The 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape Pure looks to be nearly as brilliant as the 2007. One of the vintage’s most compelling wines, it should be drunk now and over the next 12-14 years. Deep ruby-colored much lighter than the Fiancee, with beautiful notes of sweet kirsch liqueur, loamy soil, licorice, spice box, and high quality cigar tobacco, this wine is opulent, fleshy, and flamboyant with great purity. It serves as a riveting statement to the greatness of old vine Grenache grown in sandy soils.Christian and Julien Barrot’s Domaine La Barroche burst on the wine scene with very good 2004s, and sensational 2005s, especially the out-of-this-world 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape Pure. These are four very different styles of Chateauneuf du Pape. The Terroir cuvee comes from the well-known sectors called Pialons and Cabrieres, and is a 95% Grenache offering aged completely in foudre. The Fiancee, made from vineyards in Cabrieres and Terres Blanches, is a more modern-styled offering with the Grenache aged in tank and the Syrah in small barrels. The Pure cuvee is made from 100% old vine Grenache planted in sandy soils in Pointu and Grand Pierre, not far from the sandy soils of Rayas. It is aged totally in old wood foudres.Importers: The Sorting Table, LLC, Napa, CA; tel. (415) 491-4724 and Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ; tel. (856) 608-9644