1999 M. Chapoutier, Cote Rotie, La Mordoree

Chapoutier's La Mordoree cuvee is produced from 75-80-year old Syrah vines planted in both the Cote Blonde and Cote Brune, aged in 100% new oak casks, and bottled with neither fining nor filtration. The 1999 Cote Rotie La Mordoree is the finest he has produced since the 1991 (two bottles drunk over the last six months confirm this fabulous wine's potential as it is just now beginning to emerge from a cloak of tannin). The 1999 has closed down since its pre-bottling tasting. The color is an inky purple, and the wine is dense and powerful, with notes of smoky blackberries, creosote, and espresso. Concentrated flavors reveal high levels of tannin (surprising in view of last year's report), and a rich, long, 45-second finish. This impressive 1999 will take longer to reach its plateau of drinkability than I thought last year. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2023. Importer: Paterno Imports, Lake Bluff, IL; tel. (847) 604-89000

($238; 13.5% alcohol; aged in 40% new barriques Saturated ruby-red. Redcurrant and smoke aromas are currently a bit overwhelmed by oakiness. Lush, sweet and concentrated, with a flavor of cherries macerated in alcohol. Has an impressively large structure for Cote-Rotie, in the style of the vintage, but seems quite tannic, even a bit tough, on the back end.