2001 Domaine Tardieu-Laurent Côte-Rôtie

Ruby-red. Knockout nose combines raspberry, woodsmoke, pepper, minerals and baking spices. Big, silky and expansive; offers a quintessential, though all-too-rare, combination of sappiness, vibrancy and sheer clarity of flavor. A wine of impressive extract: saline, peppery and strongly mineral. Finishes with superb precision, perfume and peppery persistence. A dead person could identify this as Cote-Rotie.

One of the least impressive Cote Roties Michel Tardieu has produced is the 2001. Refined, elegant, medium-bodied, and restrained, it lacks volume, density, and length. A dark ruby color is followed by tell-tale aromas of bacon fat, flowers, raspberries, and other black fruits. What’s there is pleasant, but the wine is excessively delicate, with an abrupt finish. Drink this 2001 during its first 5-7 years of life. While the gifted Michel Tardieu has fashioned dense, powerful, backward 2001s, the quality is well behind that of such recent years as 1999, 1998, and 1997. Nevertheless, there are some strong offerings, particularly the two Cornas cuvees. Importers: Martin Scott Wines, Little Neck, NY; tel. (516) 327-0808 and Stacole Fine Wines, Boca Raton, FL; tel. (561) 998-0039

One of the least impressive Cote Roties Michel Tardieu has produced is the 2001. Refined, elegant, medium-bodied, and restrained, it lacks volume, density, and length. A dark ruby color is followed by tell-tale aromas of bacon fat, flowers, raspberries, and other black fruits. What’s there is pleasant, but the wine is excessively delicate, with an abrupt finish. Drink this 2001 during its first 5-7 years of life. Jun 2003, www.robertparker.com