Chateau Lafleur, Pomerol 2000

A legendary wine, with reason. I have only tasted this once, at the home of a very kind friend, exactly as it should be drunk – over a dinner table, where it managed to stop the conversation. It is still young, just now starting to open up to reveal its dazzling array of black and blue fruits, black olives, truffles and well-defined tannins exerting an influence over the structure. The mineral slate side of Lafleur is now fully in its stride, tugging you back as you reach the end, keeping you hanging on for more.

Red and black fruits, huge truffle, graphite, spring flowers, and remarkable complexity all emerge from the 2000 Château Lafleur, a 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc blend that is the very essence of this legendary Pomerol estate. Full-bodied on the palate, it's pure and seamless, with fine, polished tannins, incredible depth, and a finish that simply won't quit. If this doesn't make your eyes roll back in your head, nothing will. It's drinking utterly spectacularly today and has another two decades of longevity at this level, with a gradual decline thereafter. Drink 2026-2046.

The 2000 Lafleur is a benchmark wine that prefigures the estate's wines in the 21st century. Though I have tasted it a dozen or so times from bottle, this was my first time in magnum…and what a wine! Showing only modest bricking at its rim, the nose is a symphony of aromas, an aromatic Pandora's Box: blackberry, wild hedgerow, black truffle, pencil box and gravel give way to more red fruit and rose petals. The palate has a heavenly balance with perfectly pitched acidity that effortlessly counterbalances the sheer weight and density of this wine. Previous examples have warned me away from cracking this open, but despite its larger format, this example is the first that entertains the notion of drinkability. That said, the 2000 is clearly a Pomerol that will span decades. The grandeur of this Lafleur is entrancing. Tasted from ex-château magnum at Kate & Kon's 40-Year vertical in Austria.