The least expensive wine from Fontavin is their 2009 Cotes du Rhone, a blend of 80% Grenache and the rest Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault. It is a fruity, straightforward wine with hints of ripe cherries, strawberries, loamy soil and a touch of pepper. Drink it over the next year. This is another estate that did not want to present their 2008 Chateauneuf du Pape (which I didn’t particularly care for last year), but both 2009s showed very well. Again, I question whether there needs to be a special cuvee, given the minor differences in quality, but perhaps the decision by so many producers to make prestige cuvees in 2009 will be justified with another 6-12 months of upbringing in tank, barrel, or foudres. Importer: Milton Road Trading, LLC, Napa, CA; tel. (707) 948-MRTC, and Vins du Midi Wine Importing, Eugene, OR; tel. (541) 485-0151

With vines in Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Cotes-du-Rhone, the Chouvet family has 103 acres, with vinification being the charge of Helene Chouvet. This is a ripe, juicy, fruity, relatively soft style of wine, with some new wood, that only hints at the tannins and the earthy flavors that are beneath the surface. Imported by Exceptional Wines. ——R.V.(12/31/2005)—— 88

Fully oaked, with sauvage aromatic notes and plenty of smoke and meatiness. This is a bigger-styled wine, one with round ripe plum fruit and some apple-skin dryness. The back end is rich, almost thick, but it holds the line and remains restrained. This CdR offers ripeness, heft and richness. Best Buy. ——M.S.(9/1/2003)—— 90