Brane Cantenac 2000

Fully mature and very attractive, the 2000 Brane Cantenac, which started a succession of brilliant wines from this famous estate in the Margaux appellation, has a dark plum/ruby/purple color, a sweet, juicy nose of blue, red, and black fruits, and a hint of damp earth as well as subtle herbs. Spicy, round, complex, very lush, and at its plateau of maturity, this wine should continue to drink well for another 10-15 years at minimum. This is Margaux elegance and silkiness at its very best.

The 2000 Brane-Cantenac is a blend of 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 55% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc. It has a really wonderful bouquet that is coming into its own: potent with black truffle and gravel infusing the red berry fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with a saline tang on the entry. It is not a powerful or huge wine, but there is impressive length here and genuine complexity on the finish, with black truffle, cedar and tobacco notes vying for attention. Henri Lurton oversaw a really quite fabulous, almost aristocratic Brane-Cantenac in this millennial year. Tasted April 2015.

The 2000 Brane-Cantenac is composed of 55% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc. Medium to deep garnet-brick in color, it sashays out of the glass with flamboyant scents of stewed black plums, boysenberry preserves, tobacco, and leather with wafts of incense and fruitcake. Light to medium-bodied, the palate is mature, chewy, and with compelling freshness supporting the spicy flavors through the long finish.

Undeniably the finest Brane-Cantenac in 40-50 years, the deep ruby/purple-colored 2000's beautiful aromatics of smoke, black currants, tobacco, earth, and flowers jump from the glass. In the mouth, it is pure, elegant, medium-bodied, with savory tannin and adequate acidity, and a measured yet authoritatively flavored mid-palate and finish. How encouraging it is to see this property get its act together. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2020.