The 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve Sixtine is a dense ruby/purple-colored wine that is structured and built for the long haul. The wine has notes of Provencal herbs, graphite, creme de cassis, and plenty of black cherries and garrigue. It is a beauty, but an anomaly for 2004 in that it needs 2-4 years of cellaring, and should drink well for up to 15. This is one more estate that has come back strong because of a change in generations with the young, competent Jean-Marc Diffonty replacing his father, one of the grumpy but personality-filled characters of Chateauneuf du Pape. Yet from a winemaking standpoint, the father was inflexible and unwilling to change. Diffonty has lower yields and introduced a new blend, the Reserve Sixtine which is a blend of 50% Grenache and the rest Syrah and Mourvedre, the latter two components spending time in small oak barrels.Importer: Alain Junguenet, Wines of France, Mountainside, NJ; tel. (908) 654-6173