Drank with dinner at Le Coucou. Softer and more evolved than prior bottles. Tell-tale big smokey nose of LMHB. Brambly blackberries, tobacco and some menthol. Entering tertiary development. This bottle was slightly beyond its peak but still very enjoyable.
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Drank w Nick at dinner. Out of the gate, the funk was incredible. Earthy, rich, robust. The finish was fantastic. About thirty minutes in, we could taste the tannins -- the grippy sensation came out. After 90 minutes or so, we could feel the air being let out of the experience. I would drink faster and no need to decant way before imbibing.
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Turn on the heaters (Chicago, IL): It's truly hard for me to imagine how else you could make this wine better. This is easily one of the most compelling bottles of Bordeaux I've ever had, and it was one that actually pulled me back into the region after neglecting it. A cork in preternaturally good condition gave way to a nose that really just exploded out of the bottle. This was spectacular from the cork pull (and plenty of unhappy experiences with over-decanted Bordeaux last year had me decide to pop and pour this and follow it over a leisurely dinner). The nose is graphite and cedar, but overlaid with a stony minerality and fruit that still maintains vestiges of primary character. On the palate, this is surprisingly light -- though maybe lithe and supple might be a better descriptor. There is no lack of complexity -- a bit of pyrazine green that fades into sweet red and black fruit, tons of Pessac stoniness, and just a faint hint of barnyard and leather. It's really the complete package as far as Bordeaux goes. The tannins could almost be called a bit young still, and I've no doubt that this still has plenty of gas left in the tank. This is one of my favourite bottles of red Bordeaux made in my lifetime.
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A youthful bottle of this that needed further coaxing on the glass despite a 5-hour double-decant. Then it began to reveal its fabulous purity and subtle power showing classic Graves notes of smoky gravel and tobacco spice. The texture is regal and the finish is almost perfect with great length and a fabulous layered intensity. This wine's best days are still ahead. 96+
Decanted about 90 min, which it seemed to need. After that, the nose was stunning, just wanted to keep my nose in the glass. Palate was there to match with evolving complexity over the next couple hours. Still plenty of fruit, very smooth.
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Leather, toasted sugar, subtle red fruit balancing on the nose. Ultra fine feel aside from just a bit of sappiness (which I enjoyed). Compared to other 1989s, a little narrow and flat. Super enjoyable.
Edged out just *slightly* by the Haut-Brion that night, but geez they're both really nice.
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It’s pure and almost sweet for La Mission Haut-Brion. Subdued and relatively soft. The smoke is there as is the cranberry fruit. Elegant for this château. Very nice but not thrilling.
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Wow, an absolutely sensational bottle of LMHB. Takes about 45 minutes to open up and then the magic unfurls. So much earth, mineral, tobacco, bell pepper and herbal complexity layered in with mature yet fresh plum fruit. Every sip is rich and silky.
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In prime drinking window, but this needed a full hour decant to lose bottle must and green pepper notes. This is the real deal with texture, depth, iron ore , cigar box, saddle leather and sweet black plum. 15 years of great drinking ahead. Had this with 10 day aged duck and black truffled potatoes at Lafayette in Philly. Superb.
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the last flight of the night was the matchup of the 89 La Mission and Haut Brion. The La <ission was the clear winner at first sip after both had been decanted about 2 hours but the HB was catching up quickly in the glass. We should have given them another hour of air. The La miss is prettier, more seductive and is catching up the to the HB over time, however both wines are essentially perfect and it does not get better in 80's bordeaux as of now. Thanks Jim and Rob, the table was split over which was the winner. These will live on longer than i do.
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Simply a stunning performance tonight and neck and neck next to the '89 HB. This is certainly the deeper wine with wonderful woodsy dark red fruits along with notes of road tar, smoked meats and forest floor. Just beautifully layered and refined in texture leading to a fabulously complex finish with additional notes of cigar smoke, warm cedar and flinty minerals. This bottle at least is full on and firing on all cylinders. 97+
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What a wine! Needed about a 4 hour decant to truly unfurl and reveal all its beauty. Fortunately this bottle was in excellent condition. Was shocked how little seepage on the cork and bottle.
Lots of sediment. Amazing balance and texture. Usual suspects from a world class Bdx: heaps of cuban cigar, leather, some pine, toasted nuts, great terroir driven experience with a finish to die for. Glad I have another bottle. Certainly in a perfect drinking window and I feel will stay at this peak level for years. Top notch.
This bottle was a bit bigger than the other 89 HB's I've had from my OWC. Need to do a side by side comparison, but from recall the HB may have a bit more complexity and elegance, a little more sexy. Regardless, they both are outstanding and worthy of spending a long sultry night together.
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Some Bordeaux (Chicago, IL): Nowhere as good as my previous experience with this wine. If anything, this showed muddled and lacking in precision. Still, this had an impressive core of fruit and plenty of mineral intensity. Feels young, with plenty more aging potential thanks to its larger structure.
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My 50th at the Ledbury (The Ledbury, London): Double-decanted seven hours. Deep garnet. Nose of warm gravel with a Madeira cake richness. Similar on the palate, richer than the HB alongside and far better balanced than a bottle three years ago that showed some heat but not as exotic or flashy as some notes suggest. Lovely wine, but lacking that extra wow factor the HB shows. ****1/2
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Big, brooding, dense, mouth-filling with richness and power. Clearly a superstar with a glorious future ahead. My guess it will be at its peak in one to three decades from now. I think the genuine 1961-like thrills are some way ahead for the 1989, but you can’t help but admire this titan of a wine. But for current drinking give me the 1978 or 1988 over this any day. I am going to put my last three bottles away for several years.
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1989 Haut-Brion is my all-time favorite red wine. A good friend in the business has long claimed that LMHB 1989 is even better. A second generous friend contributed this bottle for us to find out whether we agreed. For me, it fell just short of the perfection of my memory of the 1989 HB. The LMHB is truly great on any scale and drinking superbly right now. It was also (easily) my WOTN against a half-dozen 100- or highly-rated California cabs.
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There are some famous wines that never live up to their reputation. That is not the case here. Explosive does not begin to express the nose, with all of its tar, smoke, cigar wrapper, pipe tobacco, dark cherries, and plums. But as good as that is, it is the richness and layers of palate-staining fruits that build, expand and resonate for 60 seconds that own the show! 60-90 minutes in the decanter is more than ample here. Drink from 2022-2050.
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Fabulous. This beauty is so rich, complex and overwhelmingly intense, while never overbearing and maintaining a freshness that makes this so utterly compelling. Well in the mature drinking window now, fully ready to indulge. One of the best 89's i have ever tasted.
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Insanely good wine that lives up to its stellar reputation. I’m hoping the Haut Brion shows as well. Purchased on release and shared by a friend. Cork was perfect. Into the decanter and we dove in about 15 minutes later and followed for a few hours in Zalto bdx stems.
Initially a tad tight and closed, with air this opened and unfolded. Tobacco seemed to be the dominant note, with iron ore and red pepper, along with deep blackberry fruit and a hint of cinnamon. As it breathed, any tar notes seemed to fade when the wine fleshed out. Really large scaled and pasty fruited, fairly inky with great ripeness and balanced acidity. Wow this was good.
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blind Together with Mouton 82. This was more opened and easier to drink. Great balance and close to his peak if you prefer the primary over the tertiary aromas. Great power and joyful to drink. At the beginning I preferred this wine, two hours later the Mouton. 98
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Strong, strong ruby, with no orange at the rim. Actually sticks to the glass after 32 years. Rich core of ripe red fruit, surrounded by iron and minerals. Super expressive and impressive in the mouth, quite opulent and velvety smooth, but at the same time massive in weight and richness, and the finish goes on forever. Has some beautiful mocha, cocoa and chocolate, as well as creme de cassis, menthol and even a bit medicinal. It is the massive weight and the never-ending finish that puts this in a league of its own. First time I remember tasting this, and worth the wait. 5-14-19-9: 97/100.
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First and foremost: let it breath for at least 4 hours. When popping the cork it both nose and mouth are muted at first, closed. Its after 3-4 hours that it starts to open up, slowly and majestically, like royalty taking its time at its own pace.
Fully mature and in its drinking window but full of life and years ahead of it, while fully at its peak now. While the nose of this bottle is not as exuberant, the tasting is spectacular. Its actually kind of hard to capture the experience in individual elements as it is so incredibly well integrated and harmonious. It's intense but subdued at the same time, its smooth and seducive, silky and sweet but always classy, impeccably balanced in its senses and sweet rich flavors. This is like trying to parse a great dish in its ingredients but not being able to as it is made to perfection and no single element stands out: magnificent balance and long after taste. The standard 750ml bottle in this case is unavoidably leading to deception and disappointment as it leaves you beg for one more sip. Stellar wine.
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A stunning two bottles of this showing just a ton of material with voluminous flavors of dark fruits, road tar and oriental spices. The texture is now so well layered and velvety although the tannins remain firm yet supple and there is a wonderful smokiness that pervades throughout the wine. The finish just rolls over the tongue in waves with great complexity and mature notes just emerging. Wonderful and still on the upswing. 97+
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From a pristinely stored magnum Double decanted about 2 hours prior to service Deep ruby black, crystal clear. Some smoky cherry flavors, hugely wafting aromatics, structure resolved, yet perfect balance and seeming immortal. More complete than a recent 1989 HB Perfect wine? 99+
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A pristine example and youthful showing. Classic side-by-side with the ‘89 Haut Brion. The La Mission was the ‘technically’ stronger with more red and black fruit power, but the Haut Brion had the beautiful and highly expressive aromatics with huge projection from the glass. The Burgundy-focused crowd tonight preferred the HB to the La Mission for its terrific aromatics. 95 - 96.
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I see the marketplace has now valued this ‘89 above the consistently impressive ‘82 so I was curious to see why. Now I get it, even though I am not yet ready to give the gold trophy to the splendid ‘89. Undeniably glorious mature Bordeaux it is, though. Surprisingly there’s a bit of brown at the rim. At first there’s some musty funk which fortunately blows off to reveal a gloriously fruity and almost sweet dark berry patch mid palate. The usual smokiness is subdued in favor of the intense kernel of ripe raspberry fruit and the tannins are subdued. Clearly at peak. Dazzling.
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This was a particularly youthful bottle with a tight cork. Absolutely a first growth texture and polish with great depth and a wonderfully smooth and layered mouthfeel. Just a touch of the tobacco road and smoky Graves flavors that will undoubtedly become more pronounced in time. 95+
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Rich, silky and elegant with nice acidity. Compared to the 89' Haut Brion, the LMHB is a bit more primary and less developed. Continued to evolve throughout the night, definitely give this one some air to wake up. Very pretty.
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A word first on the cork: impeccable. Barely soaked, it's like new and with the top-neck level, I hope to deal with a fit bottle.
The adventure begins on the nose, with cigar, tobacco, cedar, charcoal ... It's simple, it doesn't stop. Each scent brings a different scent.
The mouth ... It contemplates itself more than it tastes. A wine that is difficult for me to describe and yet this is not my first myth. It's a bit like describing a masterpiece, you will always forget to mention a detail or a facet. It first has a silky touch, then the wine sets in, it envelops with sweet spices, flowers and a sweet fruit on the blackberry. The feeling of fullness that this wine gives off is total, it is strong and blossoming. The juice is a magnificent balance, creamy, complex and layered, each sip is like the nose, we discover a new facet, sometimes tobacco, or cedar, smoke, or even blackberry, can be l sweet spice, or this saline touch, this undergrowth seen 5 minutes ago? It’s not a wine, it’s a fresco. Grandiose finish, a compendium of the complexity described previously over a simply interminable length.
Yes, this wine is a myth, a dazzling myth.
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Mark’s bottle. In a mini-vertical of La Mission Haut-Brion this vintage was my favorite, even besting the ‘82. Much softer than its older brother, the ‘89 was almost voluptuous in its expression of bold, juicy and plummy fruit. Naturally there’s plenty of fine structure to carry it so the future will be interesting. The usual smoke and tobacco are mere nuances at this point.
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Comparison of 1988 v 1989 Bordeaux. Initially not much on the nose and reticent but opened up to reveal a beautiful wine with richness, black fruits and excellent balance.
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Tight, closed and earthy, nose of wet gravel, clay and coffee grounds. A bit dense, even coarse, with strains of clove, cigar and tobacco dominating a core of dried berries, thyme and cinnamon on the finish.
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[this is a half bottle] What a wine! This is my first bottle of 89 La Mission. All the legend about this wine is true! Opened up with explosive amount of cedar, liquorice, black current, green pepper in the foreground. Then there is cigar box, chocalate, tar in the background. On the palate it is as profound as it is on the nose. Silky sweet tannin, layered of taste. The finish goes on and on and on in the mouth for minutes at a point I cannot tell if it is lingering on my palate or in my mind, probably both.
My half bottle is fully developed. Still having a few bottles left, I would drink them in the next 5 years.
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Incredible nose, very intense, which continues through on the palate. Excellent intensity, big, deep, as good as ever. Wonderful wine and absolutely kept up with 90 La Mission and 89 Haut Brion.
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As good as 89 Haut Brion, or, depending on the day, it can be even better. The verdict with the group was split between the two. Still deeply colored, the wine explodes with dark red berries, charcoal, burning fireplace logs, campfire, cigar box, tobacco leaf, ash and tar scents. Full-bodied, powerful and mouth-filling, the wine starts off strong, and keeps on going, seemingly never quitting. Long, expansive, intense and seamless, this is what great wine is all about. it could age even longer than Haut Brion if well-stored!
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Musky ruby color with light amber edge. Earthy notes of truffle and mushrooms followed by raspberry, currant, flint, chalky cocoa and a bright palate. Elegant yet confident structure and mouthfeel - drinking beautifully and gathers what you’d want from a Bordeaux.
p.s. snake river filets with Caesar salad and roasted cauliflower.
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Deep ruby/purple color with some lightening up towards the rim. Explosive, flamboyant and sexy, with notes of smoky BBQ, crème de cassis, graphite, elderflowers, licorice, blueberries, a touch of scorched earth, sweet spices and some flowery notes too. It's full bodied, rich and creamy, with medium acidity providing freshness and medium+ tannin that is still youthful but super silky. Long finish with superb complexity. A breath-taking wine of amazing richness and superb aromatic complexity. An absolutely epic wine that still has many years ahead.
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I split into two nights. I should have decanted longer initially and found it not very approachable. The second night the wine was well balanced with less tannic force than the first night. I also noticed animal fur for the first time. Tertiary fruit was present. Overall a good wine, maybe a slightly off bottle? I wouldn't score this particular wine I had that night a 96. Plan for more at some point after COVID ends.
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has always been one of my favorite wines, and this was drunk over two sittings, the second one happening 3 days after the first (poured half the wine straight into 375ml and corked/refrigerated). i've owned the case almost since release.
it was decisively better the second night, and even then took 30+ minutes to really show itself....but it did hit the heights, and that's what my rating is based on. very strong cigar aromas, with plums, violets, and coffee scents. Similar flavor profile with some dark raspberry hints and dark chocolate. excellent length and complexity so that the finish was very satisfying.
overall, this is more restrained than i've experienced in the past, though my prior bottle 3 years ago was a bit shy as well, so i'm not sure what that means. as i said there was really good length, and only modest bricking in the color, so i continue to believe it will be long lived. one day i want to drink side by side with the 90, because i find that one gaining momentum, and it may have closed the gap.
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Blind Typical left bank Bordeaux. Tobacco, black currant, leather, some nice extract sweetness, very elegant and powerful, for me close to his Peak from a pristine bottle and perfect cork. I guessed Margeaux 1983. 98+
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small pour from another table at the end of the night, bright ruby color with some bricking, on the nose blueberry and cherry, bands of dark sand, on the palate almost explosive, cassis, cedar, forest notes, herbs and racy oak notes, pure mineral tones coated and almost concealed by the massive presence of fruit, while this has developed beautifully and is showing some secondary notes- I think there may be more in store, and it certainly is nowhere near decline, a modern legend (one of the few deserving of the title) just starting to really come into its own, magnificent.
****(*), now to 2040
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Brick edge, ruby core. Showing some age visually. Clean on the nose. Dried cherry, tobacco, a touch of cassis and just incredibly pure. In the mouth, super silky. Full body, moderate tanning that has just right amount of grip, the acidity balances the fruit and the finish is long. Wow. A great bottle of wine. Thinking this is in its prime. It will go for another 5+ years and maybe even longer before starting to decline.
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Served alongside the '90, this had more structure and more red fruits and certainly better breed and class although the '90 was decadent and delicious. Lovely freshness and intensity with a taut, complex finish. A gorgeous, classy Bordeaux with it's best days ahead. 96+
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Top 89 Bordeaux (Noizé, London): Full garnet. Exotic nose, calming a little with air. Rich and almost a little hot on the finish. Heat fades to be replaced by a more eucalyptus finish, but these come and go interchangeably sniff by sniff. Slightly drying finish. Lacks the density of a previous bottlefive years ago (which was corked). Not quite the class of the rest of the flight. Lots of fun though. ****
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Jordan's 1989 Bordeaux Dinner (Feast & Imbibe - Evanston IL): This probably wasn't given enough air before serving. Powerful and enticing black fruit aromas and flavors with dense concentration and fully savory character to start. Much less accessible from middle-through-finish with a fairly tannic end that seemed to alternative between brooding and backward, but clearly with so much substance. So much potential here. With more air and/or cellar time, this might be tonight's best wine, even if it was not tonight.
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Gobs of sweet dark plum fruit on the nose, though not too sweet, supplemented by very fine oak spice. Plenty of life and energy through the palate, tense acidity, sweet elegant dark fruit, fine spices. Some dark bitter chocolate through the finish. Wasn’t expecting this to show so young and with so much evolution still ahead. It does have a ways to go before it reaches its Zenith, though this bottle had quite the pristine cork. Decanted off its sediment for an hour before serving, then tasted over 3-4 hours.
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Commands Attention Complex and Deep Massively Structured Powerful and Persistent Impressively Thick and Concentrated Silky Palate Intensely Flavorful Smooth and Savory Epic Finish that DOES NOT STOP
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Wow, a serious epiphany wine. The scale, depth and complexity of this wine is off the charts. A wine that commands your attention -- on the aromas, on the palate and into the lingering finish. An impressive amount of concentration that comes across with such elegance and weightlessness. The finish is uber complex as well as long -- how can such an array of intense flavors linger after the wine is long past your palate? A new benchmark in Bordeaux, for my palate.
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Dinner at PST (Chicago, IL): As far as Bordeaux comes, this has to be up there as one of the most profound. Just starting with the nose, you already know how good this wine will be -- that mix of minerality, leather, and still vibrant fruit is intoxicating. There's so much going on here and it's all in perfect harmony. The palate, too, is very much the same -- that minerality is at the forefront, followed by the sweet fruit and leather, and other structural earthy elements. There's still plenty of gas in the tank, so I'm sure that this will carry on for a long time yet, but for me tonight, this was absolutely in the zone. As I remarked at dinner, this is the way through which I commune with God.
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Uber smoky, Graves-y, minerally nose, very expressive. Smells fairly mature and delicious. The palate is silky and filled with smoky dark fruit, a savory attack and terrific brightness. Great depth but so smooth. Epic finish. This is in early maturity, but will likely go up-up-up over the next 10-30 years. A special treat. 96 pts today, 98 pts at peak?
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Sheldon's 60th Birthday (The Bristol - Chicago IL): Small glass, brief note. Complex array of ripe black fruit aromas with both sweet and savory spice. Similar flavors with impressive richness and complex textures. Very powerful and persistent through long finish. So good now.
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Perhaps my favorite LMHB, Everything great about Graves is front and center. the aromatics are sensational with fruit, licorice and smoke intermingling. The palate is like drinking liquid gravel, yet it’s incredibly refined and complex with blue/dark red fruits, and tobacco joining the mix. Last bottle I had didn’t show (the only time that’s happened) so it was great to see this right back where it’s always been. I’ve often prefered this to the 89 Haut Brion
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This mind-blowing wine is the real deal. There is so much going on here, words drop the ball. The smoky, black cherry, truffle, herbs, pipe tobacco and burning logs in the nose lets you know you are in store for a treat. But the palate, with its multiple layers of fruit, earth, tobacco leaf, freshness, structure, regal bearing and finish that does not want to quit is where the real action takes place! You can drink this now, an hour or 2 in the decanter is more than ample, or wait 10-15-20 more years. Either way, WOW!
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This, in the first hour, was a complete belter. Power, precision - almost too much - with oak, eucalyptus, dark chocolate and camphor on the nose. The palate was extraordinary. Then, for two hours, it became a pisspoor example of an '89 LMHB. At this point I gave it a break and, revisiting, two hours later, it turned back in to the belter it was at the start.
Amazing. Unpredictable. Enigmatic. Everything I love in a bottle of decent claret.
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La Mission Haut Brion with Jean-Philippe Delmas (Vaucluse Townhouse, New York): Another spectacular wine. As in previous head-to-head match-ups, I gave the slight edge to the 1990 but these are two incredible wines. The 1989 is slightly less exuberant with a little less body. Tannins had melted away. Lots of smoke and leather.
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Decanted for 30 min., rebottled for ride & reopened 1.5 hours later & drank over 2 hours. AMAZING nose was consistent. Delicious & ever changing on the palate, fruit came & went & then returned. Soft blueberry, minerals, earth, tobacco & smoke. Loved it!
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Complex aromatics and flavors of earth, tar, leather, smoke, truffle, cassis and spice. Incredibly, refined, elegant, sensuous and weightless in style with perfect balance and a long stylish finish.
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Paired with Haut Brion 1989, the famous couple. Compared with the brilliant showing of the Haut Brion, the MHB appeared a little less regal, but very impressive nonetheless. Very Graves with intense notes of tar, tobacco, coffee, chocolate, cedar and superb freshness as well as minerality. Effortless power and balance. Layers of black fruit. Soft, pleasant tannins which guarantee decades of future life and opportunities to enjoy this fabulous wine.
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Winter Solstice Tasting (Jan-Dirk Taams' residence, Groot-Ammers, Netherlands): Mature but lively appearance, deeper colour than the Haut-Brion 1989 which it was paired with; deep and rich nose with a touch of leafiness, meaty and spicy, darker pitch than the Haut-Brion; masculine style compared to the Haut-Brion, beautifully crafted tannins, complex and deep flavours, concentration and elegance; lovely completeness and length on the finish. Will last longer than its stablemate.
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Amazing wine and still a baby. Had a bottle last night with some friends and this wine is really singing. Similar to other notes below...cigar box, black cherry, and licorice. We should have decanted it two hours prior because the wine just evolved over the course of our dinner and continued to get better all the way through the final sip.
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Russk. Justin's Wizards Tasting at The Ritz Key Biscayne. My wine of the flight and one of my wine of the night. We had the 1989 and the 1990 vintage. Both were my favorite and their respective flights, over and above the Montrose, the Lynch bages and P ichon Barons of the same vintage. 92+
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Decanted about 4 hours. Nose was great when popped and never faded. Palate was amazing to the last drop, plenty of complexity, long finish. Outstanding bottle! Everything a Bordeaux should be.
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Cork was dry and broke coming out. Decanted about 3.5 hours. Nose blossomed right from the start. Palate was wonderful with complexity and carried on for a few hours following. Very nice bottle indeed.
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There are 100 point wines and then there are REAL 100 point wines. Some wines are perfect relative to their price category while others are true legends and epitomize the World Wine Heritage. The 1989 LMHB is a great example of the latter group. First of all, it provides a unique sensory experience thanks to its perfect silky texture. Then it tastes like a dream. It has all the blackcurrants in the world, interspersed with the most beautiful Havana Cigar Tobacco kept in an expensive cedar humidor. It's pencil ink, warm pebbles and earth mixed with white spring flowers make you feel that you are transported into another reality.
This bottle will surely provide you with a tasting experience that will live with you forever. Well worth the money and time this rare bottling.
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Bordeaux 1989 (@ Monarh): Luxurious and complex bouquet with autumn forest, graphite and barnyard and stable impressions. On the palate dark berries, a firm amount of good and fresh acidity and still powerful, round tannin which holds a promise for a long future. 97+
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World's Greatest, Hong Kong - Night III (8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana, Macau): On the nose this is a thinner, lighter, softer iteration of the ‘89 Haut Brion, which is absolutely booming in the next glass. A little more dried red berry and scorched earth in this one with hints of iron. This is also quite chocolatey. Palate is a little lighter and a little sweeter than than on the straight Haut Brion.
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Tasted blind: Another great showing for this wine; started out very Pauillac at first (knowing this guy's cellar, I was first thinking '82 Lynch Bages). Then the Graves notes started flowing, a trickle at first as the wine aired and opened; then a deluge of warm bricks, tobacco and extraordinary richness of maturing Bordeaux fruit and hedonism. Classic and ageless wine. Granted, it was the 8th wine shared the other evening so I'm allowed a little hyperbole - I wrote down "needs 100 years". As I'm down to only 2 bottles of this left, will let this wine bud keep sharing his!
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Very fine and silky showing great intensity and balance. This particular bottle is not giving all the glories this wine can offer but there are hints of what's to come with great flavors of sweet tobacco, road tar and licorice. The finish is so smooth with perfectly proportioned tannins but just lacks the complexity some other bottles already show. 95+
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Spellbinding in every sense of the word. The wine is intense, concentrated and palate staining. But there is also an elegant, fresh, sensuous side to the texture that balances out the wall of power and tannins, lending a refined touch to the wine. The wine really stands out with a uniqueness of character and style. Give it 1-2 hours in the decanter, or wait another 10-20 years and as good as it is now, it's going to be mind blowing!!!
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Nothing to suggest this won’t continue to develop into one of the greatest La Mission’s of the 20th century. A joy to drink now but at least 10 years from peak and probably more. 98+ At Craft, NYC.
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Trly loved this wine - it has a style all its own, and "only" got 99 becasue it was drunk alongside two 100-pointers that narrowly out-paced it - it could get better, but I see little reason to wait
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Bordeaux 1989 blind tasting, wine #9: As the name suggests, La Mission has a strong religious link in its history. Founded in the early 14th century.
Intense and concentrated wine, extreme mushroom on the nose, balsamic, truffels, grass, meaty notes, broth,, gunpowder and wood. Autumn character. Stands out in the crowd. Still an infant, best in 15+ years. 7 votes.
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This is what intensity is all about. Especially when it's paired with layers of deep, dark, ripe, fresh, sweet, black and dark red fruits. Add in the essence of smoke, tar, wet earth, cigar box and forest aromatics and you get the idea. The wine coats your palate and really sticks, with its flavor and complexities for at least 60 seconds! On some nights, when I am lucky enough to compare it with Haut Brion, the HB wins. On this night, the LMHB stole the show!!! Drink this now, or wait 20 years, either way, this is off the hook.
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2017 Villa d’Este Wine Symposium - Kelly and Kevin's excellent adventure; 11/9/2017-11/14/2017 (Villa D’este, Lake Como and Milan): Expressive nose displaying crème de cassis, a hint of blueberry, scorched earth, lavender, strong lead pencil, cedar, tobacco and earth. Beautifully integrated harmonious palate, very finely layered blue fruit, silky and polished, perfect amount of acidity, strong mineral presence, fully integrated tannins and a long finish that resonates. A classic La Mission Haut Brion, more “masculine” than the 89 Haut Brion. It has reached the youthful peak but will improve for another two decades or more, gaining more cedar and sweetness of red fruit, becoming like the 59 or 61. Excellent showing.
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Decanted 3 hours. Nice nose, a little shy, palate was outstanding over the 3 hours following. One of the better bottles thus far but expect there is still more to be had.
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Château La Mission Haut-Brion vertical tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Easily the most disappointing wine of the night, especially considering how great this wine can be. This was clearly an off-bottle, as it was completely closed down for most of the evening. Initially, there was good fruit on the nose, but it quickly became shy and reticent. Also fell flat on the palate. This wine can be so much better than what this showed on this evening.
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La Mission Haut-Brion Vertical (Wine Watch, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida): Extremely dark color, no lightening at the rim. At first dull and smells like - water. Blasphemy for LMHB. And relatively weak on the palate too. But after about a half hour in the glass, it improved drastically and took off. Now, more typical, dense and concentrated. Still drying tannins though so perhaps needs more time.
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World's Greatest - Night II (Daniel): Stylistically comparable nose to that on the regular Haut-Brion but more savory and with more rusticity showing through. Still generous on the palate with opulent blackberry and black currant fruit. Fine, but perhaps not a great bottle, and in the shadow of the '89 HB in any case.
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Cork was dry and difficult to remove. Popped and slow ox for 2 hours, then poured into decanter and let it sit 4 more hours. Disappointingly, it was still closed down and a bit tannic, with not much on the nose. Finally, 2 hours later, it started to open up and come around, which was a shame since most of it was gone. This bottle definitely needed more time, consistent with the last bottle. Other bottles previously were ready to go, so hard to know what to expect.
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From a very pristine half bottle, with decanting over the 3 hour dinner.
Much more austere than expected. The nose required coaxing but showed the classic Haut Brion smoke/cigar, along with oak, black fruit, and earth. More subtle than I would like which I've seen happen with 1989s before. The palate was really intense and enjoyable, and while I usually am more of a nose guy, the palate is where this wine shined. Lots of intensity, flavours, umami, and a long finish. The tannins seemed totally resolved.
While I liked this, it definitely did not deliver the expected 100 point experience I was looking for to celebrate my wife's birthday and promotion. Along with the pre-moxed 2009 Pape Clement Blanc and the under-whelming experience at Saison in SF, this wine did make for the ideal night. Most importantly, my wife was very happy, so these setbacks were not that critical.
I didn't notice a ton of evolution over the night either. Maybe some might argue for many hours in a decanter? It could have helped, it could have hurt. I don't feel the wine was better three hours later.
I opened a half bottle 1989 Haut Brion the day I proposed to my wife around Thanksgiving 2013 and was similar disappointed. That wine showed some leakage all the way to the top of the cork. However, it was far from austere with a very big nose of smokey cigar classic of Haut Brion. However, from a 100 point wine I expected more complexity and like this La Mission, the Haut Brion didn't really evolve over the night. I had better experiences with the full bottles last time. I drink a lot of half bottles though, and have found many 1982s to be in great shape and tasting very similar to the full bottle, such as the 1982 Mouton. I don't yet have an answer on the half bottle vs. full bottle question. The problem is that there is so much bottle variation regardless of format, drawing a conclusion may be impossible.
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Spellbinding in every sense of the word. The nose is off the charts. The wine is intense, concentrated and deep, with so much raw material, it is almost off the charts. The finish remains with you for close to 60 seconds. This is drinking really well today, but if your bottles are well stored, I suspect, this will be even better with another, 5-10 more years of bottle age!
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Still a baby. Maybe the most complete wine tonight, and certainly the one with the most potential. It had a nice open nose of black currant, sous bois, leather, smoke, Asian spices, and coffee. Full bodied on the palate, with endless dense layers. Still tannic at this point but did soften up a bit. This gained considerable weight in the glass, and I can only imagine that this will be a mind-blowing wine in 10-20 years.
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It has been over a year since I last tasted this wine. It was another strong showing and it seems to be evolving slowly. Very vibrant and pure nose of blackberries and gravelly earth with a very persistent finish. I had the 90 a couple of weeks ago but decided I need to do a side by side. My recollection was the 90 was not quite the wine of the 89.
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Haut-Brion vertical tasting (and a bit of La Mission Haut-Brion) (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Quite different from the 89 Haut-Brion, and took a lot more time to open up. A brooding nose of black currant, sous bois, leather, smoke, anise, and Asian spices. A gorgeous mouthfeel, but still fairly tannic. Tannins softened up after two hours. Took even more time to open up than the 89 Haut-Brion. Did start out with a bit of heat on the finish but this blew off very quickly. This gained considerable weight in the glass, and I think we only got a small taste (literally) of what this will become.
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Perfect cork, decanted 3 hours. Nose was a bit weak when popped and never really opened up. Palate was nice and improved after decanting, but not as great as previous bottles. This particular bottle needed more time.
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another amazing bottle, although a tad younger in feel. On any other night this would have been the killer wine but it followed a 75 DP and 78 Vogue Musigny that could not be topped
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There should be an "I really loved" this wine button. Simply outstanding in every way. The nose, the mouthfeel, the complexity, the finish. Still remembering every sip 12 hours later. Enjoyed with Steak Fiorentine and pasta with pistachio sauce. All homemade.
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nose - cocoa, cherry, sweet earth, fig blood. the nose has less depth than the 89 Haut Brion (which was tasted side by side) mouth - but on the palate, this is my preferred wine. complex mouth of bitter cherry, mushrooms & Asian spice, this is funky and seductive, and much more fleshy than the '89 HB. Improved with time; needs air
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What can I say - this wine was paired with an 83 Margaux and a 95 Latour and it blew the other two away. From an outstanding nose of black fruits, tobacco, smoked meats and licorice, to an amazingly well integrated, perfectly proportion body, to a very Long finish - this has everything working. Long life ahead too.
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This is one rockstar of a wine! The Cuban cigar wrapper, smoke, tar, tobacco, earth and cassis aromatics get you charged up. But the wine that fills your mouth with its layers of ripe, juicy, fresh, earthy fruits is the best part of the experience. Count to 60 and this baby is still going strong! This is great today and the best is yet to come!
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Old reliable. Opened and served at same time as 1989 HB. Ran harder and was preferred by most at table, as more expressive, developed and rounder. I thought HB asserted its class over course of evening, after about an hour. HB more closed and tasted a lot younger.
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1989 vs. 1990 Bordeaux (Vaucluse): 89 vs 90 tasting.The consensus was that this was the WOTN although I gave the edge to the 90 LMHB. This also has a stunning nose and fantastic complexity. However, it is a bit tighter and more tannic than the 90. In another 20 years (which this wine will easily achieve), this will likely be better than the 90 which is at peak drinking age today. Both stunning wines, though
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Another great wine. Wonderful depth and the best finish of the night. Black fruit and graphite still prominent. fantastic wine just to sit and smell. I loved this one.
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This wine was simply outstanding! Very youthful compared to most wines in the flight with a ton of fruit on the nose. This really evolved over the night with well measured oak, cigar, smokey notes, brett, and herbal notes. What a complex wine.
The palate was really lovely, intense, with fruit, rolled tobacco, herbal notes, and smokiness. It had just the right amount of tannic structure and an lovely long finish that kept me coming back for more.
This wine just kept getting better and better for hours, and I just had to give it 100 points by the end.
My #3, the group's #3
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1.Flight Latour 1990 MG vs Lynch Bages 1989 MG 2 Flight La Mission Haut Brion 1989 vs Haut Brion 1989 3.Flight Mouton 1982 vs Latour 1982 MG 4 Flight Mouton 1986 vs Lafite 1986
opened one day before, dark chocolate, extract sweetness, espresso, concentration, some cassis and dark berries, too young, velvety tannins, great acidity, very long finish, a little bit softer than HB
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Russk. Wizards at Reds in SoBe, Jeff's tasting. 92+. My WOTN in a great line up that included similar icons. There was the telltale nose of bandaid and Barnyard.
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This wine performed super great along with 1989 Petrus and Lafleur 1989 !!
1989 LMHB has come to be a very classic Bordeaux, first nose is like great Chateau Latour, what a perfect !!
It's beautiful in every dimension and more splendid than a rustic rough 1975 LMHB. Both are great in a different way.
The character of LMHB, firm, masculine, delicious and not change much during drinking but 1989 is quite special, gentleman, neat, firm but elegant with the amazing long aftertaste.
How Petrus gonna get throuhg ??
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Deep full ruby color. Gorgeous nose of smoky gravel and rich black fruits. Simply exquisite on the palate with great freshness and vigor. Deeply concentrated dark red and black fruits along with notes of asphalt and woodsmoke. So regal and fine and lazer-like in its intensity. The finish is still years from showing itself fully but there are hints of extraordinary complexity underneath with notes of eucalyptus, tobacco, dark spices and tar. This is a few years behind the Haut Brion in terms of aging and will ultimately surpasse that great wine in my opinion. Its hard to explain how fine this wine is. 98+
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The perfume is intense with its essence of tar, tobacco, campfire, smoke, cassis and tobacco elements. The wine is a flawless example of power paired with grace. This stunner is still young. It's instructive and as well as enjoyable to pop a cork today. But if you only have a few bottles, why not wait a while, as this is only going to get better and better for decades!
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Drank a few nights ago and I didn't keep tasting notes. This was the best bottle of this wine that I have tasted to date. This bottle reminds me why I like La Mission so much!
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Consumed at Saint Martha. I was disappointed by this wine. Tastes good of course, but faint on the nose and somewhat faint taste, although the tannic bite was surprisingly nice and grippy. Great wine, but I wouldn't pay $800. Maybe $130?
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A private dinner (Restaurant De Echoput, Hoog Soeren, Netherlands): Deeper, richer, more masculine and powerful than the Haut-Brion 1989 it was paired with, but also less subtle or refined; enormous presence on the nose and on the palate, full-on beef stock flavours, earth, ripe blackcurrant fruit, still very tannic, just a hint of heat on the finish, excellent length.
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If Only All My Business Dinners Were Like This... (Lasserre, Paris): An utter privilege to drink, really my reference point, hallmark wine for a seamlessly complex and rewarding Bordeaux, drinking at its peak. An explosive nose: smoky and enticing, with an intoxicating blend of berry and smoked meat notes. Ample layers of tobacco, roasted meat, cedar and minerality. Fully integrated, with a silky texture, neither sweet nor austere.
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Dark garnet, almost black, without real sediment, this wine is near full maturity.
The nose was a haunting ethereal fog of dark berries, black plum and Asian spice. Tasting was sublime. All encompassing and a finish which went on and on..
Bordeaux doesn't get better than this IMHO outstanding for another decade but why wait to indulge? Spoil yourself. If a date, this was a 38 year old atherine Deneuve who teases you all evening before taking you home and altering your perception of pleasure.
Highly recommended +++
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My wine of the night by a very slight margin over the '89 Mouton. The nose was beautiful and complex with ever evolving scents that kept me coming back. The flavor profile was lovely with a smokiness added to the fruit that was lovely.
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Smoke and silk, the only thing that keeps this from a being a 100 point bottle is the 89 Haut Brion. This is truly wonderful. Powerful, intense, long nd complex, with all the secondary notes of smoke, tobacco, tar and cassis, it's perfectly balanced right now and showing no signs of age. Stephanie loved
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Absolutely perfect! Bordeaux doesn't get any better than this. Bought it on release in 1992 for futures price of $65, and have aged it in my cellar. The fill and the cork were perfect. Color still garnet, still almost completely opaque. The aroma just jumps out and keeps going, with the typical tobacco, cedar, leather, black fruit complexity La Mission is known for. The fruit is definitely still pronounced, perfectly balanced with acid and tannin. Hint of anise along with the same components as they aroma. The finish is just right...not too hot or tannic, just lingers. This has long been our favorite Bordeaux, even more than First Growths. It continues to be... This wine is wonderful now but should hold for more years. Ric
Wine of the Night, 3 separate bottles opened. Perfect. Drinking better in most peoples opinion on the night than the 1982 Latour, 1982 Lalande or 1982 Haut Brion
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The utterly classic LMHB nose of cranberry, brick and smoke is captivating. On the palate, it's full bodied, slightly coarse in that LMHB way, spicy, powerful and dense. Unfortunately, it faded after an hour or so. Still, a fine example of this chateau to drink now.
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Powerful, young, mouthfilling, long, intense and complex, even with all the secondary notes of smoke, cigar box, tobacco, tar and cassis, it's amazing how young, fresh and vibrant this is.
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LMHB (The Ledbury): So dense and concentrated on the nose. A touch of woodiness too. Ouch. TCA on the palate. Bugger! A shame as there's a monumental wine here twenty years down the road. (*****)
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1989 Dinner (Ad Hoc): Double decanted. Drank over 3 hours. Powerful, but elegant nose of dark fruit, earth smoke and a nice mineral and spice note. The palate matched with ripe dark fruit and more earth and smoke. Great smooth texture, perfect balance. Concentrated and harmonious finish.
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A Weekend Of Aged First-Growths At Beau-Rivage in Geneva II: Great, terroir-driven nose of warm gravel and char. Opulent, subtle and elegant with lovely flavors of scorched earth, dark fruits, dark spices and a hint of charred meat. Medium-bodied but feeling like it holds a lot in reserve with good density and sweet but firm tannins. The finish is already quite complex and showing just a bit of secondary development. Silky, gorgeous and precise, this is a fabulous vintage for La Miss with loads of character and elegance. 97+ Geneva, 2/14
Wow wine+! Color still beautiful red ruby, relatively dark, but beginning to see some signs of age on the edges. Incredible nose that flies from the glass. Dark cherry, maybe some meaty leathery scents, anise, and a flowery perfume. Wow. Dark beauty on the palate that lingers and lingers. Classy bordeaux all the way. Terrific with food (lamb tonight). But no doubt some grippy tannins; possibly a few more years in the bottle will resolve. Seems this has a long long life ahead. Needs food today. 97+
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Tasting from correct examples of famous bottles is a dream come true for wine lovers. This bottle really delivered the goods in spades. Cherry pipe tobacco, tar, earth, earth, blackberry, spice, leather and liqueur scents created a perfume you could not stop smelling. The show really hit the road once the wine hit your palate with its depth, length and intensity. There is a beautiful sense of balance and purity at play in this wine. You can drink this now, or in 50 years. If you have the money, this is the real deal.
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Magnificent nose of dark fruits, light cedar, old logs and smoke with black-purple color on pour of a 4 hour decant. Layered rich dark red and black fruits were powerful, concentrated, smooth tannins, perfectly balanced, mouth coating, palate drenching, sophisticated, very long and eye popping - it is young, it is spectacular, and this bottle was perfect. It's great to experience a legend along many points of its developmental journey. An extraordinary indulgence that will outlive the majority of us on CT
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I cannot think of many wines with this many consistent showings. The wine is the complete package with its stunning, smoke, tar, forest, dark cherry, tobacco and cigar box aromas, dense levels of concentration, structure, balance and length. Still young, this could easily age for more 50 years!
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Dinner with Mrs L, HY and Jeremy (The Fat Cow, Singapore): Wow ok I see so this is as good a wine as wine gets. Black cherries, hints of tar, that beautifully stony pebbly mineral character, the sensational power and complexity of the nose yet the poise and balance, even an elegant lightness when the wine hits and coats the palate with its finely sculptured tannins and amazing rich layers of fruit. There is much to like about this wine, but more remarkable is the total absence of anything, absolutely anything, to fault. So this is what perfection is, which makes me a bit uneasy to be honest as I am used to drinking stuff with noticeable faults (albeit mostly tolerable, even charming ones) that can feed some discussion (or "pretentious wine talk" according to Mrs L) at the table. But for a wine like this, one can only enjoy it in respectful silence which I did. So while I've always believed no wine could possibly deserve 100 points, here's one. Trying hard to squeeze out a complaint here, this wine still strikes me as young and perhaps not in its ideal drinking window which, if I might hazard a wild guess, could be 10 years away... Terrific (and sorry for the long TN!)
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There are times when 1989 Haut Brion is better than 1989 La Mission Haut Brion. There are other occasions when the La Mission is the better of the pair. On this night, 1989 La Mission Haut Brion was beyond perfection. In the palate, the wine coats your mouth, teeth and gums with layer after layer of powerful, dark, spicy, smoky fruits. The perfume changes with each swirl and sniff. The finish seems longer than 60 seconds. Power, intensity, richness, concentration and tannins are in abundance. Still youthful, give it at least another decade and your grandchildren can enjoy it for another 50 years, or more!
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1980's Bordeaux Dinner (Arlington Club, NY): My third favorite wine of the evening. Not as complex as the '82 L'Evangile or the '89 Margaux but it still is not far behind. Superb extract. A bit dusty. Good structure. Dense yet not cloying. Long finish. Lovely effort.
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Fairly Merlot color. Smell of light cedar, cabernet sauvignon nose with lots of sweetness. Opened and kept in the bottle for 2hours, it became more approachable. But performance of the sample is surely not a 89 La Mission should give. It only showed a medium body with touch of acidic mid palate, finish was short and shallow. It didn't keep up for another 1.5hours.
Having this straight up in the same flight with the '82 was an eye-opener. Both wines are amazing expressions of La Miss but there is something finer and silkier to the '89 even though it is still very young and not showing much secondary flavor development. There are great classic flavors of road tar, warm bricks, black spices and God knows what else. It is very terroir-driven but also regal and elegant and clearly competes with Haut Brion for wine of the vintage. I can't help but think that this will ultimately be a 100-pt. wine and quite possibly the greatest La Miss ever. I hope I'm alive to make that assessment 20+ years from now. Wowza! 98+
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From Ex-Ray: A perfect wine, a perfect Bordeaux! Tasted with grilled steaks, also with '05 Cayuse Bionic Frog. Still dark garnet with only slight lightening at the edges; still opaque. Pronounced aroma of cedar, cassis, tobacco and leather, complex. Medium-full body, perfectly balanced cassis and black fruits with cedar, smoke, mushrooms, leather on the palate, complex. No significant tannin. Very long, smooth aftertaste. Still have a few bottles left...it should hold for a few more years but it's perfect now, so enjoy. Ric
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Dark red, showing some light brick at the rims. Mineralic nose, smoke, leather, exotic citrus flavors (kumquat). This wine has enormous power, is deep but very harmonic. The sweetness is supporting the power very well. Very exotic touches again. While the Haut Brion is about elegance this is about power. This wine still requires some more time. Just amazing. Drink 2018 - 2045
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It took three hours before the wine hit the right spot and exploded with tobacco, iron, earth, cigar box, cassis, blackberry, wet earth, smoke and cherries. With incredible concentration, power, tannin and length, everything is there for a wine that will develop for decades. This is bigger than 1989 Haut Brion, but with a little less finesse. The finish must have remained for at least 50 seconds! If you have a case, try one. If you only have a few bottles, if you can wait another decade, or two, you'll have one of life's great wine tasting experiences! Shared with dad over dinner, what a great wine and an even better memory. And isn't that what wine is for?
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95 POINT DOUBLE BLIND DINNER @ Le Provencal; 1/22/2013-1/24/2013 (Le Provencal, Miracle Mile, Coral Gables,FL): - Garnet color with slow forming legs and aromas of black currant, blackberry, black olive and violet and has flavours of black currant, blackberry and dusty - Luis's wine. He had given it a several hour decant. Jerry immediately IDed it as Graves. I thought either Graves or Merlot, but correctly IDed 1989. WOTN by acclamation(so was Luis' Dom Perignon). Bravo Luis for treating us to such gems. Gravelly by nature.
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Bought as a future and well stored. Opened and was great at once but tannic and then decanted for 3 hours. Light red at edges and dark in center. Wonderful tobacco, leather and earth nose with black fruit and taste to match. Will be 100 in 10 years.
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Super Tasting 1 of 6 - Andrew does 1989 Bordeaux (Langdon Hall, Blair, Ontario): This is the second time I have had this bottle…the last time, I also had it up against the 1989 Haut Brion and I actually give the win to La Mission by a hair (100pts to 99pts). Not so today.. Such a pretty nose……minerals, campfire, cherry, spice…such Graves typicity. The palate is so explosive, yet refined and compact with flavours of leather, cedar, cherry, smoke, earth, pencil lead. This is so svelte and right in its drinking window..it will hold obviously but why wait. Finish is so long with great balance and such complexity. This is unreal….such pedigree.
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Super Tasting 1 of 6 - Andrew (Langdon Hall, Cambridge, ON): Wow, this is serious. Just in the early stages of maturity and I'm inclined to think this will improve with time (the structure on the palate supports this assertion). Showing great red currants, graphite, great sense of minerality. Very nicely balanced on the palate with a very long finish. Though a great wine now, I think to my palate I would appreciate it even more in 10 years.
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Tasting Group Dinner Series (1 of 6) / Andrew's 28th Birthday (Red Room, Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Ontario): Popped and poured, followed over the course of the evening. Deep garnet, bordering on purple in the glass. A fantastic nose of blackberries, licorice, smoke, cured meats, spice, gravel, light florals and cedar. On the palate, very rich dark fruits, complimented nicely by spice, a tough of pyrazine and mineral. Texturally, this is also quite rich, showing a bit of glycerin, however this is balanced by superb acidity, and results in a finish that lingers in the mouth for quite some time. Tannins are not yet fully integrated at this time, although they are quite soft and plush. An extraordinary wine now, but I'd love to revisit this in a few years as the tertiary notes come out a bit more.
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From a bottle with a ts fill and signs of seepage. Opened and drank over 6 hours. This is a massive wine. Nose of cassis, dark cherry, and cigar box. Extremely well balanced and did not really budge over 6 hours. The tannins still have alot of structure to them.
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deep dark color to the rim. on the nose it showed rich black cherries and minerally background. beautiful from the first sip. filled the mouth , well integrated and very long. great bottle
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Incredible color for it's age, can get the nose from across the table, beautifully balanced. My guess is it's still not in its prime, but getting close. Very little sediment upon decanting. Had lots of good company in Boys Night Out, other 89's, but this was WOTN.
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Acker Merrall BYO (Sepia - Chicago IL): Nowhere at the level I've ever had before for this wine. Probably a flawed or poorly stored bottle, that still had good black cherry and plum but was more advanced and shorter than ever before. Still around 91 points, but not a representative bottle, and shockingly not as good as the 1990 Mission Haut-Brion also tasted tonight. Sigh.
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89/90 Bordeaux Retrospective with Hart Davis Hart: Wow! This is just such a perfect Graves archetype. Very much baked brick, smoke, mineral Graves with fruit across the spectrum. What more can be said? Mature. Expansive. Awesome.
5
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Acker Merrall Inaugural Chicago Auction (Trump International Hotel): Powerful wine with incredible balance. Black cherry and plum fruit with good cedar and tobacco notes. Lots of tannin and acidity but incredibly balanced. This is at a great place today, and has the concentration and density that I expect will hold here for a long, long time.
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Acker Auction Chicago (Sixteen Restaurant): Wow. Tons of power and material. Dark fruits, tobacco, but a great softness to the palate despite its youth. Medium grain, well balanced tannins. Delicious.
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Alcohol :: 13% This wasn't hard to grab everyone attention despite having two classy juice before this. The bouquet is simply stunning and captivating: creme de cassis and assortments of sweet, pure dark fruits: blackcurrant, fig, plum date merge seamlessly with smoke meat, star anise, cedar, crushed rock and violets. Gorgeous, I can sniff this all day! The palate echoes to the nose with sheer class and finesse, and slowly gaining better weight in the glass. Layers of smoke meat, capsicum, crushed rock, sweet blackcurrant, plum, saline mineral, cedar, graphite with the inner perfume of violet, roses filled the mouth immediately and keep lingering. With 22yrs of age, this juice still possess mouth coating and palate staining intensity but the densely concentrated sweet, lush dark fruits and the super silky, sweet tannin is perfectly integrated and formed the highly complex, seductive mouth feel, finely texture, so harmonious and elegance. The slight spicy infused finished just gone insane, goes on forever with bitter sweet cocoa aftertaste and linger with juicy sweet dark fruits. I can still taste this after a day! My best Bordeaux so far. This is a Magnificent LMHB and even better than the profound 1990, still on its way up, bravo! 97+
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1989 Bordeaux First Growth and Super Second Tasting.: At first I thought this was slightly corked; but the mustiness blew away showing a massively extracted wine- its all there; intensely concentrated fruits and massive chewy tannins. Certainly the boldest of the first/super second of the 89 lineup. I see why this was Parker 100 pointer, for me, it was all too overpowering, not in a ripe way though., just beastly. It did not fare well against the 89 Haut Brion in my view. On the flip side, this wine has the most upside of any of the wines, thus its possible that it could have evolved with more airing (4 hour decant on this occasion). On this showing, I will hold on to my lone bottle for another 5 years at least.
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La Mission Haut Brion Intense smokey aromas complicated by scents of hot stone, tobacco, cassis, blackberry, truffle, earth and spice. Full bodied, concentrated and powerful, with layers of ripe, juicy dark berries, the wine remains in your mouth for close to 60 seconds! At 21 years of age, this compelling Pessac Leognan is still young. While it offers an intense experience today, it's only going to get better with more time.
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With lamb shank at our favorite restaurant. Perfectly mature and perfect! Typical nose of leather, tobacco, cedar, pronounced. Medium-full body, with excellent balanced cassis, earth, leathery flavors. No significant tannin. Very long finish, some anise and French oak. At its peak, but should hold for several more years. Bordeaux doesn't get much better than this!
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1989 La Mission Haut Brion opens with a powerful nose, filled with scents of fresh coffee bean, blackberry, cassis, spice, strawberry, smoke, minerality and earth. Massive, deep and stuffed with layers of ripe, rich, fruit with intense purity. The long finish is balanced and close to seamless. The wine could use a few mores of bottle age to soften the tannins and add more complexity. 98 Pts
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I was eagerly anticipating this bottle, the first one I drank from a case purchased on release. Surpisingly, this was more like I expected from Haut Brion while the HB seemed more like a typical LMHB. It was the LMHB which was lighter in color, softer and more fragrant. Hints of cinnamon, thyme and cedar. Full and round. The tannins are felt just at the end of the finish, so this wine is ready to go now and for the foreseeable future. Great stuff.
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Served blind at Chateau La Mission Haut Brion over dinner - Cigar, ash, minerals, earth, cassis, tar, leather black fruit, hot stones and freshly ground coffee beans open up the aromatic fireworks. This dense elixir is packed and stacked with layers of rich, intense, ripe dark fruit. The tannins feel ripe. But this wine is tannic and requires more bottle age than Haut Brion. The wine finishes with an intense display of ripe, spicy black fruit, cassis and fresh dark cherries.
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Me and George got the bottle to enjoy a cool evening at a tavern in the foothills of Mount Parnes. What a spectacular wine!!! Still very young and powerful with cherry jam flavors,iodine, graphite, cedar and sweet spices. Realy a masterpiece, difficult to describe with common words. One of the best wines I ever drank.
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Not a flaw in it; not quite as full on the palette as the last bottle, but still incredible. Layer on layer of complexity. Nose of light tobacco with much fruit remaining. Very very special.
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decanted 90 minutes. An utterly seamless wine that begins with a nose so positively complex and alluring I had to remind myself to taste it. Polished layers of red and blue fruits with a pinch of herbal notes and worn leather flavors. Stunning length and purity, this is a wine I won't soon forget. Priceless. Drink thru 2028+
What was most special for me about this near-legendary wine was its mind-boggling and nearly indescribable intensity. It had been decanted for two hours before I approached it, and the nose was still somewhat closed. I took a small sip and I swear I almost choked and had to spit it out: not because it tasted anything but great but because I wasn't prepared for the intensity of flavors that gripped my mouth. This wine had more depth and penetration than any red I can ever remember tasting, yet it wasn't overstated, alcoholic, or anything but brilliant. The flavors were classical: currants, graphite, cedar, the dirt of the terroir. Even at age 20 and with a good decant, it was clearly youthful with a seemingly unlimited future. I couldn't bring myself to taste more than a few drops at a time both because I wanted to see it open up even more and because it was a marvel just letting it play across my tongue. I'm inspired to create a new word: "indensity," a lame attempt to capture the drinking experience.
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Best red of the evening as this lives up to it's perfect score reputation. Smokey nose, rich with black fruit, tar, scorched earth all framed in subtle oak. A perfect end.
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Acker BYO at Bouley - this was better than my last bottle, again decanted for 5 hours. Whereas the last bottle was pristine, this bottle was from the same case, but had a little bit of old seepage on the cork. Sometimes that helps with the big, long-lived wines. The first thing that hits you is the big nose of cedar, smoke and currants. The palate has more currants, along with tea and charcoal and a little more dark sweet caramel, and berries on this bottle. What really stands out though is the body. Unbelievable balance that just stops you in your tracks and places you in a trance where you block everything else out and just contemplate the wine.
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One of the best balanced wines I have ever had. Cedar and smoke on the nose. Tar, leather, tea, currants and black licorice on the palate. Took about 5 hours to really come around. It was actually beat on this night by the best bottle of '95 Rayas I have had.
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Cassis, tobacco, chocolate, plums, smoke, and licorice with dark berry aromatics are all over the place. Full bodied with intense levels of concentration, this is one of those rare thrill a sip wines. Dense, opulent, rich, and fat, this wine tastes great, pouring over every inch, every nook and cranny, of your mouth. The seamless finish goes on and on with an endless array of palate pleasing, sensations. Still young, it will get better over the next several decades.
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Excellent wine. Didn't really get the chance to experience all it might have had as it was coming out of a cold cellar and we only had about 60 minutes to taste it's evolution in the bottle. Really a very, very fine wine though and one that deserves it's reputation.
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Dinner at Cityzen, 82, 86, 89 and 90 first growth and LMHB (Cityzen, Washington DC): Initially green tobacco leaf dominant nose but excellent core fruit concentration. With some air, sweet black fruit, tobacco, blackberry jam and baked dark berries. This wine is very young and still displays some primary fruit character. Rene commented on how similar two wines are despite the 82 showing greater maturity. Both showed strong sweet tobacco component, ash and scorched earth. I first rated the wine 94pts but as the wine opened up, upgraded to 97 pts.
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3 fantastic bottles at a celebration with friends. Virtually perfect. Truffles, tobacco, leather; great depth, complexity and finish. Consistantly one of our favorite bordeaux. Based on prior experience the bottles opened and decanted just prior to serving. The nose was fully developed within 15 minutes. A wonderful wine with years of life ahead.
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This is one of the finest wines that I have had the pleasure to own and enjoy. More youthful than the 75, this wine is only just begining to strut its stuff. Dark red in the glass with great notes of leather and tobacco on the nose. This wine is perfectly balanced with velvet waves of dark red fruits interwoven with earth, more tobacco and leather. The finish lasts a full minute. A real favorite.
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Tasted at the Vintages auction gala tasting. I was surprised by this one as I was looking forward to it. It was only ok and not a favourite of mine. This was based solely on the taste which I found to be very sour. Too bad.
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1989 La Mission Haut Brion is rock star wine! Make no bones about it. This is the real deal. The deep ruby color shows little signs of age. Spice box aromatics with earth, mocha, chocolate, coffee, smoke and tobacco fill the room. The palate experiences an orgasm as the orgy of ripe fruit dances all over your senses. And endless sea of ripe cherry, black fruit and spice are truly something to experience. This tastes much younger than you might think as it’s almost 20 years old. This is compelling wine! This is what great wine is all about. The scary thing is, the best is yet to come. 100 Pts
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The Blind Drunks monthly tasting (Joe's): Garnet color, showing a little bit of bricking at the edge. Initial notes of clove and spice, with an earthy quality too. With a few minutes in the glass, notes of earth, tar and roasted herbs jumped from the glass. Loads of red fruit on the palate, balanced by a nice earthy undertone. Long finish.
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(85;71) Consistently one of our favorite Bordeaux made since 1961. Very, very fat looking and grand mouthfeel. Dark, spicy and rich. Big structure, this will surely get even better in the next decade. Dark fruit, cedar and petroleum. Long great aftertaste. Lynn’s second favorite and 100p for her.
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As has been my experience with it in the past, a very concentrated wine. It seemed to suffer from a touch of VA (or something similar) and was a bit disappointing, at least after the Romanee-Conti.
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4th Annual Italian Offline Pre-Game - Champagne and Bordeaux (Sweets & Savories, Chicago, USA): Medium-dark ruby colour. Aromas of red licorice, spice, cigar box, mineral, leather, and red fruit. Full-bodied, so complex and layered. Replays from nose. This wine shows impeccable balance. Long, long finish, ~60+s, with cigar box, mineral, leather, and dried fruit notes. Truly fantastic! Red WOTN.
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Brought by Futronic and DoktaP to the champagne and bdx dinner at Sweets & Savories. This was a wowser of a wine. We let it decant for 1-2 hours before dipping in. Dark, rich, and brooding are what come to my mind, although it definitely had a terrific high-toned side as well. This wine struck a great balance between power and finesse, primary and secondary characteristics, fruit acid and tannins. Very well done, I suspect this has another 2 decades in it and will probably show even better in another 5-10 years.
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Fine dark color with the slightest browning on the edges. Gorgeous nose of underbrush, sweet tobacco, warm bricks and smoky Graves dirt. My case was purchased upon release and perfectly stored since and this wine is aging at a glacial pace. Rather full-bodied with that flavor of smoky Graves that I find so alluring. Quite intense on the finish but then the tobacco and dark cherry-infused tannins clamp down before much complexity can be discerned. Tons in reserve so I will try not to open another bottle for 10 years, at least! 96+
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Drank at Cru in NYC – opened, poured into a decanter, and drank over three hours. At first showing a strong and awkward nose of funk. Flavours of spice and dark fruit. After two hours, nose of bacon, tobacco, burnt rubber and roasted cherries. Flavours of charred meat, roasted dark fruits and underlying complexity that continued to develop throughout the entire three hours. Still showing some nice acidity and medium tannins. Creamy and smooth. Last glass also gave notes of custard on the nose. Exceptional bottle of wine.
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a perfect bottle. wonderful nose of tobbaco and leather. this wine has the best balance of almost any bdx. great grip and a finish that lasts for minutes.
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DRANK THE 89 La Mission with Jakels -- superb 97 to 99 pts. Also seved a 69 Margaux which was full of ceder -- an old slightly tired wine but still most enjoyable. It was Oct. 31 2007 Bob seved a hermitage by chave and a 91 Dominus
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Uncorked DK tasting: 1989/1990 Bordeaux (Kenneth): Dark red with an ever so slightly brownish rim. Nose is a bit shy, but still delicious with intense licquer-like sweetness and a lot of herbal notes. In the mouth it is very intense, spicy, sweet and herbal. This wine was the first this night to display some of the ethereal lightness that some great Bordeaux possesses. When we learned what this was it confirmed our suspicion that it was possibly a bit closed. Also it was very much dominated by wine number two in this flight (Haut Brion 1989).
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Open 1.30 before drinking. I tested this wine along with Haut Brion 1990. I have to say that La Mission Haut-Brion 1989 is a perfect wine...Absolutely Perfect !! And I prefer this 1989 than La Mission 1975 because of its silky full-bodied and endless aftertaste in different style. It makes 4 of us feel uncomfortable. This wine is really stronger than us....Brovo !! This bottle is suited for minimun 6 persons....I'm serious !! I finished the last glass before go to bed at 2.30 am in the morning, I want to see how it ends but can not because of its powerful. I can not drink it again each time before 15-20 mins. La Mission 1989 has a great structure to hold on for 10 hours ++....we salute it...
Drink it now - 2050
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Perhaps more concentrated than the Haut Brion, but it was not as balanced, elegant or assimilated. Still it was a great wine, but on that night, as a matter of style, I preferred the Haut Brion.
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HDH Comparative Bordeaux Tasting 1989 & 1990 (Casino Club): Pale round red color. Lovely spicy iron nose of red fruit. Nice rich round red fruit and iron on the palate with a long tight finish. I enjoyed this nearly as much as the 89 HB and I think it may have a longer life ahead...
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Chistmas Eve dinner paired with beef tenderloin. Opened and loosely corked for 5 hours. Double decanted after 30 minutes. Reddish, brown at the edges. Inviting nose of licorice, dark fruits and minerals. Wonderful, mouth coating texture. Fantastic balance, length. Can't imagine a better example from this vintage. Spectacular!
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Inky, blackberry, chocolate, mineral, tobacco, smoke and earthy scents slam your senses. Huge, tannic, rich, large scaled flavors are almost too much of a good thing. I said almost. This is what great Bordeaux is all about!
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La Mission Haut-Brion Vertical (Bentley Hotel, London): Surprisingly advanced colour, could have passed for a wine 20 years older. Herbal, hay and lead, dates and liquorish, a little thin to begin but developed complex plumy fruits. Not a perfect wine though, not this bottle. Can't wait to try it again.
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The Grand Finale with Leve at the French Laundry (Yountville, Napa Valley, CA): This bottle was far, far better than the 1989 La Mission we had the prior Thursday. Exploding from the glass with raspberry, leather and smoky, roasted earth. This is a baby, but this bottle delivered the goods. This was probably the most drinkable wine of this flight.
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Some similar notes of cigar box and spice on the nose to the HB, but this wine is clearly sweeter and thicker than the flagship. The LM took longer to open up and gained in richness and gave up some early stewed fruit references. Simply stunning.
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Have Parker and Gabriel got it wrong...the 89 is already coming to an end. The nose no longer develops the complexity and the palate no longer has the emphasis.
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Licorice, coffee, chocolate, vanilla, herbs, cassis and kirsch fill the glass. No, make that fill the room! Silky, sexy layers of dense concentrated fruit cascade across your palate and leave you breathless. The scary thing is, this isn’t even mature!
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Bordeaux Legends with Leve at Sona (Los Angeles, CA): Well this was another gorgeous La Mission, but in comparison to the 1982 La Mission and the 1989 Haut Brion this was between a rock and a hard place. A sweet core with notes of coffee, yet nowhere near as extravagant as its brethren from 1982. And gorgeous as it was, in comparison to its cousin the 1989 Haut Brion this was tannic, choppy and tight and seemed to close down hard with air. All that said, this an absolutely stunning youngster of a wine that will come around to reveal more over the next 10 years.
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HDH Pre-Auction Tasting (Chicago IL): Wine tasting. Huge black fruit with incredible spice. Lots of acidity and tannins are equally prominent with the fruit today, but this wine's powerful substance is impossible to hide. Amazingly long finish.
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Tasting of seven Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion, fourth place. Nice, young bight red/orange color in the glass. Lovely young, rich fruity nose with a touch of ammonia, more of the same on the palate, easy to drink and enjoy this wine, medium finish.
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Done with the Haut Brion verticle with the West Michigan Offliners, Mike Zolik's bottle. Dark purple. Sweet candied nose. Full bodied, sweet tannins and plenty of glycerin. Decanted for 3 hours and drank over the following 1&1/2 hours but still tight, in 5-10 years this s/b a 100 pointer.
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Wine tasting. Fresh black fruit aromas came across as rather subdued. More ostentatious flavors on palate with lots of black cherry, black currant and spice. Great balance with well integrated tannins, helping this evolve and take on complexity into long finish. I expect this has upside from here.
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Deep, dark red. Very jammy on the nose. Also notes of vanilla and raisins. Strong, but packed with sweet, dense, ripe fruit, and a heavenly texture, like expensive fur. Widely structured, and filling out the mouth completely, touching every corner, nook, and cranny with intense, tannic, tentacles. Juicy and meaty, like a meal that calls for the extra fine cutlery to be brought out, this wine had a port-like character, that mirrored the raisin-plum notes on the bouquet. The finish went on and on. This wine has so much to offer, yet one senses that 20 more years in the bottle will be rewarded handsomely. My guess was Clinet.
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Tasted in single-blind fashion at an '89/'90 Bordeaux dinner at El Bizcocho. Bottle provided by Amy Weinberg. Bright disc. Opaque ruby robe with red rim. Clean nose, showing an explosive bouquet of black currants, minerals, tar, mocha and toasted oak. Full-bodied on the palate, with huge, relatively sweet tannins, medium acidity and flavors every bit as intense as the nose. Long, smooth finish. This is stellar Bordeaux which will clearly get even better with more time in the bottle. An excellent accompaniment to the farm-raised Virginia lamb saddle with bean ragout and lamb basil juice.
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A fragrance bomb. Incredibly intense and yet finely structured with fine spices, blackberry and mint tones. A poem on the tongue and palate. Compact with endless power and fullness. Extremely long finish.
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Outstanding. Not tough at all, as the former vintages would be at this tender age. Bountiful fruit. Missing the usual smoke so far. Great texture. Suave.
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more dense than the 1990 - gentle buttery toasty oak - an ostentatious nose with a lot of depth. Earthy, coffee, complex - needs time. A far better wine than the 1990 - tobacco, smoke, minerals and great length - velvety smooth but with excellent structure. Smoked meats on end of the lingering finish - very complex.
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Tasted at blind 1989 horizontal Bordeaux tasting at Vintage Wines, Ltd. Medium ruby with red-brick rim. Closed nose with light oak and currants. Full-bodied, fruit-filled palate with loads of supple tannins. The finish now appears medium to long, and slightly alcoholic. Personally ranked fifth out of eight top growths.
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Tasted at blind 1989 horizontal Bordeaux tasting at Vintage Wines, Ltd. Opaque ruby with red rim. Earthy (slightly musty) currants, vanilla and eucalyptus on nose, with same flavors on palate. Big extract, but the tannins are very supple. Short finish at this point.
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4/27/2024 - nywine68 wrote: 95 Points
Drank with dinner at Le Coucou. Softer and more evolved than prior bottles. Tell-tale big smokey nose of LMHB. Brambly blackberries, tobacco and some menthol. Entering tertiary development. This bottle was slightly beyond its peak but still very enjoyable.
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4/17/2024 - mowtod Likes this wine: 91 Points
Had with steak Diane with Deb and Karen. Lived up to expectations
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2/4/2024 - hprphf wrote: 95 Points
Blind with 89HB. More pungent and sharper of the duo, inky dark fruit, classically ripe, if evidently way younger and less ready. 95++
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1/26/2024 - alexbhurst1678 wrote: 97 Points
Drank w Nick at dinner. Out of the gate, the funk was incredible. Earthy, rich, robust. The finish was fantastic. About thirty minutes in, we could taste the tannins -- the grippy sensation came out. After 90 minutes or so, we could feel the air being let out of the experience. I would drink faster and no need to decant way before imbibing.
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1/18/2024 - acyso wrote: 100 Points
Turn on the heaters (Chicago, IL): It's truly hard for me to imagine how else you could make this wine better. This is easily one of the most compelling bottles of Bordeaux I've ever had, and it was one that actually pulled me back into the region after neglecting it. A cork in preternaturally good condition gave way to a nose that really just exploded out of the bottle. This was spectacular from the cork pull (and plenty of unhappy experiences with over-decanted Bordeaux last year had me decide to pop and pour this and follow it over a leisurely dinner). The nose is graphite and cedar, but overlaid with a stony minerality and fruit that still maintains vestiges of primary character. On the palate, this is surprisingly light -- though maybe lithe and supple might be a better descriptor. There is no lack of complexity -- a bit of pyrazine green that fades into sweet red and black fruit, tons of Pessac stoniness, and just a faint hint of barnyard and leather. It's really the complete package as far as Bordeaux goes. The tannins could almost be called a bit young still, and I've no doubt that this still has plenty of gas left in the tank. This is one of my favourite bottles of red Bordeaux made in my lifetime.
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1/12/2024 - dream Likes this wine: 96 Points
A youthful bottle of this that needed further coaxing on the glass despite a 5-hour double-decant. Then it began to reveal its fabulous purity and subtle power showing classic Graves notes of smoky gravel and tobacco spice. The texture is regal and the finish is almost perfect with great length and a fabulous layered intensity. This wine's best days are still ahead. 96+
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12/31/2023 - King Julien wrote: 98 Points
Decanted about 90 min, which it seemed to need. After that, the nose was stunning, just wanted to keep my nose in the glass. Palate was there to match with evolving complexity over the next couple hours. Still plenty of fruit, very smooth.
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12/3/2023 - 831900_ Likes this wine: 95 Points
Leather, toasted sugar, subtle red fruit balancing on the nose. Ultra fine feel aside from just a bit of sappiness (which I enjoyed). Compared to other 1989s, a little narrow and flat. Super enjoyable.
Edged out just *slightly* by the Haut-Brion that night, but geez they're both really nice.
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11/28/2023 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 94 Points
Excellent wine.
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11/25/2023 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
It’s pure and almost sweet for La Mission Haut-Brion. Subdued and relatively soft. The smoke is there as is the cranberry fruit. Elegant for this château. Very nice but not thrilling.
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11/21/2023 - mowtod Likes this wine: 95 Points
Great depth and character of flavor. Paired very well with Steak Diane. Still Kristi’s favorite.
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11/3/2023 - Nanda wrote: 99 Points
Wow, an absolutely sensational bottle of LMHB. Takes about 45 minutes to open up and then the magic unfurls. So much earth, mineral, tobacco, bell pepper and herbal complexity layered in with mature yet fresh plum fruit. Every sip is rich and silky.
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10/28/2023 - OenoEd Likes this wine: 97 Points
In prime drinking window, but this needed a full hour decant to lose bottle must and green pepper notes. This is the real deal with texture, depth, iron ore , cigar box, saddle leather and sweet black plum. 15 years of great drinking ahead. Had this with 10 day aged duck and black truffled potatoes at Lafayette in Philly. Superb.
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10/21/2023 - aquacongas wrote: 97 Points
blind
Next to Montrose 89 which is at the same level. Still young, some beginning tertiary aromas but still a lot of fruit. Refreshing acidity. 97
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10/4/2023 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 100 Points
the last flight of the night was the matchup of the 89 La Mission and Haut Brion. The La <ission was the clear winner at first sip after both had been decanted about 2 hours but the HB was catching up quickly in the glass. We should have given them another hour of air. The La miss is prettier, more seductive and is catching up the to the HB over time, however both wines are essentially perfect and it does not get better in 80's bordeaux as of now. Thanks Jim and Rob, the table was split over which was the winner. These will live on longer than i do.
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9/29/2023 - dream Likes this wine: 97 Points
Simply a stunning performance tonight and neck and neck next to the '89 HB. This is certainly the deeper wine with wonderful woodsy dark red fruits along with notes of road tar, smoked meats and forest floor. Just beautifully layered and refined in texture leading to a fabulously complex finish with additional notes of cigar smoke, warm cedar and flinty minerals. This bottle at least is full on and firing on all cylinders. 97+
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7/25/2023 - essenceofreal wrote: 96 Points
What a wine! Needed about a 4 hour decant to truly unfurl and reveal all its beauty. Fortunately this bottle was in excellent condition. Was shocked how little seepage on the cork and bottle.
Lots of sediment. Amazing balance and texture. Usual suspects from a world class Bdx: heaps of cuban cigar, leather, some pine, toasted nuts, great terroir driven experience with a finish to die for. Glad I have another bottle. Certainly in a perfect drinking window and I feel will stay at this peak level for years. Top notch.
This bottle was a bit bigger than the other 89 HB's I've had from my OWC. Need to do a side by side comparison, but from recall the HB may have a bit more complexity and elegance, a little more sexy. Regardless, they both are outstanding and worthy of spending a long sultry night together.
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5/18/2023 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Top Mid-Aged Bordeaux ("Chateau La Grange" - La Grange IL): In 89/90 flight. Unlike the 89 HB which declined in glass, this kept getting better. Rich and yummy black fruit with a mineral throughline.
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5/18/2023 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
Some Bordeaux (Chicago, IL): Nowhere as good as my previous experience with this wine. If anything, this showed muddled and lacking in precision. Still, this had an impressive core of fruit and plenty of mineral intensity. Feels young, with plenty more aging potential thanks to its larger structure.
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1/22/2023 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 98 Points
not blind
Same level as La Mission Haut Brion 1989 today. Both close to perfection. Lots of years ahead. 98
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1/13/2023 - SimonG wrote: 94 Points
My 50th at the Ledbury (The Ledbury, London): Double-decanted seven hours. Deep garnet. Nose of warm gravel with a Madeira cake richness. Similar on the palate, richer than the HB alongside and far better balanced than a bottle three years ago that showed some heat but not as exotic or flashy as some notes suggest. Lovely wine, but lacking that extra wow factor the HB shows. ****1/2
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10/20/2022 - Comte Flaneur wrote: 96 Points
Big, brooding, dense, mouth-filling with richness and power. Clearly a superstar with a glorious future ahead. My guess it will be at its peak in one to three decades from now. I think the genuine 1961-like thrills are some way ahead for the 1989, but you can’t help but admire this titan of a wine. But for current drinking give me the 1978 or 1988 over this any day. I am going to put my last three bottles away for several years.
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10/5/2022 - fcxj wrote: 92 Points
Classical, graphite aromatics. Somewhat upright, rigid Cabernet fruit.
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10/3/2022 - Montesquieu Likes this wine: 99 Points
1989 Haut-Brion is my all-time favorite red wine. A good friend in the business has long claimed that LMHB 1989 is even better. A second generous friend contributed this bottle for us to find out whether we agreed. For me, it fell just short of the perfection of my memory of the 1989 HB. The LMHB is truly great on any scale and drinking superbly right now. It was also (easily) my WOTN against a half-dozen 100- or highly-rated California cabs.
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9/24/2022 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
There are some famous wines that never live up to their reputation. That is not the case here. Explosive does not begin to express the nose, with all of its tar, smoke, cigar wrapper, pipe tobacco, dark cherries, and plums. But as good as that is, it is the richness and layers of palate-staining fruits that build, expand and resonate for 60 seconds that own the show! 60-90 minutes in the decanter is more than ample here. Drink from 2022-2050.
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7/8/2022 - steinersing wrote: 97 Points
Wow this is spectacular- still surprisingly youthful.
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6/22/2022 - Ozen Likes this wine: 98 Points
Fabulous. This beauty is so rich, complex and overwhelmingly intense, while never overbearing and maintaining a freshness that makes this so utterly compelling. Well in the mature drinking window now, fully ready to indulge. One of the best 89's i have ever tasted.
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6/17/2022 - jviz wrote: 98 Points
Insanely good wine that lives up to its stellar reputation. I’m hoping the Haut Brion shows as well. Purchased on release and shared by a friend. Cork was perfect. Into the decanter and we dove in about 15 minutes later and followed for a few hours in Zalto bdx stems.
Initially a tad tight and closed, with air this opened and unfolded. Tobacco seemed to be the dominant note, with iron ore and red pepper, along with deep blackberry fruit and a hint of cinnamon. As it breathed, any tar notes seemed to fade when the wine fleshed out. Really large scaled and pasty fruited, fairly inky with great ripeness and balanced acidity. Wow this was good.
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2/9/2022 - aquacongas wrote: 98 Points
blind
Together with Mouton 82. This was more opened and easier to drink. Great balance and close to his peak if you prefer the primary over the tertiary aromas. Great power and joyful to drink. At the beginning I preferred this wine, two hours later the Mouton. 98
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12/31/2021 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 97 Points
Strong, strong ruby, with no orange at the rim. Actually sticks to the glass after 32 years. Rich core of ripe red fruit, surrounded by iron and minerals. Super expressive and impressive in the mouth, quite opulent and velvety smooth, but at the same time massive in weight and richness, and the finish goes on forever. Has some beautiful mocha, cocoa and chocolate, as well as creme de cassis, menthol and even a bit medicinal. It is the massive weight and the never-ending finish that puts this in a league of its own. First time I remember tasting this, and worth the wait. 5-14-19-9: 97/100.
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12/28/2021 - Ozen Likes this wine: 98 Points
First and foremost: let it breath for at least 4 hours. When popping the cork it both nose and mouth are muted at first, closed. Its after 3-4 hours that it starts to open up, slowly and majestically, like royalty taking its time at its own pace.
Fully mature and in its drinking window but full of life and years ahead of it, while fully at its peak now. While the nose of this bottle is not as exuberant, the tasting is spectacular. Its actually kind of hard to capture the experience in individual elements as it is so incredibly well integrated and harmonious. It's intense but subdued at the same time, its smooth and seducive, silky and sweet but always classy, impeccably balanced in its senses and sweet rich flavors. This is like trying to parse a great dish in its ingredients but not being able to as it is made to perfection and no single element stands out: magnificent balance and long after taste. The standard 750ml bottle in this case is unavoidably leading to deception and disappointment as it leaves you beg for one more sip. Stellar wine.
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12/19/2021 - dream Likes this wine: 97 Points
A stunning two bottles of this showing just a ton of material with voluminous flavors of dark fruits, road tar and oriental spices. The texture is now so well layered and velvety although the tannins remain firm yet supple and there is a wonderful smokiness that pervades throughout the wine. The finish just rolls over the tongue in waves with great complexity and mature notes just emerging. Wonderful and still on the upswing. 97+
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12/3/2021 - cos65 Likes this wine: 99 Points
From a pristinely stored magnum
Double decanted about 2 hours prior to service
Deep ruby black, crystal clear.
Some smoky cherry flavors, hugely wafting aromatics, structure resolved, yet perfect balance and seeming immortal. More complete than a recent 1989 HB
Perfect wine? 99+
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11/3/2021 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 96 Points
A pristine example and youthful showing. Classic side-by-side with the ‘89 Haut Brion. The La Mission was the ‘technically’ stronger with more red and black fruit power, but the Haut Brion had the beautiful and highly expressive aromatics with huge projection from the glass. The Burgundy-focused crowd tonight preferred the HB to the La Mission for its terrific aromatics. 95 - 96.
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10/16/2021 - sdr Likes this wine: 96 Points
I see the marketplace has now valued this ‘89 above the consistently impressive ‘82 so I was curious to see why. Now I get it, even though I am not yet ready to give the gold trophy to the splendid ‘89. Undeniably glorious mature Bordeaux it is, though. Surprisingly there’s a bit of brown at the rim. At first there’s some musty funk which fortunately blows off to reveal a gloriously fruity and almost sweet dark berry patch mid palate. The usual smokiness is subdued in favor of the intense kernel of ripe raspberry fruit and the tannins are subdued. Clearly at peak. Dazzling.
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9/28/2021 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
This was a particularly youthful bottle with a tight cork. Absolutely a first growth texture and polish with great depth and a wonderfully smooth and layered mouthfeel. Just a touch of the tobacco road and smoky Graves flavors that will undoubtedly become more pronounced in time. 95+
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9/26/2021 - bill00 wrote: 96 Points
Cedar, smoke, cigar, ash and dark fruit. Velvet textured and totally seamless. So easy to drink.
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9/19/2021 - Bobby Burgundy Likes this wine: 97 Points
Great Bordeaux
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9/5/2021 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 97 Points
Rich, silky and elegant with nice acidity. Compared to the 89' Haut Brion, the LMHB is a bit more primary and less developed. Continued to evolve throughout the night, definitely give this one some air to wake up. Very pretty.
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8/14/2021 - dlcolester wrote:
Aged very well still plenty of tannins and a superb Grave. After a couple of hours of breathing extremely enjoyable 95 pts
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7/7/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine: 99 Points
A word first on the cork: impeccable. Barely soaked, it's like new and with the top-neck level, I hope to deal with a fit bottle.
The adventure begins on the nose, with cigar, tobacco, cedar, charcoal ... It's simple, it doesn't stop. Each scent brings a different scent.
The mouth ... It contemplates itself more than it tastes. A wine that is difficult for me to describe and yet this is not my first myth. It's a bit like describing a masterpiece, you will always forget to mention a detail or a facet. It first has a silky touch, then the wine sets in, it envelops with sweet spices, flowers and a sweet fruit on the blackberry. The feeling of fullness that this wine gives off is total, it is strong and blossoming. The juice is a magnificent balance, creamy, complex and layered, each sip is like the nose, we discover a new facet, sometimes tobacco, or cedar, smoke, or even blackberry, can be l sweet spice, or this saline touch, this undergrowth seen 5 minutes ago? It’s not a wine, it’s a fresco. Grandiose finish, a compendium of the complexity described previously over a simply interminable length.
Yes, this wine is a myth, a dazzling myth.
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6/22/2021 - sdr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Mark’s bottle. In a mini-vertical of La Mission Haut-Brion this vintage was my favorite, even besting the ‘82. Much softer than its older brother, the ‘89 was almost voluptuous in its expression of bold, juicy and plummy fruit. Naturally there’s plenty of fine structure to carry it so the future will be interesting. The usual smoke and tobacco are mere nuances at this point.
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5/6/2021 - burlingtonm Likes this wine: 95 Points
Comparison of 1988 v 1989 Bordeaux. Initially not much on the nose and reticent but opened up to reveal a beautiful wine with richness, black fruits and excellent balance.
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4/9/2021 - Winedad53 wrote: 92 Points
Tight, closed and earthy, nose of wet gravel, clay and coffee grounds. A bit dense, even coarse, with strains of clove, cigar and tobacco dominating a core of dried berries, thyme and cinnamon on the finish.
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4/6/2021 - overkloud Likes this wine: 97 Points
[this is a half bottle]
What a wine! This is my first bottle of 89 La Mission. All the legend about this wine is true!
Opened up with explosive amount of cedar, liquorice, black current, green pepper in the foreground. Then there is cigar box, chocalate, tar in the background.
On the palate it is as profound as it is on the nose. Silky sweet tannin, layered of taste. The finish goes on and on and on in the mouth for minutes at a point I cannot tell if it is lingering on my palate or in my mind, probably both.
My half bottle is fully developed. Still having a few bottles left, I would drink them in the next 5 years.
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3/25/2021 - Scaramanga Likes this wine: 96 Points
Incredible nose, very intense, which continues through on the palate. Excellent intensity, big, deep, as good as ever. Wonderful wine and absolutely kept up with 90 La Mission and 89 Haut Brion.
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3/25/2021 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
As good as 89 Haut Brion, or, depending on the day, it can be even better. The verdict with the group was split between the two. Still deeply colored, the wine explodes with dark red berries, charcoal, burning fireplace logs, campfire, cigar box, tobacco leaf, ash and tar scents. Full-bodied, powerful and mouth-filling, the wine starts off strong, and keeps on going, seemingly never quitting. Long, expansive, intense and seamless, this is what great wine is all about. it could age even longer than Haut Brion if well-stored!
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3/7/2021 - dkentaustin Likes this wine: 96 Points
Musky ruby color with light amber edge. Earthy notes of truffle and mushrooms followed by raspberry, currant, flint, chalky cocoa and a bright palate. Elegant yet confident structure and mouthfeel - drinking beautifully and gathers what you’d want from a Bordeaux.
p.s. snake river filets with Caesar salad and roasted cauliflower.
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10/16/2020 - rnyrny79 Likes this wine: 99 Points
Great wine, but not really there yet...Given 6 hours of decanting as it was hard to Wake it up. Will be awesome in 10 years time...Prestine bottle.
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9/26/2020 - RayOB Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank in London
Incredibly beautiful and showing well. Let debate continue between this and it's sibling.
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9/12/2020 - G_H wrote: 95 Points
Caramel, banana, butterscotch, lactic, herbs, salt, good length but not as bold as I remembered
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6/21/2020 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 100 Points
Deep ruby/purple color with some lightening up towards the rim. Explosive, flamboyant and sexy, with notes of smoky BBQ, crème de cassis, graphite, elderflowers, licorice, blueberries, a touch of scorched earth, sweet spices and some flowery notes too. It's full bodied, rich and creamy, with medium acidity providing freshness and medium+ tannin that is still youthful but super silky. Long finish with superb complexity. A breath-taking wine of amazing richness and superb aromatic complexity. An absolutely epic wine that still has many years ahead.
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5/12/2020 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 95 Points
Superb. Coravin over 2 weeks.
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4/19/2020 - dbenglis Likes this wine: 91 Points
I split into two nights. I should have decanted longer initially and found it not very approachable. The second night the wine was well balanced with less tannic force than the first night. I also noticed animal fur for the first time. Tertiary fruit was present. Overall a good wine, maybe a slightly off bottle? I wouldn't score this particular wine I had that night a 96. Plan for more at some point after COVID ends.
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4/5/2020 - kr522 wrote: 97 Points
has always been one of my favorite wines, and this was drunk over two sittings, the second one happening 3 days after the first (poured half the wine straight into 375ml and corked/refrigerated). i've owned the case almost since release.
it was decisively better the second night, and even then took 30+ minutes to really show itself....but it did hit the heights, and that's what my rating is based on. very strong cigar aromas, with plums, violets, and coffee scents. Similar flavor profile with some dark raspberry hints and dark chocolate. excellent length and complexity so that the finish was very satisfying.
overall, this is more restrained than i've experienced in the past, though my prior bottle 3 years ago was a bit shy as well, so i'm not sure what that means. as i said there was really good length, and only modest bricking in the color, so i continue to believe it will be long lived. one day i want to drink side by side with the 90, because i find that one gaining momentum, and it may have closed the gap.
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12/15/2019 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 98 Points
Blind
Typical left bank Bordeaux. Tobacco, black currant, leather, some nice extract sweetness, very elegant and powerful, for me close to his Peak from a pristine bottle and perfect cork. I guessed Margeaux 1983. 98+
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12/10/2019 - Elpaninaro Likes this wine:
small pour from another table at the end of the night, bright ruby color with some bricking, on the nose blueberry and cherry, bands of dark sand, on the palate almost explosive, cassis, cedar, forest notes, herbs and racy oak notes, pure mineral tones coated and almost concealed by the massive presence of fruit, while this has developed beautifully and is showing some secondary notes- I think there may be more in store, and it certainly is nowhere near decline, a modern legend (one of the few deserving of the title) just starting to really come into its own, magnificent.
****(*), now to 2040
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12/10/2019 - hprphf wrote: 94 Points
Acker BYO 2019 (Tribecal Grill): Cedar wood and pencil box. Super dark and acidic. Nice heat of spice. 94
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11/24/2019 - King Julien wrote: 96 Points
Decanted 4 hours. Palate evolved nicely, but nose stayed shy.
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10/26/2019 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
Brick edge, ruby core. Showing some age visually.
Clean on the nose. Dried cherry, tobacco, a touch of cassis and just incredibly pure.
In the mouth, super silky. Full body, moderate tanning that has just right amount of grip, the acidity balances the fruit and the finish is long.
Wow. A great bottle of wine. Thinking this is in its prime. It will go for another 5+ years and maybe even longer before starting to decline.
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10/12/2019 - Axelpeter wrote: 100 Points
Carli60) immer noch perfekt, einer der besten Weine ever
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10/11/2019 - dream Likes this wine: 96 Points
Served alongside the '90, this had more structure and more red fruits and certainly better breed and class although the '90 was decadent and delicious. Lovely freshness and intensity with a taut, complex finish. A gorgeous, classy Bordeaux with it's best days ahead. 96+
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10/10/2019 - SimonG wrote: 93 Points
Top 89 Bordeaux (Noizé, London): Full garnet. Exotic nose, calming a little with air. Rich and almost a little hot on the finish. Heat fades to be replaced by a more eucalyptus finish, but these come and go interchangeably sniff by sniff. Slightly drying finish. Lacks the density of a previous bottlefive years ago (which was corked). Not quite the class of the rest of the flight. Lots of fun though. ****
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7/28/2019 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Jordan's 1989 Bordeaux Dinner (Feast & Imbibe - Evanston IL): This probably wasn't given enough air before serving. Powerful and enticing black fruit aromas and flavors with dense concentration and fully savory character to start. Much less accessible from middle-through-finish with a fairly tannic end that seemed to alternative between brooding and backward, but clearly with so much substance. So much potential here. With more air and/or cellar time, this might be tonight's best wine, even if it was not tonight.
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7/27/2019 - Robert Pavlovich Likes this wine:
Gobs of sweet dark plum fruit on the nose, though not too sweet, supplemented by very fine oak spice. Plenty of life and energy through the palate, tense acidity, sweet elegant dark fruit, fine spices. Some dark bitter chocolate through the finish. Wasn’t expecting this to show so young and with so much evolution still ahead. It does have a ways to go before it reaches its Zenith, though this bottle had quite the pristine cork. Decanted off its sediment for an hour before serving, then tasted over 3-4 hours.
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6/22/2019 - sdsull wrote: 100 Points
Decanted 2 hours. Paired alongside other 1st growths and Garagiste Bordeaux. WOTN. Perfection. Balanced. Loooooooooong finish.
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5/15/2019 - La Flama Blanca Likes this wine: 98 Points
Commands Attention
Complex and Deep
Massively Structured
Powerful and Persistent
Impressively Thick and Concentrated
Silky Palate
Intensely Flavorful
Smooth and Savory
Epic Finish that DOES NOT STOP
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5/2/2019 - Nanda wrote: 100 Points
Wow, a serious epiphany wine. The scale, depth and complexity of this wine is off the charts. A wine that commands your attention -- on the aromas, on the palate and into the lingering finish. An impressive amount of concentration that comes across with such elegance and weightlessness. The finish is uber complex as well as long -- how can such an array of intense flavors linger after the wine is long past your palate? A new benchmark in Bordeaux, for my palate.
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5/2/2019 - acyso wrote: 100 Points
Dinner at PST (Chicago, IL): As far as Bordeaux comes, this has to be up there as one of the most profound. Just starting with the nose, you already know how good this wine will be -- that mix of minerality, leather, and still vibrant fruit is intoxicating. There's so much going on here and it's all in perfect harmony. The palate, too, is very much the same -- that minerality is at the forefront, followed by the sweet fruit and leather, and other structural earthy elements. There's still plenty of gas in the tank, so I'm sure that this will carry on for a long time yet, but for me tonight, this was absolutely in the zone. As I remarked at dinner, this is the way through which I commune with God.
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4/3/2019 - King Julien wrote: 96 Points
Decanted about 4 hours.
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3/30/2019 - blanquito wrote: 96 Points
Uber smoky, Graves-y, minerally nose, very expressive. Smells fairly mature and delicious. The palate is silky and filled with smoky dark fruit, a savory attack and terrific brightness. Great depth but so smooth. Epic finish. This is in early maturity, but will likely go up-up-up over the next 10-30 years. A special treat. 96 pts today, 98 pts at peak?
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3/16/2019 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
Sheldon's 60th Birthday (The Bristol - Chicago IL): Small glass, brief note. Complex array of ripe black fruit aromas with both sweet and savory spice. Similar flavors with impressive richness and complex textures. Very powerful and persistent through long finish. So good now.
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2/21/2019 - kr522 wrote: 98 Points
Perhaps my favorite LMHB, Everything great about Graves is front and center. the aromatics are sensational with fruit, licorice and smoke intermingling. The palate is like drinking liquid gravel, yet it’s incredibly refined and complex with blue/dark red fruits, and tobacco joining the mix. Last bottle I had didn’t show (the only time that’s happened) so it was great to see this right back where it’s always been. I’ve often prefered this to the 89 Haut Brion
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2/21/2019 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
This mind-blowing wine is the real deal. There is so much going on here, words drop the ball. The smoky, black cherry, truffle, herbs, pipe tobacco and burning logs in the nose lets you know you are in store for a treat. But the palate, with its multiple layers of fruit, earth, tobacco leaf, freshness, structure, regal bearing and finish that does not want to quit is where the real action takes place! You can drink this now, an hour or 2 in the decanter is more than ample, or wait 10-15-20 more years. Either way, WOW!
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2/8/2019 - LOZFOZ Likes this wine: 97 Points
Drank at home with wonderful wife
This, in the first hour, was a complete belter. Power, precision - almost too much - with oak, eucalyptus, dark chocolate and camphor on the nose. The palate was extraordinary. Then, for two hours, it became a pisspoor example of an '89 LMHB. At this point I gave it a break and, revisiting, two hours later, it turned back in to the belter it was at the start.
Amazing. Unpredictable. Enigmatic. Everything I love in a bottle of decent claret.
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2/5/2019 - nywine68 wrote: 98 Points
La Mission Haut Brion with Jean-Philippe Delmas (Vaucluse Townhouse, New York): Another spectacular wine. As in previous head-to-head match-ups, I gave the slight edge to the 1990 but these are two incredible wines. The 1989 is slightly less exuberant with a little less body. Tannins had melted away. Lots of smoke and leather.
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1/11/2019 - patwjr Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decanted for 30 min., rebottled for ride & reopened 1.5 hours later & drank over 2 hours. AMAZING nose was consistent. Delicious & ever changing on the palate, fruit came & went & then returned. Soft blueberry, minerals, earth, tobacco & smoke. Loved it!
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12/24/2018 - Barry Rothof wrote: 97 Points
Complex aromatics and flavors of earth, tar, leather, smoke, truffle, cassis and spice. Incredibly, refined, elegant, sensuous and weightless in style with perfect balance and a long stylish finish.
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12/22/2018 - svdheijden wrote: 97 Points
Paired with Haut Brion 1989, the famous couple. Compared with the brilliant showing of the Haut Brion, the MHB appeared a little less regal, but very impressive nonetheless. Very Graves with intense notes of tar, tobacco, coffee, chocolate, cedar and superb freshness as well as minerality. Effortless power and balance. Layers of black fruit. Soft, pleasant tannins which guarantee decades of future life and opportunities to enjoy this fabulous wine.
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12/21/2018 - dvansteenderen Likes this wine: 96 Points
Winter Solstice Tasting @ JD's home (Groot-Ammers): Winter Solstice tasting.
Paired with the 1989 Haut Brion, this won in the taste & power but lacked the truly amazing nose of the '89 Haut Brion.
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12/21/2018 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 97 Points
Winter Solstice Tasting (Jan-Dirk Taams' residence, Groot-Ammers, Netherlands): Mature but lively appearance, deeper colour than the Haut-Brion 1989 which it was paired with; deep and rich nose with a touch of leafiness, meaty and spicy, darker pitch than the Haut-Brion; masculine style compared to the Haut-Brion, beautifully crafted tannins, complex and deep flavours, concentration and elegance; lovely completeness and length on the finish. Will last longer than its stablemate.
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12/12/2018 - GA Old World Guy Likes this wine: 96 Points
Amazing wine and still a baby. Had a bottle last night with some friends and this wine is really singing. Similar to other notes below...cigar box, black cherry, and licorice. We should have decanted it two hours prior because the wine just evolved over the course of our dinner and continued to get better all the way through the final sip.
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12/11/2018 - fcxj wrote: 96 Points
Pure and intense. As you'd expect basically.
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11/22/2018 - steinersing wrote: 94 Points
From Dmg - excellent, slight secondary aromas cigar box, graphite
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11/22/2018 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Balanced and intense. Felt young from magnum.
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9/26/2018 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
Russk. Justin's Wizards Tasting at The Ritz Key Biscayne. My wine of the flight and one of my wine of the night. We had the 1989 and the 1990 vintage. Both were my favorite and their respective flights, over and above the Montrose, the Lynch bages and P ichon Barons of the same vintage. 92+
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8/22/2018 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
Great Wine Dinner with Friends (Sepia - Chicago IL): Ripe black cherry and plum with liqueur and cassis. So much weight, spice and complexity already, this wine just keeps getting better.
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7/29/2018 - King Julien wrote: 98 Points
Decanted about 4 hours. Nose was great when popped and never faded. Palate was amazing to the last drop, plenty of complexity, long finish. Outstanding bottle! Everything a Bordeaux should be.
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7/1/2018 - King Julien wrote: 97 Points
Cork was dry and broke coming out. Decanted about 3.5 hours. Nose blossomed right from the start. Palate was wonderful with complexity and carried on for a few hours following. Very nice bottle indeed.
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6/21/2018 - IvanLi Likes this wine: 100 Points
There are 100 point wines and then there are REAL 100 point wines. Some wines are perfect relative to their price category while others are true legends and epitomize the World Wine Heritage.
The 1989 LMHB is a great example of the latter group.
First of all, it provides a unique sensory experience thanks to its perfect silky texture.
Then it tastes like a dream. It has all the blackcurrants in the world, interspersed with the most beautiful Havana Cigar Tobacco kept in an expensive cedar humidor. It's pencil ink, warm pebbles and earth mixed with white spring flowers make you feel that you are transported into another reality.
This bottle will surely provide you with a tasting experience that will live with you forever. Well worth the money and time this rare bottling.
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6/16/2018 - Zweder wrote: 97 Points
Bordeaux 1989 (@ Monarh): Luxurious and complex bouquet with autumn forest, graphite and barnyard and stable impressions. On the palate dark berries, a firm amount of good and fresh acidity and still powerful, round tannin which holds a promise for a long future. 97+
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6/9/2018 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 93 Points
World's Greatest, Hong Kong - Night III (8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana, Macau): On the nose this is a thinner, lighter, softer iteration of the ‘89 Haut Brion, which is absolutely booming in the next glass. A little more dried red berry and scorched earth in this one with hints of iron. This is also quite chocolatey. Palate is a little lighter and a little sweeter than than on the straight Haut Brion.
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5/28/2018 - jmoore431 wrote: 96 Points
Tasted blind: Another great showing for this wine; started out very Pauillac at first (knowing this guy's cellar, I was first thinking '82 Lynch Bages). Then the Graves notes started flowing, a trickle at first as the wine aired and opened; then a deluge of warm bricks, tobacco and extraordinary richness of maturing Bordeaux fruit and hedonism. Classic and ageless wine. Granted, it was the 8th wine shared the other evening so I'm allowed a little hyperbole - I wrote down "needs 100 years". As I'm down to only 2 bottles of this left, will let this wine bud keep sharing his!
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5/22/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
Very fine and silky showing great intensity and balance. This particular bottle is not giving all the glories this wine can offer but there are hints of what's to come with great flavors of sweet tobacco, road tar and licorice. The finish is so smooth with perfectly proportioned tannins but just lacks the complexity some other bottles already show. 95+
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5/10/2018 - Bobby Burgundy wrote: 97 Points
Ready to drink beautiful wine
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5/6/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
Spellbinding in every sense of the word. The wine is intense, concentrated and palate staining. But there is also an elegant, fresh, sensuous side to the texture that balances out the wall of power and tannins, lending a refined touch to the wine. The wine really stands out with a uniqueness of character and style. Give it 1-2 hours in the decanter, or wait another 10-20 years and as good as it is now, it's going to be mind blowing!!!
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2/23/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 98 Points
Nothing to suggest this won’t continue to develop into one of the greatest La Mission’s of the 20th century. A joy to drink now but at least 10 years from peak and probably more. 98+ At Craft, NYC.
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2/10/2018 - ehodin Likes this wine: 99 Points
Trly loved this wine - it has a style all its own, and "only" got 99 becasue it was drunk alongside two 100-pointers that narrowly out-paced it - it could get better, but I see little reason to wait
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11/27/2017 - Markus IWC wrote: 93 Points
Bordeaux 1989 blind tasting, wine #9: As the name suggests, La Mission has a strong religious link in its history. Founded in the early 14th century.
Intense and concentrated wine, extreme mushroom on the nose, balsamic, truffels, grass, meaty notes, broth,, gunpowder and wood. Autumn character. Stands out in the crowd. Still an infant, best in 15+ years. 7 votes.
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11/16/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
This is what intensity is all about. Especially when it's paired with layers of deep, dark, ripe, fresh, sweet, black and dark red fruits. Add in the essence of smoke, tar, wet earth, cigar box and forest aromatics and you get the idea. The wine coats your palate and really sticks, with its flavor and complexities for at least 60 seconds! On some nights, when I am lucky enough to compare it with Haut Brion, the HB wins. On this night, the LMHB stole the show!!! Drink this now, or wait 20 years, either way, this is off the hook.
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11/9/2017 - dcwino wrote: 98 Points
2017 Villa d’Este Wine Symposium - Kelly and Kevin's excellent adventure; 11/9/2017-11/14/2017 (Villa D’este, Lake Como and Milan): Expressive nose displaying crème de cassis, a hint of blueberry, scorched earth, lavender, strong lead pencil, cedar, tobacco and earth. Beautifully integrated harmonious palate, very finely layered blue fruit, silky and polished, perfect amount of acidity, strong mineral presence, fully integrated tannins and a long finish that resonates. A classic La Mission Haut Brion, more “masculine” than the 89 Haut Brion. It has reached the youthful peak but will improve for another two decades or more, gaining more cedar and sweetness of red fruit, becoming like the 59 or 61. Excellent showing.
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10/18/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 96 Points
Just a great wine. Powerful but smooth and poised. Youthful bottle which had significant upside. 96-97+
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8/20/2017 - King Julien wrote: 97 Points
Decanted 3 hours. Nice nose, a little shy, palate was outstanding over the 3 hours following. One of the better bottles thus far but expect there is still more to be had.
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5/26/2017 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 92 Points
Château La Mission Haut-Brion vertical tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Easily the most disappointing wine of the night, especially considering how great this wine can be. This was clearly an off-bottle, as it was completely closed down for most of the evening. Initially, there was good fruit on the nose, but it quickly became shy and reticent. Also fell flat on the palate. This wine can be so much better than what this showed on this evening.
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5/26/2017 - sdr Likes this wine: 93 Points
La Mission Haut-Brion Vertical (Wine Watch, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida): Extremely dark color, no lightening at the rim. At first dull and smells like - water. Blasphemy for LMHB. And relatively weak on the palate too. But after about a half hour in the glass, it improved drastically and took off. Now, more typical, dense and concentrated. Still drying tannins though so perhaps needs more time.
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5/12/2017 - The Vines That Bind wrote:
World's Greatest - Night II (Daniel): Stylistically comparable nose to that on the regular Haut-Brion but more savory and with more rusticity showing through. Still generous on the palate with opulent blackberry and black currant fruit. Fine, but perhaps not a great bottle, and in the shadow of the '89 HB in any case.
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5/12/2017 - tinybubbles wrote: flawed
Seaweed and tidal pool notes. But some good white pepper still showing through on the nose.
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4/15/2017 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Cork was dry and difficult to remove. Popped and slow ox for 2 hours, then poured into decanter and let it sit 4 more hours. Disappointingly, it was still closed down and a bit tannic, with not much on the nose. Finally, 2 hours later, it started to open up and come around, which was a shame since most of it was gone. This bottle definitely needed more time, consistent with the last bottle. Other bottles previously were ready to go, so hard to know what to expect.
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3/8/2017 - Bordeaux_Jon Likes this wine: 93 Points
From a very pristine half bottle, with decanting over the 3 hour dinner.
Much more austere than expected. The nose required coaxing but showed the classic Haut Brion smoke/cigar, along with oak, black fruit, and earth. More subtle than I would like which I've seen happen with 1989s before. The palate was really intense and enjoyable, and while I usually am more of a nose guy, the palate is where this wine shined. Lots of intensity, flavours, umami, and a long finish. The tannins seemed totally resolved.
While I liked this, it definitely did not deliver the expected 100 point experience I was looking for to celebrate my wife's birthday and promotion. Along with the pre-moxed 2009 Pape Clement Blanc and the under-whelming experience at Saison in SF, this wine did make for the ideal night. Most importantly, my wife was very happy, so these setbacks were not that critical.
I didn't notice a ton of evolution over the night either. Maybe some might argue for many hours in a decanter? It could have helped, it could have hurt. I don't feel the wine was better three hours later.
I opened a half bottle 1989 Haut Brion the day I proposed to my wife around Thanksgiving 2013 and was similar disappointed. That wine showed some leakage all the way to the top of the cork. However, it was far from austere with a very big nose of smokey cigar classic of Haut Brion. However, from a 100 point wine I expected more complexity and like this La Mission, the Haut Brion didn't really evolve over the night. I had better experiences with the full bottles last time. I drink a lot of half bottles though, and have found many 1982s to be in great shape and tasting very similar to the full bottle, such as the 1982 Mouton. I don't yet have an answer on the half bottle vs. full bottle question. The problem is that there is so much bottle variation regardless of format, drawing a conclusion may be impossible.
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2/3/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 97 Points
Wonderful complexity here with dark fruit, cinnamon and coffee notes. 97-98
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1/3/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
Spellbinding in every sense of the word. The nose is off the charts. The wine is intense, concentrated and deep, with so much raw material, it is almost off the charts. The finish remains with you for close to 60 seconds. This is drinking really well today, but if your bottles are well stored, I suspect, this will be even better with another, 5-10 more years of bottle age!
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12/30/2016 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 99 Points
Still a baby. Maybe the most complete wine tonight, and certainly the one with the most potential. It had a nice open nose of black currant, sous bois, leather, smoke, Asian spices, and coffee. Full bodied on the palate, with endless dense layers. Still tannic at this point but did soften up a bit. This gained considerable weight in the glass, and I can only imagine that this will be a mind-blowing wine in 10-20 years.
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12/20/2016 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 98 Points
The Best Vintages of LMHB vs HB plus some extras (Restaurant Hohenzollern in Bad Neuenahr/Ahrweiler): LMHB 1989
Blutjung, trotz seiner 27 Jahre dominiert die Primäraromatik. Cassis, Kirsche, ausgewogen. Reife, sehr präsente Tannine, keine Trinkeile, 98+
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12/19/2016 - burgcamel wrote: 99 Points
It has been over a year since I last tasted this wine. It was another strong showing and it seems to be evolving slowly. Very vibrant and pure nose of blackberries and gravelly earth with a very persistent finish. I had the 90 a couple of weeks ago but decided I need to do a side by side. My recollection was the 90 was not quite the wine of the 89.
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12/17/2016 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
This bottle came off a bit bretty.
Developed with air but held some astringency.
Will have to try another soon!
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12/15/2016 - jmoore431 wrote: 95 Points
Still a very full, rich monster of a wine. Will live for decades. Fabulous, but not as mind-blowing as previous bottles.
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11/11/2016 - tinybubbles wrote: 92 Points
Sweet and somewhat one-dimensional. Not the best bottle as this wine is almost always more expressive and complex than this example. 92-93
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11/1/2016 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 97 Points
Haut-Brion vertical tasting (and a bit of La Mission Haut-Brion) (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Quite different from the 89 Haut-Brion, and took a lot more time to open up. A brooding nose of black currant, sous bois, leather, smoke, anise, and Asian spices. A gorgeous mouthfeel, but still fairly tannic. Tannins softened up after two hours. Took even more time to open up than the 89 Haut-Brion. Did start out with a bit of heat on the finish but this blew off very quickly. This gained considerable weight in the glass, and I think we only got a small taste (literally) of what this will become.
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10/30/2016 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Perfect cork, decanted 3 hours. Nose was a bit weak when popped and never really opened up. Palate was nice and improved after decanting, but not as great as previous bottles. This particular bottle needed more time.
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10/8/2016 - ricknat1 wrote: 97 Points
another amazing bottle, although a tad younger in feel. On any other night this would have been the killer wine but it followed a 75 DP and 78 Vogue Musigny that could not be topped
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8/21/2016 - King Julien wrote: 97 Points
Decanted 4 hours. Outstanding finish!
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8/14/2016 - 1961Vintage Likes this wine: 99 Points
There should be an "I really loved" this wine button. Simply outstanding in every way. The nose, the mouthfeel, the complexity, the finish. Still remembering every sip 12 hours later. Enjoyed with Steak Fiorentine and pasta with pistachio sauce. All homemade.
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7/22/2016 - soyhead wrote:
nose - cocoa, cherry, sweet earth, fig blood. the nose has less depth than the 89 Haut Brion (which was tasted side by side)
mouth - but on the palate, this is my preferred wine. complex mouth of bitter cherry, mushrooms & Asian spice, this is funky and seductive, and much more fleshy than the '89 HB. Improved with time; needs air
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5/15/2016 - mclanew Likes this wine: 100 Points
What can I say - this wine was paired with an 83 Margaux and a 95 Latour and it blew the other two away. From an outstanding nose of black fruits, tobacco, smoked meats and licorice, to an amazingly well integrated, perfectly proportion body, to a very Long finish - this has everything working. Long life ahead too.
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5/5/2016 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
This is one rockstar of a wine! The Cuban cigar wrapper, smoke, tar, tobacco, earth and cassis aromatics get you charged up. But the wine that fills your mouth with its layers of ripe, juicy, fresh, earthy fruits is the best part of the experience. Count to 60 and this baby is still going strong! This is great today and the best is yet to come!
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5/2/2016 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 92 Points
A tired bottle. Not as expressive as this wine should be.
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3/30/2016 - fcxj wrote: 96 Points
Old reliable. Opened and served at same time as 1989 HB. Ran harder and was preferred by most at table, as more expressive, developed and rounder. I thought HB asserted its class over course of evening, after about an hour. HB more closed and tasted a lot younger.
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1/28/2016 - nywine68 Likes this wine: 98 Points
1989 vs. 1990 Bordeaux (Vaucluse): 89 vs 90 tasting.The consensus was that this was the WOTN although I gave the edge to the 90 LMHB. This also has a stunning nose and fantastic complexity. However, it is a bit tighter and more tannic than the 90. In another 20 years (which this wine will easily achieve), this will likely be better than the 90 which is at peak drinking age today. Both stunning wines, though
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1/11/2016 - Hebrew Hammer wrote: 98 Points
- Garnet color.
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1/2/2016 - King Julien wrote: 97 Points
Decanted 6 hours.
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11/24/2015 - nikos wrote:
Another great wine. Wonderful depth and the best finish of the night. Black fruit and graphite still prominent. fantastic wine just to sit and smell. I loved this one.
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11/6/2015 - Bordeaux_Jon Likes this wine: 100 Points
The Super Platinum Tasting - Highest Rated 1982 - 1990 Left Bank Bordeaux (Platinum Tasting Group): Tasted single blind in a flight of 100 point Parker wines, all 1982-1990 Left Bank Bordeaux.
This wine was simply outstanding! Very youthful compared to most wines in the flight with a ton of fruit on the nose. This really evolved over the night with well measured oak, cigar, smokey notes, brett, and herbal notes. What a complex wine.
The palate was really lovely, intense, with fruit, rolled tobacco, herbal notes, and smokiness. It had just the right amount of tannic structure and an lovely long finish that kept me coming back for more.
This wine just kept getting better and better for hours, and I just had to give it 100 points by the end.
My #3, the group's #3
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10/26/2015 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 99 Points
8 Great Bordeaux
1.Flight Latour 1990 MG vs Lynch Bages 1989 MG
2 Flight La Mission Haut Brion 1989 vs Haut Brion 1989
3.Flight Mouton 1982 vs Latour 1982 MG
4 Flight Mouton 1986 vs Lafite 1986
opened one day before, dark chocolate, extract sweetness, espresso, concentration, some cassis and dark berries, too young, velvety tannins, great acidity, very long finish, a little bit softer than HB
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10/21/2015 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
Russk. Wizards at Reds in SoBe, Jeff's tasting. 92+. My WOTN in a great line up that included similar icons. There was the telltale nose of bandaid and Barnyard.
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10/15/2015 - noppakit s. wrote: 100 Points
This wine performed super great along with 1989 Petrus and Lafleur 1989 !!
1989 LMHB has come to be a very classic Bordeaux, first nose is like great Chateau Latour, what a perfect !!
It's beautiful in every dimension and more splendid than a rustic rough 1975 LMHB. Both are great in a different way.
The character of LMHB, firm, masculine, delicious and not change much during drinking but 1989 is quite special, gentleman, neat, firm but elegant with the amazing long aftertaste.
How Petrus gonna get throuhg ??
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9/25/2015 - dream Likes this wine: 98 Points
Deep full ruby color. Gorgeous nose of smoky gravel and rich black fruits. Simply exquisite on the palate with great freshness and vigor. Deeply concentrated dark red and black fruits along with notes of asphalt and woodsmoke. So regal and fine and lazer-like in its intensity. The finish is still years from showing itself fully but there are hints of extraordinary complexity underneath with notes of eucalyptus, tobacco, dark spices and tar. This is a few years behind the Haut Brion in terms of aging and will ultimately surpasse that great wine in my opinion. Its hard to explain how fine this wine is. 98+
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8/25/2015 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
The perfume is intense with its essence of tar, tobacco, campfire, smoke, cassis and tobacco elements. The wine is a flawless example of power paired with grace. This stunner is still young. It's instructive and as well as enjoyable to pop a cork today. But if you only have a few bottles, why not wait a while, as this is only going to get better and better for decades!
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8/4/2015 - jmoore431 wrote: 98 Points
Rich, dark, brooding. Great stuff and eternal
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7/31/2015 - burgcamel wrote: 99 Points
Drank a few nights ago and I didn't keep tasting notes. This was the best bottle of this wine that I have tasted to date. This bottle reminds me why I like La Mission so much!
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7/19/2015 - premiercruclasse wrote: 93 Points
Consumed at Saint Martha. I was disappointed by this wine. Tastes good of course, but faint on the nose and somewhat faint taste, although the tannic bite was surprisingly nice and grippy. Great wine, but I wouldn't pay $800. Maybe $130?
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5/19/2015 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 97 Points
A private dinner (Restaurant De Echoput, Hoog Soeren, Netherlands): Deeper, richer, more masculine and powerful than the Haut-Brion 1989 it was paired with, but also less subtle or refined; enormous presence on the nose and on the palate, full-on beef stock flavours, earth, ripe blackcurrant fruit, still very tannic, just a hint of heat on the finish, excellent length.
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4/23/2015 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 98 Points
If Only All My Business Dinners Were Like This... (Lasserre, Paris): An utter privilege to drink, really my reference point, hallmark wine for a seamlessly complex and rewarding Bordeaux, drinking at its peak. An explosive nose: smoky and enticing, with an intoxicating blend of berry and smoked meat notes. Ample layers of tobacco, roasted meat, cedar and minerality. Fully integrated, with a silky texture, neither sweet nor austere.
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3/24/2015 - dharrison93 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Dark garnet, almost black, without real sediment, this wine is near full maturity.
The nose was a haunting ethereal fog of dark berries, black plum and Asian spice.
Tasting was sublime. All encompassing and a finish which went on and on..
Bordeaux doesn't get better than this IMHO
outstanding for another decade but why wait to indulge? Spoil yourself.
If a date, this was a 38 year old atherine Deneuve who teases you all evening before taking you home and altering your perception of pleasure.
Highly recommended +++
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2/6/2015 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
My wine of the night by a very slight margin over the '89 Mouton.
The nose was beautiful and complex with ever evolving scents that kept me coming back.
The flavor profile was lovely with a smokiness added to the fruit that was lovely.
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12/31/2014 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Smoke and silk, the only thing that keeps this from a being a 100 point bottle is the 89 Haut Brion. This is truly wonderful. Powerful, intense, long nd complex, with all the secondary notes of smoke, tobacco, tar and cassis, it's perfectly balanced right now and showing no signs of age. Stephanie loved
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12/16/2014 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 100 Points
Absolutely perfect! Bordeaux doesn't get any better than this. Bought it on release in 1992 for futures price of $65, and have aged it in my cellar. The fill and the cork were perfect. Color still garnet, still almost completely opaque. The aroma just jumps out and keeps going, with the typical tobacco, cedar, leather, black fruit complexity La Mission is known for. The fruit is definitely still pronounced, perfectly balanced with acid and tannin. Hint of anise along with the same components as they aroma. The finish is just right...not too hot or tannic, just lingers. This has long been our favorite Bordeaux, even more than First Growths. It continues to be... This wine is wonderful now but should hold for more years.
Ric
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12/10/2014 - hongkongtom Likes this wine: 100 Points
Wine of the Night, 3 separate bottles opened. Perfect. Drinking better in most peoples opinion on the night than the 1982 Latour, 1982 Lalande or 1982 Haut Brion
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11/26/2014 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Behind 1989 HB today
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11/15/2014 - sdr Likes this wine: 95 Points
The utterly classic LMHB nose of cranberry, brick and smoke is captivating. On the palate, it's full bodied, slightly coarse in that LMHB way, spicy, powerful and dense. Unfortunately, it faded after an hour or so. Still, a fine example of this chateau to drink now.
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9/21/2014 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
Powerful, young, mouthfilling, long, intense and complex, even with all the secondary notes of smoke, cigar box, tobacco, tar and cassis, it's amazing how young, fresh and vibrant this is.
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9/18/2014 - Wine Expresso wrote: 90 Points
At the crazy wine diner.
This wine was served last, paired with 1928 Montrose. Very dark in color, very oaky throughout, finish was short and lighter body than expected.
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5/19/2014 - SimonG wrote: flawed
LMHB (The Ledbury): So dense and concentrated on the nose. A touch of woodiness too. Ouch. TCA on the palate. Bugger! A shame as there's a monumental wine here twenty years down the road. (*****)
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5/17/2014 - mwanasheria wrote: 96 Points
1989 in the Rheingau (Eltville, Rheingau, Germany): Nose of black tea, raisins, tobacco, tar. Still some cassis, truffles, more black tea.
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4/17/2014 - BUBBA DAWG Likes this wine: 96 Points
Charity Event - French Tasting (Restaurant Daniel): a skosh less refined than the 1989 Haut Brion but still a remarkable effort
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4/10/2014 - johnh1001 wrote: 95 Points
1989 Dinner (Ad Hoc): Double decanted. Drank over 3 hours. Powerful, but elegant nose of dark fruit, earth smoke and a nice mineral and spice note. The palate matched with ripe dark fruit and more earth and smoke. Great smooth texture, perfect balance. Concentrated and harmonious finish.
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2/8/2014 - dream Likes this wine: 97 Points
A Weekend Of Aged First-Growths At Beau-Rivage in Geneva II: Great, terroir-driven nose of warm gravel and char. Opulent, subtle and elegant with lovely flavors of scorched earth, dark fruits, dark spices and a hint of charred meat. Medium-bodied but feeling like it holds a lot in reserve with good density and sweet but firm tannins. The finish is already quite complex and showing just a bit of secondary development. Silky, gorgeous and precise, this is a fabulous vintage for La Miss with loads of character and elegance. 97+ Geneva, 2/14
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1/25/2014 - rcg62 Likes this wine: 97 Points
Wow wine+! Color still beautiful red ruby, relatively dark, but beginning to see some signs of age on the edges. Incredible nose that flies from the glass. Dark cherry, maybe some meaty leathery scents, anise, and a flowery perfume. Wow. Dark beauty on the palate that lingers and lingers. Classy bordeaux all the way. Terrific with food (lamb tonight). But no doubt some grippy tannins; possibly a few more years in the bottle will resolve. Seems this has a long long life ahead. Needs food today. 97+
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12/22/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
Tasting from correct examples of famous bottles is a dream come true for wine lovers. This bottle really delivered the goods in spades. Cherry pipe tobacco, tar, earth, earth, blackberry, spice, leather and liqueur scents created a perfume you could not stop smelling. The show really hit the road once the wine hit your palate with its depth, length and intensity. There is a beautiful sense of balance and purity at play in this wine. You can drink this now, or in 50 years. If you have the money, this is the real deal.
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12/3/2013 - punter wrote: 100 Points
Magnificent nose of dark fruits, light cedar, old logs and smoke with black-purple color on pour of a 4 hour decant. Layered rich dark red and black fruits were powerful, concentrated, smooth tannins, perfectly balanced, mouth coating, palate drenching, sophisticated, very long and eye popping - it is young, it is spectacular, and this bottle was perfect. It's great to experience a legend along many points of its developmental journey. An extraordinary indulgence that will outlive the majority of us on CT
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11/24/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
I cannot think of many wines with this many consistent showings. The wine is the complete package with its stunning, smoke, tar, forest, dark cherry, tobacco and cigar box aromas, dense levels of concentration, structure, balance and length. Still young, this could easily age for more 50 years!
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10/26/2013 - ilee Likes this wine: 100 Points
Dinner with Mrs L, HY and Jeremy (The Fat Cow, Singapore): Wow ok I see so this is as good a wine as wine gets. Black cherries, hints of tar, that beautifully stony pebbly mineral character, the sensational power and complexity of the nose yet the poise and balance, even an elegant lightness when the wine hits and coats the palate with its finely sculptured tannins and amazing rich layers of fruit. There is much to like about this wine, but more remarkable is the total absence of anything, absolutely anything, to fault. So this is what perfection is, which makes me a bit uneasy to be honest as I am used to drinking stuff with noticeable faults (albeit mostly tolerable, even charming ones) that can feed some discussion (or "pretentious wine talk" according to Mrs L) at the table. But for a wine like this, one can only enjoy it in respectful silence which I did. So while I've always believed no wine could possibly deserve 100 points, here's one. Trying hard to squeeze out a complaint here, this wine still strikes me as young and perhaps not in its ideal drinking window which, if I might hazard a wild guess, could be 10 years away... Terrific (and sorry for the long TN!)
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9/3/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
There are times when 1989 Haut Brion is better than 1989 La Mission Haut Brion. There are other occasions when the La Mission is the better of the pair. On this night, 1989 La Mission Haut Brion was beyond perfection. In the palate, the wine coats your mouth, teeth and gums with layer after layer of powerful, dark, spicy, smoky fruits. The perfume changes with each swirl and sniff. The finish seems longer than 60 seconds. Power, intensity, richness, concentration and tannins are in abundance. Still youthful, give it at least another decade and your grandchildren can enjoy it for another 50 years, or more!
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7/25/2013 - DoubleMagnum Likes this wine: 97 Points
1980's Bordeaux Dinner (Arlington Club, NY): My third favorite wine of the evening. Not as complex as the '82 L'Evangile or the '89 Margaux but it still is not far behind. Superb extract. A bit dusty. Good structure. Dense yet not cloying. Long finish. Lovely effort.
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7/13/2013 - Wine Expresso wrote: 87 Points
Fairly Merlot color. Smell of light cedar, cabernet sauvignon nose with lots of sweetness. Opened and kept in the bottle for 2hours, it became more approachable. But performance of the sample is surely not a 89 La Mission should give. It only showed a medium body with touch of acidic mid palate, finish was short and shallow. It didn't keep up for another 1.5hours.
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6/1/2013 - dream wrote: 98 Points
Having this straight up in the same flight with the '82 was an eye-opener. Both wines are amazing expressions of La Miss but there is something finer and silkier to the '89 even though it is still very young and not showing much secondary flavor development. There are great classic flavors of road tar, warm bricks, black spices and God knows what else. It is very terroir-driven but also regal and elegant and clearly competes with Haut Brion for wine of the vintage. I can't help but think that this will ultimately be a 100-pt. wine and quite possibly the greatest La Miss ever. I hope I'm alive to make that assessment 20+ years from now. Wowza! 98+
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5/7/2013 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 100 Points
From Ex-Ray: A perfect wine, a perfect Bordeaux! Tasted with grilled steaks, also with '05 Cayuse Bionic Frog. Still dark garnet with only slight lightening at the edges; still opaque. Pronounced aroma of cedar, cassis, tobacco and leather, complex. Medium-full body, perfectly balanced cassis and black fruits with cedar, smoke, mushrooms, leather on the palate, complex. No significant tannin. Very long, smooth aftertaste. Still have a few bottles left...it should hold for a few more years but it's perfect now, so enjoy.
Ric
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4/19/2013 - Wine_lvr Likes this wine: 97 Points
Bordeaux 1989 Horizontal Tasting (Zurich): Tasted blind. Same flight with the Haut Brion.
Dark red, showing some light brick at the rims. Mineralic nose, smoke, leather, exotic citrus flavors (kumquat). This wine has enormous power, is deep but very harmonic. The sweetness is supporting the power very well. Very exotic touches again. While the Haut Brion is about elegance this is about power. This wine still requires some more time. Just amazing. Drink 2018 - 2045
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3/21/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
It took three hours before the wine hit the right spot and exploded with tobacco, iron, earth, cigar box, cassis, blackberry, wet earth, smoke and cherries. With incredible concentration, power, tannin and length, everything is there for a wine that will develop for decades. This is bigger than 1989 Haut Brion, but with a little less finesse. The finish must have remained for at least 50 seconds! If you have a case, try one. If you only have a few bottles, if you can wait another decade, or two, you'll have one of life's great wine tasting experiences! Shared with dad over dinner, what a great wine and an even better memory. And isn't that what wine is for?
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1/23/2013 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com wrote: 96 Points
95 POINT DOUBLE BLIND DINNER @ Le Provencal; 1/22/2013-1/24/2013 (Le Provencal, Miracle Mile, Coral Gables,FL): - Garnet color with slow forming legs and aromas of black currant, blackberry, black olive and violet and has flavours of black currant, blackberry and dusty - Luis's wine. He had given it a several hour decant. Jerry immediately IDed it as Graves. I thought either Graves or Merlot, but correctly IDed 1989. WOTN by acclamation(so was Luis' Dom Perignon). Bravo Luis for treating us to such gems. Gravelly by nature.
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12/24/2012 - kwarning8@gmail.com Likes this wine: 98 Points
Bought as a future and well stored. Opened and was great at once but tannic and then decanted for 3 hours. Light red at edges and dark in center. Wonderful tobacco, leather and earth nose with black fruit and taste to match. Will be 100 in 10 years.
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10/18/2012 - G_H Likes this wine: 95 Points
The White Club private tasting and dinner (Basel): Big, bold, super bold and massive tannin structure! Meet the Mission 89!
Feels oh so young with the flamboyant cherries and dense palate, but truly a stunning wine.
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9/15/2012 - Dave Canada wrote: 98 Points
Super Tasting 1 of 6 - Andrew does 1989 Bordeaux (Langdon Hall, Blair, Ontario): This is the second time I have had this bottle…the last time, I also had it up against the 1989 Haut Brion and I actually give the win to La Mission by a hair (100pts to 99pts). Not so today..
Such a pretty nose……minerals, campfire, cherry, spice…such Graves typicity. The palate is so explosive, yet refined and compact with flavours of leather, cedar, cherry, smoke, earth, pencil lead. This is so svelte and right in its drinking window..it will hold obviously but why wait.
Finish is so long with great balance and such complexity. This is unreal….such pedigree.
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9/15/2012 - Wine Canuck wrote: 97 Points
Super Tasting 1 of 6 - Andrew (Langdon Hall, Cambridge, ON): Wow, this is serious. Just in the early stages of maturity and I'm inclined to think this will improve with time (the structure on the palate supports this assertion). Showing great red currants, graphite, great sense of minerality. Very nicely balanced on the palate with a very long finish. Though a great wine now, I think to my palate I would appreciate it even more in 10 years.
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9/15/2012 - alittle wrote: 98 Points
Tasting Group Dinner Series (1 of 6) / Andrew's 28th Birthday (Red Room, Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Ontario): Popped and poured, followed over the course of the evening. Deep garnet, bordering on purple in the glass. A fantastic nose of blackberries, licorice, smoke, cured meats, spice, gravel, light florals and cedar. On the palate, very rich dark fruits, complimented nicely by spice, a tough of pyrazine and mineral. Texturally, this is also quite rich, showing a bit of glycerin, however this is balanced by superb acidity, and results in a finish that lingers in the mouth for quite some time. Tannins are not yet fully integrated at this time, although they are quite soft and plush. An extraordinary wine now, but I'd love to revisit this in a few years as the tertiary notes come out a bit more.
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7/2/2012 - mbwineguy wrote: 94 Points
From a bottle with a ts fill and signs of seepage. Opened and drank over 6 hours. This is a massive wine. Nose of cassis, dark cherry, and cigar box. Extremely well balanced and did not really budge over 6 hours. The tannins still have alot of structure to them.
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5/19/2012 - reichken wrote: 97 Points
deep dark color to the rim. on the nose it showed rich black cherries and minerally background. beautiful from the first sip. filled the mouth , well integrated and very long. great bottle
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3/10/2012 - mwanasheria wrote: 96 Points
La Mission Haut Brion; 3/9/2012-3/10/2012 (Burg Staufeneck): Nose of candied fruit, raisins, herbs. On the palate thick and rich, with lots of life in it. Great.
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1/27/2012 - Edclr wrote: 98 Points
Incredible color for it's age, can get the nose from across the table, beautifully balanced. My guess is it's still not in its prime, but getting close. Very little sediment upon decanting. Had lots of good company in Boys Night Out, other 89's, but this was WOTN.
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1/26/2012 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Acker Merrall BYO (Sepia - Chicago IL): Nowhere at the level I've ever had before for this wine. Probably a flawed or poorly stored bottle, that still had good black cherry and plum but was more advanced and shorter than ever before. Still around 91 points, but not a representative bottle, and shockingly not as good as the 1990 Mission Haut-Brion also tasted tonight. Sigh.
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1/25/2012 - englishman's claret wrote: 100 Points
89/90 Bordeaux Retrospective with Hart Davis Hart: Wow! This is just such a perfect Graves archetype. Very much baked brick, smoke, mineral Graves with fruit across the spectrum. What more can be said? Mature. Expansive. Awesome.
5
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10/22/2011 - Burgundy Al wrote: 96 Points
Acker Merrall Inaugural Chicago Auction (Trump International Hotel): Powerful wine with incredible balance. Black cherry and plum fruit with good cedar and tobacco notes. Lots of tannin and acidity but incredibly balanced. This is at a great place today, and has the concentration and density that I expect will hold here for a long, long time.
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10/22/2011 - psmith wrote:
Acker Auction Chicago (Sixteen Restaurant): Wow. Tons of power and material. Dark fruits, tobacco, but a great softness to the palate despite its youth. Medium grain, well balanced tannins. Delicious.
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9/26/2011 - Sleepy Dave wrote: 97 Points
Alcohol :: 13%
This wasn't hard to grab everyone attention despite having two classy juice before this. The bouquet is simply stunning and captivating: creme de cassis and assortments of sweet, pure dark fruits: blackcurrant, fig, plum date merge seamlessly with smoke meat, star anise, cedar, crushed rock and violets. Gorgeous, I can sniff this all day! The palate echoes to the nose with sheer class and finesse, and slowly gaining better weight in the glass. Layers of smoke meat, capsicum, crushed rock, sweet blackcurrant, plum, saline mineral, cedar, graphite with the inner perfume of violet, roses filled the mouth immediately and keep lingering. With 22yrs of age, this juice still possess mouth coating and palate staining intensity but the densely concentrated sweet, lush dark fruits and the super silky, sweet tannin is perfectly integrated and formed the highly complex, seductive mouth feel, finely texture, so harmonious and elegance. The slight spicy infused finished just gone insane, goes on forever with bitter sweet cocoa aftertaste and linger with juicy sweet dark fruits. I can still taste this after a day! My best Bordeaux so far. This is a Magnificent LMHB and even better than the profound 1990, still on its way up, bravo! 97+
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9/10/2011 - aof wrote: 94 Points
1989 Bordeaux First Growth and Super Second Tasting.: At first I thought this was slightly corked; but the mustiness blew away showing a massively extracted wine- its all there; intensely concentrated fruits and massive chewy tannins. Certainly the boldest of the first/super second of the 89 lineup. I see why this was Parker 100 pointer, for me, it was all too overpowering, not in a ripe way though., just beastly. It did not fare well against the 89 Haut Brion in my view. On the flip side, this wine has the most upside of any of the wines, thus its possible that it could have evolved with more airing (4 hour decant on this occasion). On this showing, I will hold on to my lone bottle for another 5 years at least.
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5/26/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
La Mission Haut Brion Intense smokey aromas complicated by scents of hot stone, tobacco, cassis, blackberry, truffle, earth and spice. Full bodied, concentrated and powerful, with layers of ripe, juicy dark berries, the wine remains in your mouth for close to 60 seconds! At 21 years of age, this compelling Pessac Leognan is still young. While it offers an intense experience today, it's only going to get better with more time.
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3/27/2011 - Ex-Ray wrote: 98 Points
With lamb shank at our favorite restaurant. Perfectly mature and perfect! Typical nose of leather, tobacco, cedar, pronounced. Medium-full body, with excellent balanced cassis, earth, leathery flavors. No significant tannin. Very long finish, some anise and French oak. At its peak, but should hold for several more years. Bordeaux doesn't get much better than this!
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12/18/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
1989 La Mission Haut Brion opens with a powerful nose, filled with scents of fresh coffee bean, blackberry, cassis, spice, strawberry, smoke, minerality and earth. Massive, deep and stuffed with layers of ripe, rich, fruit with intense purity. The long finish is balanced and close to seamless. The wine could use a few mores of bottle age to soften the tannins and add more complexity. 98 Pts
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12/11/2010 - Amerique wrote: 92 Points
Huge, full-bodied black cherry fruit with vanillin and leathery flavors, very dry
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11/20/2010 - sdr Likes this wine: 94 Points
I was eagerly anticipating this bottle, the first one I drank from a case purchased on release. Surpisingly, this was more like I expected from Haut Brion while the HB seemed more like a typical LMHB. It was the LMHB which was lighter in color, softer and more fragrant. Hints of cinnamon, thyme and cedar. Full and round. The tannins are felt just at the end of the finish, so this wine is ready to go now and for the foreseeable future. Great stuff.
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8/31/2010 - KellyW wrote: 98 Points
Drinking perfect now. Fully mature with a long way to go. Stunning.
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8/22/2010 - shaferguy91 wrote: 94 Points
Drinking very nicely right now. Cork broke when waiter opened it but wine showed no signs of age. Possibly still improving.
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7/2/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
Served blind at Chateau La Mission Haut Brion over dinner - Cigar, ash, minerals, earth, cassis, tar, leather black fruit, hot stones and freshly ground coffee beans open up the aromatic fireworks. This dense elixir is packed and stacked with layers of rich, intense, ripe dark fruit. The tannins feel ripe. But this wine is tannic and requires more bottle age than Haut Brion. The wine finishes with an intense display of ripe, spicy black fruit, cassis and fresh dark cherries.
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6/27/2010 - balassis wrote: 98 Points
Me and George got the bottle to enjoy a cool evening at a tavern in the foothills of Mount Parnes.
What a spectacular wine!!!
Still very young and powerful with cherry jam flavors,iodine, graphite, cedar and sweet spices.
Realy a masterpiece, difficult to describe with common words.
One of the best wines I ever drank.
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6/24/2010 - JulienGraves wrote: 97 Points
Not a flaw in it; not quite as full on the palette as the last bottle, but still incredible. Layer on layer of complexity. Nose of light tobacco with much fruit remaining. Very very special.
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6/21/2010 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:
decanted 90 minutes. An utterly seamless wine that begins with a nose so positively complex and alluring I had to remind myself to taste it. Polished layers of red and blue fruits with a pinch of herbal notes and worn leather flavors. Stunning length and purity, this is a wine I won't soon forget. Priceless. Drink thru 2028+
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12/6/2009 - bevetroppo wrote: 98 Points
What was most special for me about this near-legendary wine was its mind-boggling and nearly indescribable intensity. It had been decanted for two hours before I approached it, and the nose was still somewhat closed. I took a small sip and I swear I almost choked and had to spit it out: not because it tasted anything but great but because I wasn't prepared for the intensity of flavors that gripped my mouth. This wine had more depth and penetration than any red I can ever remember tasting, yet it wasn't overstated, alcoholic, or anything but brilliant. The flavors were classical: currants, graphite, cedar, the dirt of the terroir. Even at age 20 and with a good decant, it was clearly youthful with a seemingly unlimited future. I couldn't bring myself to taste more than a few drops at a time both because I wanted to see it open up even more and because it was a marvel just letting it play across my tongue. I'm inspired to create a new word: "indensity," a lame attempt to capture the drinking experience.
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10/29/2009 - jamiekutch wrote:
Best red of the evening as this lives up to it's perfect score reputation. Smokey nose, rich with black fruit, tar, scorched earth all framed in subtle oak. A perfect end.
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10/18/2009 - JulienGraves wrote: 100 Points
The most incredible wine I've had in five years. Perfect is all regards.
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9/17/2009 - JJL wrote: 98 Points
Acker BYO at Bouley - this was better than my last bottle, again decanted for 5 hours. Whereas the last bottle was pristine, this bottle was from the same case, but had a little bit of old seepage on the cork. Sometimes that helps with the big, long-lived wines. The first thing that hits you is the big nose of cedar, smoke and currants. The palate has more currants, along with tea and charcoal and a little more dark sweet caramel, and berries on this bottle. What really stands out though is the body. Unbelievable balance that just stops you in your tracks and places you in a trance where you block everything else out and just contemplate the wine.
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7/16/2009 - JJL wrote: 96 Points
One of the best balanced wines I have ever had. Cedar and smoke on the nose. Tar, leather, tea, currants and black licorice on the palate. Took about 5 hours to really come around. It was actually beat on this night by the best bottle of '95 Rayas I have had.
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6/18/2009 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
Cassis, tobacco, chocolate, plums, smoke, and licorice with dark berry aromatics are all over the place. Full bodied with intense levels of concentration, this is one of those rare thrill a sip wines. Dense, opulent, rich, and fat, this wine tastes great, pouring over every inch, every nook and cranny, of your mouth. The seamless finish goes on and on with an endless array of palate pleasing, sensations. Still young, it will get better over the next several decades.
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2/6/2009 - G SQUARED wrote: 95 Points
Excellent wine. Didn't really get the chance to experience all it might have had as it was coming out of a cold cellar and we only had about 60 minutes to taste it's evolution in the bottle. Really a very, very fine wine though and one that deserves it's reputation.
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12/27/2008 - dcwino wrote: 97 Points
Dinner at Cityzen, 82, 86, 89 and 90 first growth and LMHB (Cityzen, Washington DC): Initially green tobacco leaf dominant nose but excellent core fruit concentration. With some air, sweet black fruit, tobacco, blackberry jam and baked dark berries. This wine is very young and still displays some primary fruit character. Rene commented on how similar two wines are despite the 82 showing greater maturity. Both showed strong sweet tobacco component, ash and scorched earth. I first rated the wine 94pts but as the wine opened up, upgraded to 97 pts.
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12/21/2008 - georgeohr wrote: 98 Points
3 fantastic bottles at a celebration with friends. Virtually perfect. Truffles, tobacco, leather; great depth, complexity and finish. Consistantly one of our favorite bordeaux. Based on prior experience the bottles opened and decanted just prior to serving. The nose was fully developed within 15 minutes. A wonderful wine with years of life ahead.
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12/15/2008 - astrauss wrote: 100 Points
This is one of the finest wines that I have had the pleasure to own and enjoy. More youthful than the 75, this wine is only just begining to strut its stuff. Dark red in the glass with great notes of leather and tobacco on the nose. This wine is perfectly balanced with velvet waves of dark red fruits interwoven with earth, more tobacco and leather. The finish lasts a full minute. A real favorite.
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10/22/2008 - Rosengoo wrote:
Tasted at the Vintages auction gala tasting. I was surprised by this one as I was looking forward to it. It was only ok and not a favourite of mine. This was based solely on the taste which I found to be very sour. Too bad.
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10/20/2008 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
1989 La Mission Haut Brion is rock star wine! Make no bones about it. This is the real deal. The deep ruby color shows little signs of age. Spice box aromatics with earth, mocha, chocolate, coffee, smoke and tobacco fill the room. The palate experiences an orgasm as the orgy of ripe fruit dances all over your senses. And endless sea of ripe cherry, black fruit and spice are truly something to experience. This tastes much younger than you might think as it’s almost 20 years old. This is compelling wine! This is what great wine is all about. The scary thing is, the best is yet to come. 100 Pts
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10/19/2008 - AllRed wrote: 96 Points
The Blind Drunks monthly tasting (Joe's): Garnet color, showing a little bit of bricking at the edge. Initial notes of clove and spice, with an earthy quality too. With a few minutes in the glass, notes of earth, tar and roasted herbs jumped from the glass. Loads of red fruit on the palate, balanced by a nice earthy undertone. Long finish.
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8/28/2008 - phenricsson wrote: 99 Points
(85;71) Consistently one of our favorite Bordeaux made since 1961. Very, very fat looking and grand mouthfeel. Dark, spicy and rich. Big structure, this will surely get even better in the next decade. Dark fruit, cedar and petroleum. Long great aftertaste. Lynn’s second favorite and 100p for her.
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6/11/2008 - noppakit s. wrote: 100 Points
2nd Testing...still 100/100...
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6/2/2008 - Totatalitarian wrote: flawed
As has been my experience with it in the past, a very concentrated wine. It seemed to suffer from a touch of VA (or something similar) and was a bit disappointing, at least after the Romanee-Conti.
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4/25/2008 - futronic wrote: 98 Points
4th Annual Italian Offline Pre-Game - Champagne and Bordeaux (Sweets & Savories, Chicago, USA): Medium-dark ruby colour. Aromas of red licorice, spice, cigar box, mineral, leather, and red fruit. Full-bodied, so complex and layered. Replays from nose. This wine shows impeccable balance. Long, long finish, ~60+s, with cigar box, mineral, leather, and dried fruit notes. Truly fantastic! Red WOTN.
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4/25/2008 - wineismylife wrote: 94 Points
WIML94-95
Tasted April 25, 2008 at an offline. No formal notes.
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4/25/2008 - grossie wrote: 95 Points
Brought by Futronic and DoktaP to the champagne and bdx dinner at Sweets & Savories. This was a wowser of a wine. We let it decant for 1-2 hours before dipping in. Dark, rich, and brooding are what come to my mind, although it definitely had a terrific high-toned side as well. This wine struck a great balance between power and finesse, primary and secondary characteristics, fruit acid and tannins. Very well done, I suspect this has another 2 decades in it and will probably show even better in another 5-10 years.
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3/6/2008 - dream wrote: 96 Points
Fine dark color with the slightest browning on the edges. Gorgeous nose of underbrush, sweet tobacco, warm bricks and smoky Graves dirt. My case was purchased upon release and perfectly stored since and this wine is aging at a glacial pace. Rather full-bodied with that flavor of smoky Graves that I find so alluring. Quite intense on the finish but then the tobacco and dark cherry-infused tannins clamp down before much complexity can be discerned. Tons in reserve so I will try not to open another bottle for 10 years, at least! 96+
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12/31/2007 - godx wrote: 96 Points
Drank at Cru in NYC – opened, poured into a decanter, and drank over three hours. At first showing a strong and awkward nose of funk. Flavours of spice and dark fruit. After two hours, nose of bacon, tobacco, burnt rubber and roasted cherries. Flavours of charred meat, roasted dark fruits and underlying complexity that continued to develop throughout the entire three hours. Still showing some nice acidity and medium tannins. Creamy and smooth. Last glass also gave notes of custard on the nose. Exceptional bottle of wine.
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11/16/2007 - astrauss wrote: 100 Points
a perfect bottle. wonderful nose of tobbaco and leather. this wine has the best balance of almost any bdx. great grip and a finish that lasts for minutes.
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11/6/2007 - T-CHEX wrote:
DRANK THE 89 La Mission with Jakels -- superb 97 to 99 pts. Also seved a 69 Margaux which was full of ceder -- an old slightly tired wine but still most enjoyable.
It was Oct. 31 2007 Bob seved a hermitage by chave and a 91 Dominus
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9/28/2007 - gorm wrote: 96 Points
Uncorked DK tasting: 1989/1990 Bordeaux (Kenneth): Dark red with an ever so slightly brownish rim. Nose is a bit shy, but still delicious with intense licquer-like sweetness and a lot of herbal notes. In the mouth it is very intense, spicy, sweet and herbal. This wine was the first this night to display some of the ethereal lightness that some great Bordeaux possesses. When we learned what this was it confirmed our suspicion that it was possibly a bit closed. Also it was very much dominated by wine number two in this flight (Haut Brion 1989).
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9/22/2007 - Ernie F wrote: 95 Points
Best after about 2 hours of decanting.
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5/29/2007 - noppakit s. wrote: 100 Points
Open 1.30 before drinking.
I tested this wine along with Haut Brion 1990. I have to say that La Mission Haut-Brion 1989 is a perfect wine...Absolutely Perfect !!
And I prefer this 1989 than La Mission 1975 because of its silky full-bodied and endless aftertaste in different style. It makes 4 of us feel uncomfortable. This wine is really stronger than us....Brovo !! This bottle is suited for minimun 6 persons....I'm serious !!
I finished the last glass before go to bed at 2.30 am in the morning, I want to see how it ends but can not because of its powerful. I can not drink it again each time before 15-20 mins. La Mission 1989 has a great structure to hold on for 10 hours ++....we salute it...
Drink it now - 2050
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2/17/2007 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
Perhaps more concentrated than the Haut Brion, but it was not as balanced, elegant or assimilated. Still it was a great wine, but on that night, as a matter of style, I preferred the Haut Brion.
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2/1/2007 - winefool wrote: 93 Points
HDH Comparative Bordeaux Tasting 1989 & 1990 (Casino Club): Pale round red color. Lovely spicy iron nose of red fruit. Nice rich round red fruit and iron on the palate with a long tight finish. I enjoyed this nearly as much as the 89 HB and I think it may have a longer life ahead...
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12/24/2006 - YankeeClipper wrote: 97 Points
Chistmas Eve dinner paired with beef tenderloin. Opened and loosely corked for 5 hours. Double decanted after 30 minutes. Reddish, brown at the edges. Inviting nose of licorice, dark fruits and minerals. Wonderful, mouth coating texture. Fantastic balance, length. Can't imagine a better example from this vintage. Spectacular!
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3/15/2006 - Jeff Leve wrote: 99 Points
Inky, blackberry, chocolate, mineral, tobacco, smoke and earthy scents slam your senses. Huge, tannic, rich, large scaled flavors are almost too much of a good thing. I said almost. This is what great Bordeaux is all about!
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3/8/2006 - Russell Faulkner wrote: 95 Points
La Mission Haut-Brion Vertical (Bentley Hotel, London): Surprisingly advanced colour, could have passed for a wine 20 years older. Herbal, hay and lead, dates and liquorish, a little thin to begin but developed complex plumy fruits. Not a perfect wine though, not this bottle. Can't wait to try it again.
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3/7/2006 - Rupert wrote: 95 Points
Linden's La Mission Haut Brion tasting (Bentley Hotel, London): Alarmingly brown. A more volatile nose, penetrating, really intense blackcurrant core. Fantastic concentration and balance. Minty. The volatility gives it an extra dimension.
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2/20/2006 - Eric wrote:
The Grand Finale with Leve at the French Laundry (Yountville, Napa Valley, CA): This bottle was far, far better than the 1989 La Mission we had the prior Thursday. Exploding from the glass with raspberry, leather and smoky, roasted earth. This is a baby, but this bottle delivered the goods. This was probably the most drinkable wine of this flight.
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2/16/2006 - Eric wrote:
Leve does 1989 Bordeaux at Mélisse (Los Angeles, CA): Shy at first and then it comes on with the food and lots of time. Smoky, peat, lovely wine.
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2/14/2006 - 128 wrote:
At home with the wife after dinner at Chez Moi on Feb 14.
Nose of roasted nuts and caramel. Good balance and length. Outstanding.
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9/8/2005 - MikeZ wrote:
Some similar notes of cigar box and spice on the nose to the HB, but this wine is clearly sweeter and thicker than the flagship. The LM took longer to open up and gained in richness and gave up some early stewed fruit references. Simply stunning.
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8/11/2005 - Eric wrote:
Pre-Parker warmup dinner at Citronelle... (Georgetown, USA): This was clearly the 1989 with a dusky, reticent nose of plums and iron. The structure and depth here are enough to bring you to tears they are so impressive!
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8/4/2005 - jusuf Likes this wine: 95 Points
Have Parker and Gabriel got it wrong...the 89 is already coming to an end. The nose no longer develops the complexity and the palate no longer has the emphasis.
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3/20/2005 - Jeff Leve wrote: 100 Points
Licorice, coffee, chocolate, vanilla, herbs, cassis and kirsch fill the glass. No, make that fill the room! Silky, sexy layers of dense concentrated fruit cascade across your palate and leave you breathless. The scary thing is, this isn’t even mature!
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3/20/2005 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
This offers a beautiful perfume of herbs, minerals, licorice and BBQ smoke. Thick, dense and full bodied and filled with ripe fruit.
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2/15/2005 - Eric wrote: 96 Points
Bordeaux Legends with Leve at Sona (Los Angeles, CA): Well this was another gorgeous La Mission, but in comparison to the 1982 La Mission and the 1989 Haut Brion this was between a rock and a hard place. A sweet core with notes of coffee, yet nowhere near as extravagant as its brethren from 1982. And gorgeous as it was, in comparison to its cousin the 1989 Haut Brion this was tannic, choppy and tight and seemed to close down hard with air. All that said, this an absolutely stunning youngster of a wine that will come around to reveal more over the next 10 years.
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1/29/2005 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
HDH Pre-Auction Tasting (Chicago IL): Wine tasting. Huge black fruit with incredible spice. Lots of acidity and tannins are equally prominent with the fruit today, but this wine's powerful substance is impossible to hide. Amazingly long finish.
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1/1/2005 - winefool wrote: 92 Points
Medium red garnet. Subdued red aroma. Nice rich red, but not a knockout. 1/05
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12/14/2004 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 90 Points
Tasting of seven Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion, fourth place. Nice, young bight red/orange color in the glass. Lovely young, rich fruity nose with a touch of ammonia, more of the same on the palate, easy to drink and enjoy this wine, medium finish.
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11/4/2004 - cassetta wrote: 98 Points
Done with the Haut Brion verticle with the West Michigan Offliners, Mike Zolik's bottle. Dark purple. Sweet candied nose. Full bodied, sweet tannins and plenty of glycerin. Decanted for 3 hours and drank over the following 1&1/2 hours but still tight, in 5-10 years this s/b a 100 pointer.
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5/14/2004 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Wine tasting. Fresh black fruit aromas came across as rather subdued. More ostentatious flavors on palate with lots of black cherry, black currant and spice. Great balance with well integrated tannins, helping this evolve and take on complexity into long finish. I expect this has upside from here.
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12/26/2003 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 97 Points
Deep, dark red. Very jammy on the nose. Also notes of vanilla and raisins. Strong, but packed with sweet, dense, ripe fruit, and a heavenly texture, like expensive fur. Widely structured, and filling out the mouth completely, touching every corner, nook, and cranny with intense, tannic, tentacles. Juicy and meaty, like a meal that calls for the extra fine cutlery to be brought out, this wine had a port-like character, that mirrored the raisin-plum notes on the bouquet. The finish went on and on. This wine has so much to offer, yet one senses that 20 more years in the bottle will be rewarded handsomely. My guess was Clinet.
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11/11/2003 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 98 Points
Tasted in single-blind fashion at an '89/'90 Bordeaux dinner at El Bizcocho. Bottle provided by Amy Weinberg. Bright disc. Opaque ruby robe with red rim. Clean nose, showing an explosive bouquet of black currants, minerals, tar, mocha and toasted oak. Full-bodied on the palate, with huge, relatively sweet tannins, medium acidity and flavors every bit as intense as the nose. Long, smooth finish. This is stellar Bordeaux which will clearly get even better with more time in the bottle. An excellent accompaniment to the farm-raised Virginia lamb saddle with bean ragout and lamb basil juice.
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8/4/2003 - jusuf Likes this wine: 98 Points
Oops, worse bottling? Very good in the bouquet and on the palate, but not the power and fullness as the last bottle.
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8/4/2002 - jusuf Likes this wine: 100 Points
A fragrance bomb. Incredibly intense and yet finely structured with fine spices, blackberry and mint tones. A poem on the tongue and palate. Compact with endless power and fullness. Extremely long finish.
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8/1/2000 - sdr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Outstanding. Not tough at all, as the former vintages would be at this tender age. Bountiful fruit. Missing the usual smoke so far. Great texture. Suave.
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9/26/1999 - mdefreitas wrote: 95 Points
Pre Auction Wine Tasting w/ Angelus/Palmer/La Mission Haut Brion (NYC): Superb wine. Has loads of fruit to go with the gravelly character of this terroir. Has it all, including the structure to go on and on. Plump fleshy texture. Wow!
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5/1/1999 - mnh wrote:
Great fruit, has become more complex
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4/1/1997 - sdr Likes this wine: 96 Points
Marvelous fruity nose. Great extraction. Good balance. Sophisticated tannins, as Clive Coates might say. Extremely long and promising.
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5/21/1996 - Marc wrote: 96 Points
more dense than the 1990 - gentle buttery toasty oak - an ostentatious nose with a lot of depth. Earthy, coffee, complex - needs time. A far better wine than the 1990 - tobacco, smoke, minerals and great length - velvety smooth but with excellent structure. Smoked meats on end of the lingering finish - very complex.
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5/1/1994 - mnh wrote:
full fruit, soft tannins, long finish,will benefit from cellaring.
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6/10/1992 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 91 Points
Tasted at blind 1989 horizontal Bordeaux tasting at Vintage Wines, Ltd. Medium ruby with red-brick rim. Closed nose with light oak and currants. Full-bodied, fruit-filled palate with loads of supple tannins. The finish now appears medium to long, and slightly alcoholic. Personally ranked fifth out of eight top growths.
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3/25/1992 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 92 Points
Tasted at blind 1989 horizontal Bordeaux tasting at Vintage Wines, Ltd. Opaque ruby with red rim. Earthy (slightly musty) currants, vanilla and eucalyptus on nose, with same flavors on palate. Big extract, but the tannins are very supple. Short finish at this point.
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