June 18, 2023 - Decanted for two hours in the morning, poured over dinner. Medium amber-golden colour. Dried stone fruit, honey, butter, nuts, beeswax, and marzipan, with high acidity and great persistence. Lightly creamy texture. Pleasantly bitter finish. Great concentration and intensity! The length stands out. Amazing wine! Drink or hold.
June 9, 2023 - Lebanese night, Chateau Musar tasting (Vilnius, Lithuania): Chateau Musar tasting, flight 2/4, wine 7/12. Ungrafted 50 to 90 year old vines located at 1300 meters of altitude, made from a blend of 66% Obaideh and 34% Merwah, aged for 9 months in new small FR oak barrels and 6 years in bottle. Intense and rich aroma of spices, honey, butter, dry peaches, beeswax, dried orange, bruised apple, nutty hints. Medium body, creamy and weighty as other vintages, but this has the highest acidity which makes it seamlessly well balanced with dried fruit, buttery and earthy flavours.
September 17, 2022 - Made from Obaideh (65%) and Merwah (35%) grapes sourced from ungrafted, low-yielding vineyards over 50 years of age, located at the altitude of 1,200 meters (4,000 feet) above sea level. Unlike in most European wine countries, the 2005 was an atypically cool and humid vintage in Lebanon, resulting in harvest delayed more than a week from normal schedule and with wines showing lower than average alcohol and higher acidity. The wine is fermented on indigenous yeasts in a combination of French 225-liter barriques and stainless steel tanks; left to age in oak barrels for at least 9 months before bottling. 12% alcohol. Tasted in a Musar Blanc 2014-1998 vertical.
Medium-deep golden yellow color. Rich, sweet-toned and moderately evolved nose with seductive aromas of honeydew melon, some marzipan, a little bit of ripe apricot, light notes of beeswax, a hint of something vaguely funky, a perfumed touch of orange blossom and dried flowers and a whiff of poached pear. The wine feels like a conundrum on the palate: while it is moderately full-bodied and quite concentrated, it is also very brisk and remarkably light on its feet as well, its racy acidity lending the wine exceptional structure and an almost electric feel to it. There are focused flavors of lemony citrus fruits and crunchy Granny Smith apple, some creamy tones, a little bit of beeswax, light sweeter notes of honeydew melon, a hint of stony minerality and a touch of toasted spices. The overall feel is somewhat evolved, but still very energetic and full of life. The finish is firm, brisk and lengthy with intense and quite complex flavors of lemony citrus fruits and tangy salinity, some crunchy Granny Smith apple tones, a little bit of beeswax, light stony mineral notes, tertiary hints of chopped nuts and creaminess and a touch of savory old wood.
This is consistently one of the greatest Musar whites I've tasted. While I've had Musar whites better than this, there has always been some bottle variation, whereas this wine has never received anything lower than 95 points from me - and this was the 5th time I tasted this wine! Truly an exceptional effort that has been quite a concentrated wine all the way from the beginning, but has only acquired more depth, layers and complexity with age. Although the wine is aging at an almost glacial pace - it has been surprisingly similar for the past seven years I've been following its evolution - I feel there is still quite a bit of room left for further development. A magical wine that can be drunk or kept for years more, so very highly recommended. This has been outrageous value at 30,90€.
April 27, 2022 - Popped and poured, it was maybe 10 degrees. The nose is very interesting, with dried apricot and yellow apple. It does feel fresh, no nuttiness or sherry here! The palate is delicious, especially once the wine gets more air, creamy, yellow fruit, bit of smoke and white pepper. A very interesting wine, certainly does not feel like it’s 17 years old!
April 11, 2021 - So...I opened a bottle of this in September 2019. There was probably a 4th of the bottle left, I put a glass stopper on the top and then placed the bottle on my kitchen windowsill...where it sat until yesterday. You know what? The wine was still enjoyable. It was nowhere near as good as it was freshly opened, but it was certainly still drinkable or that's what three of us with a combined 50+ years working in the wine industry thought.
March 29, 2021 - PnP; served non-blind over 3+ hours. This was in pristine condition, and for those already familiar with the wine, it was fresh, and ever-changing/evolving across the night. I preferred an Umbrian white with the smoked trout dish, and this with the brilliant octopus appetizer. Medium-bodied, elegantly rich with an endless cascade of nuance and precision. I'd say, for my palate, this is in a great spot now, and is likely to drink at a similar level for another 7-8 years before beginning a slow retirement. An absolute joy. highly recommended
March 27, 2021 - Opened and poured into a ship decanter for two hours before being returned to the bottle another couple of hours prior to dinner at Le Bouillon. A golden color that seem lighter on the rim. On the nose, this is eminently rustic with stone fruits, wild flower honey, echinacea and butterscotch. On the palate, not nearly as oxidative as the nose would suggest. In fact, this is remarkably fresh with bright apricot and nondescript tropical fruits. Medium-plus acid. The finish is long and somewhat saline. A wine of brilliant texture. A stunning pairing with marinated octopus and was delightful with the other courses of our meal as well. A small portion was left for further evaluation the following day. I am happy to report that it held up very well indeed. The late Serge Hochar once said that his white wines seem to gain freshness with age. The 2005 vintage shows there is likely truth to his assessment. Well cellared examples should drink well for at least another decade. I, for one, look forward to checking in on these for many years to come.
March 8, 2021 - The cork literally disintegrated and even a Durand couldn’t rescue it...I’ve probably never seen one this bad. Perhaps that explains why this particular 2005 Musar blanc is right on my personal borderline in terms of oxidation. The nose has some typical Musar waxiness but there’s also a lot of bruised apple and cider vinegar. Sarah liked it a lot more than I
August 2, 2020 - All We Need is Wine by the Sea; 8/1/2020-8/5/2020 (Alicante - España): Bottle decanted for an hour and a half. Chilled cooking cream in the kitchen, dried herbs, notes of honey and hawthorn blossom. Depth without limit. Aristocratic and somewhat decadent. If only it were for those essences it would deserve a 95+. On the other hand, the palate is much more full, rustic and predictable, losing all that magic provided by the nose. Refreshingly citrus yet short and not overly complex. Serious doubts regarding its further development.
Botella decantada durante hora y media. Nata para cocinar enfriada en la cocina, hierbas secas, notas melíferas y de flor de espino. Profundidad sin límite. Aristocrática y en cierta forma, decadente. Si sólo fuese por esas esencias merecería un 95+.
En cambio en boca se muestra mucho más entero, rústico y predecible, perdiendo toda la magia aportada por la nariz. Refrescantemente cítrico aunque corto y sin demasiada complejidad. Serias dudas respecto a su posterior desarrollo.
February 15, 2020 - Made from Obaideh (65%) and Merwah (35%) grapes sourced from ungrafted, low-yielding vineyards over 50 years of age, located at the altitude of 1,200 meters (4,000 feet) above sea level. Unlike in most European wine countries, the 2005 was an atypically cool and humid vintage in Lebanon, resulting in harvest delayed more than a week from normal schedule and with wines showing lower than average alcohol and higher acidity. The wine is fermented on indigenous yeasts in a combination of French 225-liter barriques and stainless steel tanks; left to age in oak barrels for at least 9 months before bottling. 12% alcohol. Tasted in a Musar Blanc 2010-1992 vertical.
Deep, luminous honey-yellow color. Very impressive, powerful and concentrated nose with ripe aromas of beeswax, wizened apricots, some browned butter, a little bit of apple juice concentrate, light creamy tones, a hint of nutty complexity and a touch of clementine. The wine is dry, full-bodied and concentrated on the palate with layered, juicy flavors of ripe apricots, pineapple, some stony minerality, a little bit of nutty complexity, light vanilla tones, a hint of caramel and a touch of tangy salinity. The overall feel isn't young anymore, but it isn't particularly evolved yet either. Furthermore, the wine is wonderfully high in acidity for its size, making it feel very fresh, balanced and structured. The finish is concentrated and complex with long and very intense flavors of acid-driven citrus fruits, tangy salinity, some chopped nuts, a little bit of toffee, light sweeter notes of nectarine and clementine, a hint of beeswax and a touch of savory aromatic spices.
Year in and year out, this is the best vintage of Musar in the 2000's. Not only is the red probably the best vintage of Musar released in the past 10-15 years, but so is the white as well. The wine is remarkably powerful and concentrated, but at the same time remarkably poised, fresh and balanced with its modest alcohol and high acidity. The wine doesn't feel that young anymore, but it certainly isn't particularly old yet. Just like the red 2005 Musar, I'm sure this wine will only continue to improve as it ages - even though it is ridiculously impressive already. Consistently one of my favorite vintages of white Musar. Simply a phenomenal wine, heartily recommended. Outrageous value at 30,90€.