2000 Cabernet Sauvignon Herb Lamb

Winemaker Mark Aubert compared the Colgin 2001s to the legendary '47s and '61s made in Bordeaux, and was confident that this crop of Colgin wines would go on for decades in bottle. Ordinarily, I would take such statements with a grain of salt, but there's no arguing with these wines' extraordinary material. My tasting ended with a look at two lots of 2002 cabernet sauvignon from the new planting around the winery, on rocky, volcanic soil above Lake Hennessey at an altitude of 1,200 to 1,400 feet. Both offered near-exotic creaminess and sweetness, with varietally accurate cassis, currant leaf and tobacco aromas and flavors complicated by an element of iron. And, finally, there was an early taste of the estate's first - and highly promising - essay into syrah (see the note below). Ann Colgin was worried about whether the introduction of a syrah would muddy the winery's image as a top cabernet producer, but this is a problem most producers would like to have. Alain Raynaud, owner of Chateau Quinault in St. Emilion and former president of Bordeaux's Union des Grands Crus, is now consulting here.

My early look at the young 2001s of Colgin Cellars gave clear evidence that this vintage holds out great potential for North Coast red wine from Bordeaux varieties. Winemaker Mark Aubert describes 2001 as "one of the most concentrated vintages I've ever worked with. A cool August was followed by a slow warm-up from the beginning of September and then alternating cool and warm spells without extreme heat." The crop level was low and the tannins were sweet, said Aubert, who did extended macerations lasting as long as 50 days. But the '99s and '00s are strong years here too: among the wines I tasted in late winter were the first vintage of Ann Colgin's new Tychson Hill cabernet (from an east-facing hillside vineyard above St. Helena) and the inaugural release of her Cariad red wine, a Bordeaux blend from low-yielding vines on the hillier upper portion of Madrona Ranch, owned by David Abreu.