2000 Ch La Dominique

A bottle that had been immaculately stored in my cellar for the past 5 years, drunk this evening with the broader family at our Chinese New Year Eve reunion dinner. Dusty dark red. There was a whiff of musty oak when I decanted it at 3.30PM. By the time I poured it at 7.00PM, the oakiness had disappeared but the wine was hardly impressive, the fruit seemingly reticent save for a predominance of licorice and mint against a background of musty forest undergrowth, somewhat disjointed although in no way jarring. Its true colors only emerged another hour later when the ripe fruit, a mixture of red and dark berries, began emerging to the fore with an easy grip on the palate, generously flavoured and long with excellent concentration and intensity, soft at the edges yet rather youthful in character, hardly developing any secondary nuances but maintaining a lovely balance. Quite fine, I must say, although it sure took a long time to develop, probably a trait of this outstanding vintage. Best to refrain from popping any for the next 5 years.