Wonderful, lighter-bodied Chateauneuf. Medium ruby with fairly intense aromas (seems like raspberry & blackberry dominate) and a touch of alcohol, which I did not find distracting. This reminds me quite a bit of Marcoux, with a solid acidic backbone complementing a good supply of red fruit. I enjoy almost all styles of Chateuneuf, but this is definitely near the top of the list in terms of flavor profile.
My only other experience with Charvin was a slightly corked bottle of the 2001, which was obviously a huge disappointment. Does anyone know of any other CdPs made in this style? It seems like the prices have steadily climbed over the past few years to the point that these are only a good value when found on deep discount.