2000 was a 100 point Suckling vintage. No love?
I voted 2001.
Every time I have had a perfect bottle of 1996 I have been amazed by how good they are. A truly great vintage. The problem is that I have found a lot of corked bottles.
- 1996
- 1999
- 2001
- 2004 (since you asked).
1996 has all the material to be legendary, perhaps the vintage of my lifetime. Between 1999 and 2001 is a tough call, but I really like the purity and finesse of 1999s. I don’t think 2004 is in the class of those 3, but it is very good. Better than 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2003.
As Claude says, the washouts are 1991, 1992, 1994, 2002.
To also follow up on Claude, the 1990s presented a different landscape than what we have now. Modernists have scaled back, traditionalists are doing better work in the vineyard and with cleaner cellars and modern touches. 2001 and 2004 might offer a broader buying opportunity.
Personally, as much as I love 1996, I’ve decided to sell wines from most of the modernist producers that I have. I just don’t think they will turn into wines that interest me deeply. It’s unfortunate, because I was an early believer and the 1996s were so astonishing out of barrel. Oh well, lesson learned.
EDITED TO NOTE: my rankings are really for Barolo. I am not a volume buyer of Barbaresco, FWIW.