2000 Tenuta San Leonardo San Leonardo
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Tasting notes
Full bottle 1,358 g. 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Carmenère (which I think they used to call Cabernet Franc) and 10% Merlot. A very dry growing year. Precipitation of only 229 mm from April to October made it the driest year since 1983. The flowering period was very favourable with only 36 mm of rain in May and June, followed by normal weather. September was very dry with almost no precipitation and day-night temperature fluctuations of more than 15 °C. The harvest took place from mid September until early October in ideal conditions. Spontaneous fermentation. Aged 24 months, 70% in barriques and 30% in older French oak barrels. Shaded dark ruby that looks not that much older than the 2020! Leafy nose and still a little tannin in evidence as well as a refreshing spread of subtle fruit across the palate. I would guess the winemaking has changed quite a bit between 2000 and 2020? This wine is drier. Very satisfying and still quite vigorous. (JR)
Critic scores
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Full bottle 1,361 g. Cabernets Sauvignon and Franc plus Merlot. Deep blackish garnet with rust at the rim. Really rather beautifully developed on the nose with a hint of balsam and (nice) creosote freshness still. Very long and complete. This is a great time to drink this wine. Sweet fruit but lifted and refreshing. (JR)
Dusty rose, a mix of dried cherries, black currant, plums and smoky minerality make the 2000 San Leonardo a total pleasure. Round textures give way to ripe red and black berry fruit, contrasted by a mix of stimulating acids and minerals. Fine tannins slowly mount toward the finale, which is long and spicy, leaning more toward the sour red fruit end of the spectrum. Peppery herbs linger, along with just a hint of heat that creates a warming effect, yet there’s no lack of balance. This warm and dry vintage created a larger-scale San Leonardo, which may not enjoy as long of a life as some of the surrounding years. Still, it is drinking beautifully right now and at no risk of decline in the immediate future.
A very dry growing year. Precipitation of only 229 mm from April to October made it the least rainy year since 1983. The flowering period was very favourable, with only 36 mm of rainfall in May and June, followed by normal weather. September was very dry, with almost no precipitation and day-night temperature fluctuations of more than 15 °C. The harvest took place from mid September until early October in ideal conditions. Half bottles: 4,690; bottles: 81,059, magnums: 3,048; double magnums: 199; imperials: 10; salmanazars: 10. Dark crimson. The nose is decidedly lifted with a stony element, somehow. Then there’s a deeply fruity undertow expressing considerable ripeness. Big, bold and like a particularly fresh red bordeaux. Claret incarnate, with that stoniness on the finish too. (JR)