Château La Bastide l’Optimée 2000, A.C. Corbières.

Colour: Very deep, dark red with purple nuances.
Nose: expressive, mainly spicy, with obvious vanillin and smoky spices of oak, nice fruit (cherries, berries), minerals, quite deep and concentrated, but at the same time elegant and complex, warm. Type of wood matches the fruit and other aromas.
Taste: quite powerful and intense, but also round, elegant and refined, deep and complex fruity, some young, ripe tannins, beautiful balance, freshness and warm spices and herbs, supple and mild, still a bit young and unsettled.
Finish: long, complex and nuanced, with again fruit, minerals, herbs, but also quite a lot of wood. Supple, but at the same time still a bit young (wood tannins).

* Château La Bastide is a quality oriented producer in Corbières. This is the top cuvée. Not a spectacular wine in terms of power and body, but an impressive combination of restraint, power, complexity, elegance, length and suppleness. A wine that can be produced only from grapes of old vines (depth, concentration, length) and a very good vineyard (complexity). It still needs a couple of years to reach harmony between the fruit and wood. Not classic nor modern, but a combination of the best of both worlds.

- Could be drunk now, but will improve the next few years depending on your preference for fruit (drink now) or softness and complexity (wait at least 1 - 2 years).

- Highly recommended prestige cuvée with a lot of depth, elegance and complexity.

- lotnr.: L 10702

- tasted: 28-01-’02, retasted 28-02-’03 (consistent notes)

- estimated retail price ca. 10 euro

- average production: 15000 bottles

- Château La Bastide, 11200 Escales, tel.: + 33-468 27 08 47 / fax.: + 33-468 27 26 81 / e-mail: chateaulabastide@wanadoo.fr / web site: www.chateau-la-bastide.fr
- Export agent: D.A.D., Z.A. La Plaine 8, Avenue de l’Europe, 34830 Clapiers (France), tel.: + 33-467 55 90 90 / fax.: + 33-467 55 06 36 / e-mail: info@dad-languedocwines.com / web site: www.dad-languedocwines.com