1989 Château Lafon-Rochet

Community Tasting Notes

Community Tasting Notes (41) Avg Score: 89.8 points

  • 3-hour double decant and a few swirls in the glass opened it up beautifully. Full-bodied mature Bordeaux with no sharp edges, big tarry taste that was delicious with pizza :)

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  • Bought at an auction a couple of months ago. Perfect condition.
    Very youthful color. The palate is not that interesting and there was some kind of bitterness that was a bit detrimental. It somewhat dissipated with a bit of air.
    This is a wine I would serve with food and not on its own.

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  • 34 years old wine and the smell is like from much younger wine. Lovely aromas of prunes, tobacco(big!), plum, herbs(hypnotic!), chocolate, black coffee. Give me the same quality of taste and I will give you 100 points 🙂
    Unfortunately the taste is good, but not very good. My main complaint is the light texture, but I know what to blame. 12.5% ABV. Ok, problem solved. How about flavors? No doubt about it, I can only imagine how delicious the wine was just a few years ago. It's still highly drinkable.
    My wife likes it, because it's soft with acidity, tannins and spice. Sweet flavors of plum, blackberry, raisins (!), but also a lot of tobacco, coffee and tea.
    Very long finish with just nothing else but soft spice and tobacco (interesting!)
    Nice balance, nice harmony, nice structure.
    No "kick" if you know what I mean. Too gentle for me.
    Year 1989 got 90 points according to WA Vintage Guide

    Vinous - 96
    WS - 90

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  • PnP, cellar temp, started off soft and delicious, not complex. Blossomed into a very nice, full bodied but aged bordeaux. No particular flavors stood out for me, but I'd say this is either at or just past peak.

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  • A beautiful bottle from a big year in Bordeaux. Ripe purple color with orange rim. Very nice aromas of black cherries and plum, very jammy. Plums, black cherries and lots of spices like cloves, cinnamon and sandelwood. Mature but in no way weak. Nice finish: roses, plums and licorice. Bought the wine at the ridiculous price of $ 18 in 1992 where I attended a tasting of the fresh 1989s and really liked it. Each and every bottle has been rewarding: a steal!

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  • Smooth as silk, mild in character, would be great with lighter foods, even fish. Cab palette of flavor, but subdued. An interesting oldie.

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  • This bottle was probably more PNP than a decant. After I opened it has a wonderful nose with some leather, tobacco, and Asian Spice. Decanted for sediment and let sit for about 45 minutes. Sour cherry really started to show and grow. Sadly towards the end it got really sour. Make sure you don’t let it get too much air. Will certainly try again to see if the next has a similar experience.

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  • Winebar [4 Whites, 8 Reds, & 12 *shared*, VERY impressive bottles] from 10/26/18 (Vintage Wines Ltd., San Diego, CA): Torben, you're TOO generous for sharing this! :)

    38 ha of vines (≈ 55% C.S., 38% Merlot, 3% C.F., & 2% Petit Verdot), ave ≈ 37 yrs of age, grown in gravel, clay, sand, limestone, & marl soils.

    N: Init barnyd with (naturally) oxygenated notes of oranges (?), blows to berries with pyrazines, with notes of leather

    P: LM body; LOVELY frt met by a BIT of astringent pucker which beautifully evolves into a LONG, balanced finish with a bitter/swtness to the few remaining tannins. Likely fully mature, though > 1 experienced taster felt it could poss hold for another 10 yrs? 12.5% ABV; My EXC+/Exceptional-. 90 pts WS, 88 WA, & 87 Jean-Marc Quarin.

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  • Another bottle, about the same as the May tasting: it never got to May's 91 because we drank it without food, just pretzels. It's thin and fading away, but it's pleasant and a nice mild old Bordeaux.

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  • Opened to a nice perfume. Cumin, soy. But a bit off kilter, sour, on the finish.

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  • Took two hours in decanter and a grilled steak to show any flavor, and still was thin. What was there was clean and pleasant, fun to drink, but would have been more compatible with fish. Drink up with mild food. The 91 score was at its best, it faded after three hours.

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  • So good. Better this time the last. It was about an 1 hr decant

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  • In prime drinking window with plenty of life left. Decanted and drank over two hours and it kept getting better.

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  • From a pristinely-cellared bottle, this wine was double-decanted, allowing approximately three hours in decanter prior to funneling back into the cleaned bottle. It was then presented to our tasting group in double-blind fashion, where it was serially sampled over the ensuing two hours. With a deep garnet robe and brick rim, it flaunts a bouquet of ripe currants, saddle leather, mocha, tobacco and Asian spices. Full-bodied and with low-to-medium acidity, it serves up flavors mirroring the nose. The residual tannins are soft and there is no heat from the wine's 12.5% alcohol. Dense on the mid-palate and silky in texture, it closes with impressive length. Those holding well-cellared bottles of this round, mature wine will be very pleased. Drink now-2019.

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  • Deep garnet to crimson brown in colour. Meaty notes of tobacco, cigar box and leather on the nose. Soft and smooth with faint hints of fruit way in the background but plenty of savoury, earthy notes on the front palate. Quite mature with fine, silky tannins finishing long and flavoursome. Went well with Roast beef. Lovely old left bank Bordeaux which has definitely peaked and needs to be drunk in the next few years. A pleasure to drink!

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  • Nice herbal, savory palate. A fully mature wine which will not improve.

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  • Easter cabin 2015; 4/2/2015-4/4/2015 (Dalskogen): A very good vintage that still has a grippy tannin structure and lively acidity. Matured ripe cassis, wet forest floor, leather, and decomposed bric wood on the nose. Later distinct saw dust aromas. Sour cherry and wet wood on the palate with a butter note finish.

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  • Over the hill

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  • Just a quick assessment:
    Clean. Some deposits. Developed. Sweet dark fruit, some tabacco and cedar wood. Also a hint of green notes. Sleek with some sweet fruit on the palate, the tannins a bit grainy and tready. Short finish.

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  • Very smooth. medium bodied. Aromas of black cherry and tobacco. Overall, very nice. Glad I held onto it all these years.

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  • This was a very nice bottle and is everything that I look for in Bordeaux. Plum, cassis, earth, tobacco. Rounded tannins that provide a nice, clean, lingering finish. Mature, but no means over the hill and right in my ideal drinking window. With roasted chicken, this went down too easy. Classic claret! Makes me realize and think that I have little hope for anything produced after 2000 that will develop into a (Bordeaux) wine with this character. 93+

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  • Cork in excellent condition. Decanted for approx 15 minutes, plenty of sediment noted. Mature crimson brown color. Not much fruit left at this stage, but enough to balance the tannins, which are still pronounced. Earthy aroma and flavors, as well as some blood/game. Wine was beginning to fade after only 1-2 hours, probably needs to be consumed soon

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  • From 750ml. Level BN and cork was in excellent condition. Decanted and served immediately. Colour light red to brown, and slightly cloudy/muddy after the decant. On the nose red fruits, earth, leather, game some funk. Well rounded palate, a fraction of fruit remaining but plenty of complex dried blood and earthy St Estephe flavours. Lots of drying tannins but not heavy handed or excessive.
    A very well put together St Estephe from a variable vintage. Not every 89 has aged as well but the tannins have kept this wine in excellent condition. Drink now as this won't improve.

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  • Friday night? Let's drink some claret! I don't mean contemporary Bordeaux-I mean stuff before the Parkerization Global Warming Complex took over, forever banishing the spirit of Michael Broadbent from the notion of claret as a refreshing and nourishing BEVERAGE. BTW, I think St. Michael is still alive, long may he reign.
    Claret has low alcohol by today's standards, at least in my definition. This bottle weighs in at 12.5%. Cork was half saturated and long. Color still dense enough at the core, running progressively red/brown toward the rim. I have to say, I was concerned about the initial impressions-sort of muddy overall with a flat finish. Storage was good, so let's give it some air. Now that's what I'm talking about! Nose a complex melange of plummy cassis, tobacco and coffee, backed by St. Estephe dirt floor. While the tannins are admittedly running on empty, it conveys a surprising heft in the mouth, so the weight is coming from something other than alcohol. Yet, all good things must come to an end, and it appears that the optimal drinking window should be measured in the space of about three hours before the nose writes checks the finish can't cash. In other words, drink up me hearties.

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  • Another find from my late father-in-law's basement:

    Probably on the down-swing but still really nice. This has a pleasant nose of leather and plums. There's surprising acidity to compliment the plum and berries flavors. Tannins obviously all sorted. There's great texture in here as well. Very nice.

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  • Drink'em now if you have them. This wine is near the end of it's life. Still some fruit left but very low tannins and acidity. Lacks balance and complexity or anything exciting. Still drinkable of course, but disappointed for a Grand Cru Classe. Drank previous bottle last September and was hoping for some bottle variation but just found more of the same.

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  • Presented in single-blind fashion to our tasting group (St. Estephe theme tasting). My tasting was unblinded. The wine was double-decanted in advance of the tasting, allowing approximately one hour in decanter prior to funneling back into the cleaned bottle. The wine was then serially tasted over the ensuing three hours. Deep garnet in color, the nose showed a mature, quite intense bouquet of saddle leather, chocolate, assorted spices and red plums. Full-bodied on the palate, with low-to-medium acidity and soft residual tannins. The mouth texture is smooth and the flavors are similar to the nose. Medium-to-long finish. Very well-received by the tasters, most of whom guessed that it was from the '89 or '90 vintage. Drink now-12/17.

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  • Lots of leather, still some acidity but tannins mostly gone so very smooth with dark fruit. Drink now.

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  • Deep garnet colored, maybe a touch past it's best-before, as the fruit wasn't as stand-out as I would have wished against the soft-but-still present tannins.

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  • Iodine/bloody meat aromas on the nose, with a bit of olive. On the palate, this was smooth but a bit thin. With air, a slight menthol note develops. Overall, this was fine but undistinguished.

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  • Color was showing some maturity but still bright. Nose was rich Bordeaux. On the palate initially the wine was a little tight but with shy flavors and forward, lingering tannins. As the wine opened- WOW!- classic - flavors emerged and tannins were balanced by mature fruit. Great aftertaste. A very classy bottle. Drinking well so enjoy.

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  • I don't know if this was corked or if it just has run its course. The cork looked to be in good shape, soaked about half through, but nothing unusual and still firm. Bottle decanted about 1 1/2 hours. Color was clear and uniform, brick red or red/brownish. Nose started nice, with black currant and leather, but seemed to devolve to a more bitter aroma over time. Palate was acidic, with no detectable fruit. Fully resolved tannins, lots of sediment left in bottom of bottle. This wine just seemed to have passed its best days and fallen into an unpleasant state.

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  • Nice smooth red with good cololr and great finish

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  • Opaque wine. Quite a bit of sediment. Brick red colour. Nose of licorice, jam, raisin. Outstanding complex bouquet. Tasted of smoke, pepper and licorice. Delivered on the taste but lacked finesse. Mild tannins. Long finish.

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  • A fine bottle of aged bordeaux but not excellent. Drank right of the bottle but I must admit that the taste improved with time therefore it is plausible that the score would have been higher if we had decanted the wine. Enjoyed it at the Black Sheep over some tapas, nose of liquorice, damp earth and leather with taste of liquorice, milk choc with slight peppery finish.

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  • Partnered - roast rib of beef and yorkshires. Classically aged claret red, a graduated rim, nice tears. Nose - dominated by blackcurrants with sharper hint of pine forest behind, going a little volatile perhaps. Mouth - supple, light body, balanced tannins.Taste - big pepper then lovely plums with a tad of dark chocolate. A charming Medoc living up to the high expectations from 1989.

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  • One of three purchased on initial release. Clear bright ruby-ermine with hint of bricking at rim. Subdued nose at first, but mellowing to show liquorice, herbal and mineral characteristics, fresh mint, and juicy mulberry and plum fruit. Still dusty and abrasive tannins aplenty on the palate, but offset by sweet and mouthfilling fruit on front and mid-palate and liquorice on rear. Long finish. Exceptionally nice. At the front end of its plateau of maturity.

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  • Lafon Rochet Saint Estèphe 1989
    Donkere oranje/bruine kleur
    Gedroogd fruit, zwarte pruimen, donker fruit, bosgrond en sous-bois, paddestoel. Aristocratische neus.
    In de mond heerlijk rijp fruit. Op en top rijp nu. Mooie balans. Hoog niveau. Margaux??? (niet dus).
    Voor mij de wijn van de avond. 18/20
    Amitiés,
    Mathieu

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  • UWS; A mixed set of wines (@ JB): In the bouquet pleasant barnyard impressions. On the palate good blackberry juice, mushrooms, beautiful oak, good acidity and good complexity. Overall a beautiful and mature wine which has a long finish and is in it maturity stage now. Can probably last for many more years. 91 - 92

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  • NobleRottersSydney - Bordeaux v Australia (Lucio's, Paddington): The Lafon is still in the prime of life. It’s brick red, with a lovely cedar nose, mixed with some classic blackberry notes. The palate shows very fine persistent, yet quite soft tannins, secondary fruit flavours consistent with the nose. It’s only medium weight, yet the length is persistent quite beyond expectation. Not likely to improve any further, but at 15 years is at its very peak. Attractive wine, and a stylistic contrast to the 92 Wynns [John Riddoch]...

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  • Hi-Time Cellars Tasting of 10 1989 Bordeaux, nice fruit on the nose, tasty wine, good, rich wine in the mouth, long, long finish.

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