9,000 cases made. –JM

About Winery

This exquisitely run estate continues to turn out wines of great fragrance, richness as well as flavor authority and integrity. The yields are always among the lowest in the appellation. I have participated in so many exceptional tastings with Paul Avril that it is difficult for me to accept that his brilliant son, Vincent, may be eclipsing the work of his father. Vincent, trained in Burgundy, appears to be pushing things to an even higher level of quality. Nothing has changed in these cellars; everything is still as traditional as you will find. All the wines are kept in foudre, and the red Chateauneuf du Pape blend is one of only a handful in the appellation that contains increasing amounts of Muscardin, Vaccarese, and Counoise along with 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, and some Syrah. The white Chateauneuf du Pape is one of the longest lived of the appellation, and that's saying something. The Avrils have proven me wrong many times by opening old bottles that I would have believed to be dead, but are still full of life and vivacity.
-Robert Parker

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