Château-Pavie Saint-Émilion 2000

Give Gerard Perse credit. People thought his numerous assurances that 2000 was the greatest Pavie ever produced were premature as well as arrogant. However, after tasting this extraordinary blend of 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon (made from low yields of 28-30 hectoliters per hectare) six separate times in 2003, it is unquestionably one of the most monumental wines Bordeaux has ever produced. Bottled in March, 2003, about nine months later than other 2000s, the color is an opaque purple, and the bouquet offers up notes of liquid minerals, blackberries, cherries, and cassis intermixed with spice box, cedar, and white flowers. On the palate, it exhibits a massive display of richness and extract, yet with pinpoint delineation and vibrancy as well as a 60+ second finish, this is the kind of phenomenal wine that Perse's critics were afraid he might produce - a no-compromise, immortal wonder that represents the essence of one of Bordeaux's greatest terroirs. Life is too short not to own and consume the 2000 Pavie. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2050.

Voluputuous red. Glorious aromas of very ripe fruit, with layers of spices and chocolate. Full-bodied, with big yet very silky tannins and a long, long finish. Generous and seductive red. Lasts minutes on the palate. Best ever from here. Best after 2010. 7,500 cases made.

Under the regime of Gérard Perse, Pavie seems to have become more opulent, more extracted, and, dare I say it, more simplistic. The richness of the 2000 vintage lends itself to this technique. While it is a wonderful, immediately appealing wine, with its intense dark fruits, it seem to lack the complexity of other wines of similar status.