($369) Bright ruby-red. Complex, sauvage aromas of roasted meat, cinders, pepper and smoke. Rich, deep and quite full-bodied but youthfully unevolved; very primary flavors of black cherry, blackberry, minerals and menthol. With its strong stony character, this is an essence of syrah on granite. Finishes with sweet ripe tannins and a strong flavor of black cherry. This and the Pavillon seem as concentrated as the highly promising 2001s. I underestimated this wine a year ago.

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I grossly underestimated the 2000 Ermitage l'Ermite from barrel. This wine, which emerges from largely pre-phylloxera vines planted on the dome of Hermitage, adjacent to the chapel that is perched there so photogenically, possesses extraordinary finesse and elegance. It reveals notes of liquid minerals intermixed with kirsch liqueur and blackberries. While it never possesses the power and breadth of flavor of Le Meal or Le Pavillon, l'Ermite appears to be a hypothetical blend of Bordeaux's Lafleur and Ausone as it always displays a certain austerity early in life. The extraordinary 2000 flirts with perfection. A provocative wine with great minerality, finesse, and delineation, it blew me away when I tasted it from bottle.

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High-toned and still very sinewy, with taut vanilla and cinnamon notes holding the black cherry and cassis fruit in check. Notes of bittersweet chocolate and violets emerge on the finish. Pretty, but I don't get a lot of pure Syrah character or sense of place. Better than previously reviewed. 555 cases made.

Professional content appears courtesy of Vinfolio

Professional content appears courtesy of Vinfolio

excellent wine great balance and tobacco and leather aroma and great finish. very acessible