3 bottles per lot
Details
1999 BELLE HELENE
Côte-Rôtie, La Belle Helene--Vintage 1999
Rhône. Domaine-bottled: Ogier
Tasting note: The finest Côte-Rôtie's Ogier has made (and he agrees) are the 1999s. The perfect 1999 Côte-Rôtie Cuvée Belle Helène is a seamless, majestic classic with the kind of concentration found only in Guigal's top cuvées. It boasts gorgeously sweet tannin, enormous levels of both extract and concentration, and is not only a tour de force in winemaking, but a huge Côte-Rôtie Syrah fruit bomb with massive glycerin, layers of extract, and plenty of toasty new oak, which is marvelously integrated given the fact that it spent 30 months in 100 new wood barrels prior to being bottled without filtration. This outstanding effort requires 5-6 years of cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2030. Bravo! Michel Ogier and his son, Stephane, are producing spectacular wines. The only problem is that production is small. As I indicated last year, Ogier's 1999s are magical. 100 points. Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #140, April 2002
3 bottles per lot
Côte-Rôtie, La Belle Helene--Vintage 1999
Rhône. Domaine-bottled: Ogier
Tasting note: The finest Côte-Rôtie's Ogier has made (and he agrees) are the 1999s. The perfect 1999 Côte-Rôtie Cuvée Belle Helène is a seamless, majestic classic with the kind of concentration found only in Guigal's top cuvées. It boasts gorgeously sweet tannin, enormous levels of both extract and concentration, and is not only a tour de force in winemaking, but a huge Côte-Rôtie Syrah fruit bomb with massive glycerin, layers of extract, and plenty of toasty new oak, which is marvelously integrated given the fact that it spent 30 months in 100 new wood barrels prior to being bottled without filtration. This outstanding effort requires 5-6 years of cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2030. Bravo! Michel Ogier and his son, Stephane, are producing spectacular wines. The only problem is that production is small. As I indicated last year, Ogier's 1999s are magical. 100 points. Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #140, April 2002
3 bottles per lot
Brought to you by
Maartje Strengers