2002 Chateau Musar
Community Tasting Note
johnrm Likes this wine:
Thursday, September 1, 2022 - From a bottle (rather than the half bottles we have been drinking up until now). 4h after opening, it was coming round. Soft, good fruit, good balance and length, some spice but it seemed simpler than previous tastings.
Still a good deep colour with a little browning at the rim. On day 2, there were more hints of the rich, ‘sweet’ dark fruit and spice that I expect. Given time in the glass, the Musar characteristics began to emerge. The acidity and tannin were prominent with the youthful juicy character I found earlier. I think this may be a classic example of wine in half bottles maturing much quicker than when in a 75cl bottle.
It definitely was much better after an hour in the glass on day 3 with the fruit, spice, and complexity opening attractively. Two hours later, it was drinking like a true Musar red and it continued to improve.
I will leave our other bottles of this vintage in the cellar for a while. In the meantime, I would suggest that, if you have this in 75 or 150cl bottles, it is a wine to consider opening the day before drinking.
Not a wine to ‘pop and pour’ in my opinion. If you have done this earlier with a well-stored bottle of the 2002 you may have missed its full development.
I wonder if others have comments on Musar in half bottle / bottle / magnum. I have a vivid memory of a tasting given by Jane Sowter of Chateau Musar UK who made this comparison with us using the 2008 vintage in these three bottle sizes. The different evolution depending on bottle size was very evident so I think this may be a key factor for the 2002.
I’m sorry if this note has changed as I have added my experiences over 3 days.
I would still score this as a 92++ (if you get the timing right and can give it time to open).
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