Bordeaux | 2000 vintage
A spectacular vintage. The Médoc and Graves wines are sublime. However, wine enthusiasts should be quite selective with the Pomerols and Saint Emilions. A nondescript vintage for the Sauternes region. The weather conditions were perfect for the Cabernet Sauvignon wines. In nearly all regions, categories and crus, the 2000 wines are deeply-coloured with aromas and flavours of concentrated fruit; they have ripe tannins, a relatively low level of acidity and remarkably long finishes. This vintage surpasses the great vintages such as 1996 and 1998. The best crus come from the Pauillac and Saint-Julien appellations. The wines from Margaux follow closely behind and easily outclass the Saint-Estèphes. In the Libourne region, certain wines such as Cheval Blanc became legendary, while other crus lacked depth. The Graves wines are superb. The whites are remarkably fresh and perfectly balanced. The reds are aromatic, full-bodied and robust, with a long cellaring capacity. In the Sauternes region the hopes of a magnificent harvest were destroyed by downfalls of rain that hit the vineyards during the harvest. Very few of the wines had a good concentration and even less of them had flavours of botrytis.
