A prodigious Petrus this wine has that extra level of intensity and complexity that is monumental. The magic is clearly Petrus and the 2000 will always be an interesting vintage to compare to another legend in the making the 1998 or more recently of course the 2005 2008 and 2009. Extremely full-bodied with great fruit purity an unmistakable note of underbrush black truffle intense black cherries licorice and mulberry the wine seems to show no evidence of oak whatsoever. It has a sumptuous unctuous texture plenty of tannin but also vibrancy and brightness. This is a remarkable wine that seems slightly more structured and massive than the 1998 which comes across as slightly more seamless as if it were haute couture. This wine needs at least another 5-10 years of cellaring and should age for 50+ years.

How could this not make it to my Wines of the Year list? Tasted back in March, when I became the only journalist at what has to be the wine event of the year - the unveiling of a bottle of Petrus that had spent 438 days on the International Space Station. We compared it against the same bottle that had remained on Earth, and in the interest of actually suggesting wines you might be able to get hold of, this tasting note comes from the terrestrial version. It's a wine that feels like an occasion in itself, so nuanced and effortlessly impressive. Still young even at 21 years old, although now showcasing the waves of rose petal, violet and peony aromatics that only really come out in Petrus once it has had serious bottle age. The palate is pure velvet - blackberry, black cherry and bilberry fruits penned in by muscular but welcoming tannins, all finishing up with black pepper and a hit of spiced chocolate shavings. 50% new oak.

(98+ points) This Magnum of Petrus 2000 is an overwhelming wine in some ways. There is so much to observe that one can easily loose track. It feels like sitting on the North Shore of Oahu being stupefied by the grandeur of it all, just waiting for the next ten foot wave of hedonism to catch and surf on the never ending after taste. The flamboyance of this bottle is undeniable. Its palate of colours seamlessly flowing together and integrated without anything but smooth edges to be found. It is a precursor to the 2009 and shares many attributes with that vintage. It is very drinkable on this night but nowhere near maturity. The aromas and tastes are vigorously youthful and we would be hard pressed to succeed in guessing this bottle to be 25 years old if tasted blind. This might become a legend one day but for now it has not entered the stage where one can safely assume it will be perfect. Perfection is never a foregone conclusion until maturity hits. The world is full of promising teenagers but in the end only a handfull manage the final transition and become true masters of the North Shore.

Dark color with loads of smoky grilled meat and ripe fruit aromas. Lots of violets. Full-bodied with fine tannins and a superlong finish. Solid and tight. Like a tightly wound piece of silk string. Just as I remember it.--Pétrus non-blind vertical. Best after 2012. -JS