A beauty, the 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape is an outstanding, opaque ruby/purple-colored, full-bodied effort displaying terrific black raspberry and kirsch liqueur notes intermixed with notions of lavender, licorice and loamy, earthy characteristics that resemble a damp forest floor. This soft, pure, precise, elegant effort should be drunk over the next 10-12+ years. Vincent Durieu, who is now in complete charge at Domaine Durieu, has upgraded the quality of their traditional cuvee of Chateauneuf du Pape, which is a blend of 80% Grenache and the rest Mourvedre, Syrah and Cinsault aged in cement. He has also added a fabulous wine called Lucile Avril, which is 90% Grenache and the rest Mourvedre and Syrah from 40- to 105-year-old vines. A third cuvee, which I find less exciting, is the l’Eperdu, which is 100% Grenache that comes from three separate sites in Chateauneuf du Pape, Cabrieres, Fargueirol and Cansaud. I can muster less enthusiasm for the light ruby-colored 2011 and 2010 l’Eperdu. A Jack Siler Selection, Springfield, VA; tel. (703) 644-5210; various American importers, including Route des Vins Imports, LLC, Charleston, SC; tel. (843) 737-0301