This note is based on my tastings of several barrels of the wine. Tasting through the 1994 Chateauneuf du Pape cuvees indicates there will be both a Marie Beurrier and Reserve des Celestins produced in this vintage. This wine continues to grow in stature, and, like many wines in these cellars, put on weight and fruit. It will probably merit a score in the low nineties when released, especially the top cuvees, which will go into the Reserve des Celestins. Henri Bonneau makes no bones about the fact that he prefers 1994 as a vintage to 1995 and 1996, but he is also the first to admit that it is too early to judge any of his wines. The 1994 cuvees all exhibit high tannins, as well as formidable concentrations of kirsch-like fruit, amazing power, high alcohol, and mouthcoating levels of extract. This powerful, rich Chateauneuf du Pape will come close to rivaling Bonneau's superb 1988. The Reserve des Celestins cuvees appear capable of 20-30 years of evolution, and the Marie Beurrier cuvees, 10-20 years.Importer: Alain Junguenet, Wines of France, Mountainside, NJ; tel. (908) 654-6173P.S. Many readers, realizing I reached a landmark this summer (I turned 50), wanted to know the wines I decided to drink on my birthday. Sixty percent of the wines I served were Chateauneuf du Pape 1988, 1989, and 1990 Reserve des Celestins. The other forty percent came from Chateau Rayas, the 1988 and 1990. In short, it was a 100% Chateauneuf du Pape celebration except for some gorgeous 1982 Krug I used to rinse my mouth out before drinking these sumptuous red wines.

The 1994s (cuvees one, two, three and four) possess slightly coarser tannin than the 1995s, but wonderfully sweet, rich, concentrated fruit, huge body, and old vine intensity and power. Henri Bonneau's is one of the few cellars where the bottled wines are significantly superior to the individual component parts tasted in the cellar (it's just the reverse in Burgundy). The 1994s are powerful, rich wines with the potential to be among the longest-lived and most massive wines of the vintage if the top cuvees are kept separate and bottled as Celestins, rather than blended together and bottled only as a Marie Beurrier.This wine was tasted between June 1 and June 16, 1996.The legendary and irrepressible Henri Bonneau was in fine form when I saw him in June. Tasting in his dark, hodge-podge of tiny rooms was once again a memorable experience. Bonneau is not yet sure which designations he will use on his 1994s or 1995s, but I suspect there will be both a Marie Beurrier and Reserve des Celestins. Importer: Alain Junguenet, Wines of France, Mountainside, NJ; tel. (908) 654-6173