February 23, 2024 - Classic Musar - big wafts of acetic acid and plasticene that carry over to the palate, but that VA is part of the charm, if polarizing. No appreciable Brett. Pretty and high toned red fruit and a nice, lingering finish.
December 20, 2022 - Cork soaked through, removed with a Durand; highly volatile on opening, heavily bricked at the rim, some oxidative notes and generally unpromising. But with time in the glass it opened out to one of the lighter, more charming examples of Musar I’ve tasted. It remains volatile, and lacks the fruit and spice of more robust vintages — and seems occasionally to teeter on the edge of being entirely undrinkable — but for a Musar purist it’s enjoyable and quite seductive.
September 22, 2021 - This was in amazingly good shape. Fresh, accessible, wonderful. Pleasant nose and good acid balance with a long finish. Possibly the best Musar we've ever opened.
February 6, 2021 - This was my 40th Musar and actually the oldest one when tasted. I am not one of those that believes it goes on for years and years and feel generally speaking the best is between 15-25 years. The 1990 reinforced this idea as there was the clear telltale Musar nose if along with the palate it was slightly muted. The colour was brick/brown and the volatile acidity rather too dominant suggesting the fruit was drying out. After 30 minutes in the glass it started to madierise and definitely not one to keep.
December 24, 2020 - We poured into a decanter and let sit for an hour. Tasted next to a 2000 and 2006 for Christmas Eve. This wine started out quite bright and fruity, with some notes of leather and earth. But a strangely light body at first. As time passed, those tertiary notes started to become more pronounced, and whether it was the wine or our palettes, the body and tannins started to appear stronger. The next morning, the wine was still quite nice, but with a bit darker fruit and a higher perception of acidity and heat. Saved the other two, and probably won’t touch them until they’re 40+ years old.
January 4, 2020 - This bottle was clearly past its prime
Strong tertiary aromas (that I liked) but unfortunately also a strong acidity that distracts strongly
November 4, 2018 - Cork was soaked. A fair amount of ullage. Some VA and Brett. Needed a ton of air to come around and was still just ok.
September 25, 2018 - Double decanted 1-2 hours before dinner. I have enjoyed many Musars over the years, though this would be my first 1990. The cork was dry and broke in half on the way out (where did I buy this again?). Then the color: More rusty/slightly brown than I have ever seen from Musar, and i have had some older ones. So I am a bit concerned until I strain it back into the bottle shortly before leaving for the restaurant. I shove my nose down into the strainer during the process, and -- ahhh yes! -- this is classic Musar. The color notwithstanding, this Musar is big. Not one of the funkier Musars I've had. Not so feral. Rather, I get much more of what one quite astute reviewer in another Musar string dubbed "paint thinner". But in a very good way. Plus blood/iron. This wine also has plenty of years to go. I suspect it is currently roughly mid life. With respect to pairing, another great thing about Musar is its versatility, and in this case this bigger wine stood up quite nicely to the rib eye. On a final note, Musar could never be mistaken for anything other than just what it is -- which in my book is a cool thing nowadays.
July 10, 2018 - Silky and tightly acidic. Red berries with hints of chocolate, coffee, and almost saccharine sweet after taste, I could definitely feel the warmth from the high alcohol
April 19, 2018 - From a Vinotech pour. This bottle may have been open too long, but then again, oxidation is a house hallmark. Elegant, restrained notes of faint cherry, balsam and leather, light-bodied but good persistence on the finish.