2000 Château Brane-Cantenac

Community Tasting Notes (222) Avg Score: 91.7 points

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  2/24/2024 - cnichelson wrote:

  This was interesting but reserving judgement. Couldn't tell if there was any cork taint (not really the smell of it) but it seemed lacking in fruit and rather thin. Still some interesting coffee and tobacco/cedar box notes on the palate. PLeasant but underwhelming. I have a few more bottles and would try one again soon, but I am positive that there is no room for improvement/need to wait and I"m concerned it's on the decline.

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  12/31/2023 - smctipton wrote: 93 Points

  Odd nose and acidic palate upon opening, so left over night. Next day, clean ruby color, with soft red fruit nose. Old style claret on the palate. Mostly red fruit, with touch of tobacco and sous bois..and maybe a hint of green. Tilts to the acidic side, but in a pleasant way. Tannin mostly resolved. Very nice. Have 6 more to study over time.

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  12/25/2023 - Wicker Parker Likes this wine:

  Between the perfect cork, the bejeweled ruby color, and (following a 3 hour decant) the nose of fresh currant and pencil / graphite, you'd swear this wine could be 5 years old rather than 23. The tannins have melted into the wine without losing structure, the texture is lovely. I stored this bottle for 15 years and wish I'd bought more! A beautiful bottle that should grow deeper and more complex over the next 10+ years.

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  11/19/2023 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points

  20 Vintages of Brane Cantenac: My limited experience with Brane has been mostly positive, and this tasting confirmed my initial thoughts: these days, Brane is A) usually quite accessible and charming, even young; B) the quality has steadily improved over the years, the wines are becoming more complex, precise and balanced; while vintages pre 2015 often seemed a bit simple, more recent vintages show better, C) the aromatics in recent vintages remind me of Ch. Margaux, with beautiful ripe red fruit core, as well as floral and coffee components; and D) the quality/price ratio is exceptionally good (not considered for the ratings). E) The best wine was the ethereal 2020 (96 points), followed by a superbly fresh 2010 (95 points). Although the quality is exceptional these days, the Chateau didn't fully nail every vintage, the 2019 (93pts) and, more surprisingly, the 2016 (93pts) were strong but a tad too ripe and sweet.
  
  TN: This bottle felt a bit too pushed at first but revealed a charming wine with medium+ complexity and loads of drinking pleasure with some air. Like many 2000 Bordeaux wines, it is not yet ready and probably still 10-20 years away from its peak. This had an intense ripe dark fruit core, some coffee and oak notes, some herbs on the dark and dense nose. Lots of power and intensity on the palate too with the same aromas, some more minerality along some more oak notes which will have to further integrate. At first it seemed a bit too dense but with time the wine opened-up and revealed the fine tannin structure, a well-integrated acidity, and a satin-like texture. The 92/93pts are certainly not the ceiling for this wine.
  
  Decanting: Not decanted. I guess that this needs 2-3 hours minimum in a decanter.

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  11/14/2023 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine: 97 Points

  These library vintages from Brane-Cantenac are such treasures and an irrefutable argument for stocking up on the new ones, because if they are going to end up even better than this, then there is no smarter buy in Bordeaux. Near the beginning of what should be a long peak period, the aromatic and flavor accents here are kaleidoscopic in complexity with earthy scents of white truffles and porcinis swirled with cigar smoke and scorched poblano peppers, against a red-fruited backdrop starting to veer into autumnal crimson tones but still showing plenty of youthful plushness and sweetness. The texture is tender and caressing, the overall effect very much like drinking Palmer without nearly the damage to the wallet.

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