The Overlooked Bordeaux?
2000 Château Prieuré-Lichine
Pristine Bottles, Bought En Primeur, Professionally Stored
"Undeniably the finest Prieuré-Lichine in 30-40 years."
- Robert Parker
Bordeaux is the most iconic wine region on earth. Which is perhaps why the wines themselves can sometimes play second fiddle to the glamour of the Châteaux, the manicured lawns and well-dressed winemakers.
The market for Bordeaux has soared; there seem to be at least two great vintages per year and the question these days is not will the new futures be more expensive than the last, but by how much?
But there is a more welcoming niche to be found in Bordeaux - and today it involves a small tranche of a Margaux gem from the great 2000 vintage.
This is a beautiful parcel that was bought en primeur, professionally stored and is still in original wooden cases (OWC)... and the bottles come in at one of the lowest prices out there - a sum that is only slightly above what most people are asking for the 2010 futures!
While Parker's review alludes to the quality of the wine with all the subtly of a hammer (“Undeniably the finest Prieuré-Lichine in 30-40 years.") what we love about this wine, this vintage, is the nuance, the rather beautifully integrated interplay of fruit and acidity.
Margaux is famous for the elegance, the restraint, the compactness of its wines and Prieuré-Lichine has, over the last 20 years, gone from strength to strength - yet, the prices remain reasonable.
Prieuré-Lichine is a fourth growth from the original 1855 Classification. Alexis Lichine took over in the 1950s, setting the stage for the quality these wines have achieved: Serious vineyard work, a total revamping of the chai and a renovation of the château itself.
Since the early 1990s, Stéphane Derenoncourt has taken over and brought the estate to a new level. Derononcourt is passionate about biodynamics, about making wine in the vineyards before the cellar, about a more - dare we say - Burgundian philosophy.
Andrew Jefford writes the following in The New France: “The wine has subsequently acquired a new grace, subtlety, and textural wealth thanks to Derenoncourt’s minimal handling and lees-contact work, with the 2000 being an outstanding success, full of soft, flower-wrapped fruits.”
This “outstanding success” promises the same in the cellar. As Parker’s suggested drinking window points out, this is already in a beautiful place, but there’s little question it will power on with dignity for another two decades.
Please give us your maximum order - while we can't promise 6-packs or solid cases for the cellar, we will do our best.
As prices for classed growth Bordeaux - particularly from the *great* vintages - have rocketed out of reach for many, this parcel represents an extraordinary find. Beautiful, real Bordeaux, within reach.
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits
2000 Château Prieuré-Lichine
Parker: "Undeniably the finest Prieure-Lichine in 30-40 years, this textured, rich, medium to full-bodied 2000 boasts a dark ruby/purple color in addition to a knock-out nose of black cherries, cassis, tobacco leaf, cocoa, and toasty oak in the background. The wine is sweet on the attack, full-bodied, and well-textured, with oodles of fruit and glycerin. This is sexy stuff that can be drunk early, but will age gracefully for 15-16 years."