Pick My Next Bottle – 2000 Bordeaux

The November installment of Pick My Next Bottle focuses on Bordeaux from the heralded 2000 vintage. As I mentioned in the first installment, the purpose of this series is to provide insight into specific wines or producers you may currently have in your cellar.

2000 was simply one of the best vintages ever in Bordeaux. It was the first vintage since 1990 where wines from both the Left and Right Banks were nearly perfect. From top to bottom great wines were made in the Medoc, Pomerol, St. Emilion and Pessac Leognan. The contenders in this version of Pick My Next Bottle should be entering a period where they are drinking well but I expect they will age beautifully for another decade. Polls are open until Saturday afternoon.

The Contenders

• 2000 Pavie Macquin –  A beautiful crushed rock/liqueur of minerality characterizes this inky/purple-hued St.-Emilion. Tannic, with lots of pure black raspberry and black cherry fruit intermixed with a notion of charcoal as well as the aforementioned rocky/powdered stone component, this long distance runner requires another 5-6 years of cellaring. It should age easily through 2030+.  95 points from the Wine Advocate.
• 2000 Troplong Mondot – Extremely young with an unbelievable deep purple color, the 2000 Troplong Mondot has hardly budged since I tasted it in 2003. Two recent tastings confirmed that this is the greatest Troplong Mondot between their profound 1990 and more recent vintages such as 2005, 2008, and 2009. Copious chocolate, graphite, blackberry, blueberry, cassis, and ink characteristics are present in this full-bodied, powerful, massive St.-Emilion. While the tannins are noticeable, they are better integrated than they were seven years ago, and the fruit, extract, and richness clearly outweigh the wine’s structure. This 2000 will benefit from another 4-5 years of cellaring (longer than I originally predicted), and has at least two decades of drinkability ahead of it. 96 points from the Wine Advocate.
• 2000 Grand Puy-Lacoste – The 2000 Grand Puy Lacoste is even better than such recent vintages as 2005 and 2009. A broad, classic, large-scaled effort, it boasts a deep blue/purple color as well as tell-tale notes of creme de cassis, subtle smoke, flowers, and unsmoked tobacco. Powerful, full-bodied flavors have shed a lot of tannin, but they remain relatively youthful. This is a young adolescent, broadly flavored Pauillac with an enticing texture as well as abundant richness and fruit. It can be enjoyed now, but promises to hit its peak in five years, and last for two decades. 94 points from the Wine Advocate.

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Thanks for voting! I’d love to see a comment below on why you picked one bottle over another. Also, let me know if you have any suggestions for the December installment of Pick My Next Bottle.

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