1999 Cote Rotie Vieilles Vignes

(for 1.5 liters; Tardieu's magnum opus in '99, presented last and bottled entirely in magnums) Full medium ruby. Profound, freakishly pure, essence-of-Cote-Rotie nose: black raspberry, minerals, black pepper, animal fur and mint. Like liquid silk on entry, with extraordinary, exuberant sweetness of fruit. Much denser than the regular bottling, but still very firmly built, thanks to bright acids and serious tannic backbone. Finishes with unnatural persistence and great grip and verve. From very old, low-yielding petit serine vines in Chavaroche, La Landonne and Grandes Places. This is even more expressive of Cote-Rotie terroir than of varietal syrah character. Should be a cellar treasure.