Wine: 2000 Nuits St. Georges "Aux St. Juliens"

Producer: Domaine Daniel Bocquenet (Nuits St. Georges)

Comment: The 2000 red Burgundy vintage has been written off by some, and this is misguided in my view as there are some genuinely excellent wines if you dig a bit, especially from the Côte de Nuits. This particular selection proves the point as did our prior selection (the 2000 Lafon Volnay) though this week's wine is in need of a bit more time in bottle. Wonderfully aromatic with an extremely rich, full red fruit nose and big, tautly structured, earthy flavors that are still tight and very firm. The complexity on the finish is most beguiling and while the tannins are round and ripe, this will need time to unwind and mellow the tannins. To be sure, this is not to say that the wine is unapproachable now, just that it will be better with a few years of bottle age. If you're curious to see what it is capable of, give it 30 minutes of air and serve with a rich dish like salmon in a pinot noir reduction sauce. In short, this provides a lot of bang for the buck. 88/2007-12

U.S. Importer: North Berkeley Imports, Berkeley, Calif.

Suggested Price: $35 (this can be found for around $25 to $30 when discounted)

Important Note: Burghound.com has no financial relationship of any kind with Domaine Bocquenet or with any of its importers.

Each week we feature a different Burgundy. While there will be a mix of vintages, most wines featured will be those that can normally be found at a variety of fine wine retailers. Each wine will be described and rated with a suggested window of peak drinkability indicated after the numerical score. Prices shown are estimated retail in the U.S., but prices do of course vary widely depending on the retailer.