Medium ruby. Complex, expressive aromas of currant, graphite, leather, game and spices. Superbly sweet and pliant in the mouth but not soft. Dense and classic. Finishes with noble tannins and terrific grip and backbone. No saignee was needed in 2000, and the wine spent 22 days on its skins during vinification, compared to just 15 in 1999.

The 2000 Mouton Rothschild is at its best with about 24-48 hours of decanting. A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot, the wine offers a saturated ruby/purple color in addition to reticent but promising aromas of toast, coffee, licorice, creme de cassis, and roasted nuts. Dense, chewy, and backward, with tremendous purity and density in addition to obvious toasty oak, it is full-bodied, powerful, tannic, and backward. Twenty-four to 48 hours of aeration only hints at its ultimate potential. This blockbuster will be exceptionally long-lived. It is not as expressive as the other first-growth Medocs, but give it time.

With its distinctive antique bottle and gold etched label dominated by a sheep, this is definitely a move away from classic Bordeaux bottling. It is good that the wine can support the presentation. The fruit is so ripe, it almost tastes of raisins, but that sweetness is finely balanced by the dry tannins and concentrated texture. To finish, there are exotic spices, giving an almost oriental character to the long aftertaste.

The nose is very intense, super ripe and rich, verging on jammy. Notes of leather, spices, and prunes rise out of the glass. Full bodied, soft and beautiful with ripe tannins and a long finish. This is soft and yummy right now, but give this another three or four years in the bottle. Pull the cork in 2014. Find the wine

Aromas of very ripe raspberries, with bread crumbs and tobacco. Full-bodied, with silky tannins. Lots of currants on the finish. Not as complex as I hoped, but clearly outstanding, almost classic. Score range: 92-94