The 2000 Saint-Veran Domaine La Batie offers tropical fruit aromas and a pear and apple-flavored core of fruit. It should be drunk over the next 2 years. Bravo! to Georges Duboeuf for this impressive line-up of wines, and for the fact that he has remained true to his goal of delivering high quality at consumer friendly prices. Importers: William Deutsch and Sons, White Plains, NY; tel (914) 251-9463, and Winesellers Ltd., Skokie, IL; tel (847) 679-0121.

The 1998 St. Veran La Batie's aromas are surprising. They are reminiscent of a Sauvignon Blanc, bringing to mind freshly mowed grass and grapefruit. Crafted from vineyards bordering the Beaujolais appellation, this lemon, stone, and flint-flavored wine is tightly wound, bone dry, and has an appealingly citrus-packed finish. Anticipated maturity: now-2002.Importers are William Deutsche and Sons Ltd., White Plains, NY; tel (914) 251-9463, and Winesellers Ltd., Skokie, IL; tel. (847) 679-0121; fax (847) 679-2017.

Stylisticly, I prefer the equally good St. Veran Domaine de la Batie over the St. Veran (Flower label). Duboeuf explained that to maintain its mineral-driven character he had vinified it at low temperatures. A malt-scented nose is followed by a medium-bodied, well-ripened, elegant, fresh, lively, floral, mineral, and stone-flavored personality. Anticipated maturity: now-2000. Importers William Deutsch and Sons, Ltd., Armonk, NY; tel (914) 273-1221; fax (914) 273-1291, and Winesellers Ltd., Skokie, IL; tel (847) 679-0121; fax (847) 679-2017.

The 1994 Saint-Veran Domaine de la Batie offers an attractive, citrusy, honeyed apple-scented nose, good, crisp, ripe, medium-bodied flavors exhibiting fine elegance and purity, and a zesty, lively finish. It should drink well for 12-18 months. While virtually all of the Gamay crop was harvested in late August and early September, before the heavy rains hit central France, nearly all of the Chardonnay in the Macon-Villages, St.-Veran, and Pouilly-Fuisse was harvested during the rain. Duboeuf's white wines tend to be light-bodied, crisp, clean, and fresh. Among the 1994 offerings reviewed in this issue, the Saint-Veran Domaine de la Batie is my favorite. All the wines are lighter than usual, exhibiting a good, clean, correct style of winemaking, but they lack depth and intensity.