MONTROSE 2000

The 2000 Montrose is a straight-up gorgeous bottle of wine that, while still young, is offering up tons of pleasure. Classic Saint Estèphe notes of blackcurrants, damp earth, tobacco leaf, cedar and hints of truffle all emerge from this dense, concentrated, powerful red that has the classic 2000 structure and richness. With sweet tannins, full body, impeccable balance and a great, great finish, it’s at the early stages of its drink window and has another 3+ decades of longevity ahead of it.

This has a relatively polished feel, with rounded tannins, though they are substantial enough to give the core of tobacco, black currant paste and warmed fig flavors a nice loamy tug through the finish. Rather refined and with noticeably more depth than AOC colleagues in this vintage, with a very alluring hint of fresh bay at the very end. -- Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2023. 15,000 cases made.

Full red-ruby. Roasted, smoky aromas of blackberry, blueberry and licorice. Plush, dense and large-scaled; expands impressively in the mouth. Chocolatey-ripe but kept fresh by nicely integrated acidity. Offers lovely sweetness without going over the top. Finishes with big, dusty, horizontal tannins and lovely aromatic persistence. Offers extraordinary texture and depth of flavor for a wine with just 12.8% alcohol.

The 2000 Montrose is just starting now to open and shows beautiful...

Originally rated 96, this wine confirmed its early rating, although again, the backwardness and still very obvious tannins suggest another 7- to 8-year wait. Dense ruby/purple, with a bouquet of blueberry, crushed rock, and some floral notes, the wine is medium to full-bodied, rich, powerful, but again very tannic and still strikingly youthful. For a wine that is already 10 years of age, it remains infantile. This blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot is indeed a special wine and should hit its prime in about 2020 and last at least 30 years afterward.