2000 Gruaud Larose

65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot, 1% Malbec. Brick colour. Shows full evolution. Leafy and earthy aromatically. Fresh but little complexity. Palate soft and supple but acidity marked and the finish drying. Full ripeness probably not attained. Unlikely to evolve further. (JL)

Concentrated and full of still-confident tannins at 21 years old, this really gives a sense of how slowly and carefully Gruaud Larose ages. Black pepper spice ripples through the blackberry and blackcurrant liqueur, and you feel the ripeness in the grapes. Black truffle, slate and espresso come out as it opens, as is so often the case with Gruaud Larose, along with plenty of charred cedar and a juicy finish. Now opening up, but still with the freshness and slightly austere tannins of a young wine, a brilliant combination of power and delicacy. Harvest September 21 to October 4, 35% new oak.

The 2000 Gruaud Larose is a vintage that I have not tasted for some 10 years. It has a somehow sedate bouquet of dark red berry fruit, cola and tobacco scents, ever so slightly smudged with age. The mellow, soy-tinged palate is medium-bodied with soft tannins and fine acidity but maybe just a little sauvage on the ferrous, slightly bretty finish. I feel this had more pep several years ago.