Aromatically, the 2000 Meursault Vieilles Vignes reveals an intensely spicy nose. Concentrated and deep, this plump wine has excellent grip to its tangy apple, citrus, and pear-flavored character. Drink this fresh, expressive wine over the course of the next 8-9 years. Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524.

Aromatically, the 2000 Meursault Vieilles Vignes reveals an intensely spicy nose. Concentrated and deep, this plump wine has excellent grip to its tangy apple, citrus, and pear-flavored character. Drink this fresh, expressive wine over the course of the next 8-9 years. Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524.

Ente produced five barrels of outstanding 1999 Meursault Vieilles Vignes (from over 100-year old vines) which translates to 35 h/h, an amazing feat in a vintage where the majority of his colleagues had yields of twice that amount or more. Its nose is rich, plump, and packed with sweet yellow fruits and spiced apples. Medium to full-bodied, ample, and concentrated, this gorgeous wine is harmonious, deep, and crammed with smoke-infused pears, apples, white peaches, and hints of apricots. Its extraordinarily long finish displays a tangy freshness as well as copious quantities of spices. Drink this extraordinary 1999 over the course of the next 8-9 years. Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel (510) 524-1524.

94+) I was floored by Ente's Meursault Vieilles Vignes, produced from vines over 100 years old located in the center of the En L'Ormeau vineyard. In November, Ente had not yet decided whether he was going to bottle this cuvee separately or blend it into the Meursault en L'Ormeau (it would then account for 1/3 of that assemblage). Displaying extraordinary richness and concentrated honey on the nose, it is an awesomely extracted, full-bodied, dense, and massive wine. Layers of mouth-coating and oily white peaches, sweet toast, and almond/butter cookies make up this blockbuster's flavor profile. Projected maturity: 1999-2004. The rating, with the range of scores in parentheses, indicates the wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Ente has met with a number of first-rate importers (including Eric Solomon, Robert Kacher, and Peter Weygandt) but had not yet selected a representative as this report went to print.