Dark tasting profile compared to the 95 Mouton with more fruit on display. It didn’t quite have the balance, composure or the length of the 95. Tannins somewhat dusty.
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Last of my Mouton. Been 2 years since my last bottle.
Decanted 90 minutes. Initially tart red fruit with a lot of barnyard. Over 60 minutes of air, this all disappeared.
Palate of blackberry and good acidity with nicely integrated elements all around. Solid but not great. Down 1 point from my last bottle 2 years ago. This bottle I noted a very loose cork which probably allowed for more aging/oxidation.
The biggest disappointment of the night was clearly a counterfeit version of 1996 Mouton Rothschild which was purchased in the aftermarket well after release. Past the slightly stained label and soft Mouton cork was a suspiciously good fill. The most obvious clue was the lack of any sediment in the bottle when decanting though it did have an earthy Bordeaux nose. However, when poured there was zero resemblance to a Mouton Rothschild. The wine was poured down the drain and replaced with a 2008 Kapcsandy Grand Vin and a 2007 Bryant Family both of which were excellent.
To be fair, this was a wine served to me as a PnP, probably at 55 degrees. As you would expect, initially reticent, but over the course of two hours it absolutely opened up to show its first growth qualities. There was some menthol on the nose and palate, but not enough to put me off, as I am usually not a fan. Some definite secondary and tertiary tea and earth characteristics on opening that softened over the two hours. Probably with a decant would get a few points higher from me.
not blind Still fruit dominated. Still in a nice drinking window. Beginning secondary and tertiary aromas. One of my favourite Mouton vintages. Old school but some ripe fruit elements as you find in New World wines. 96
This has come a long way since my last bottle. Aromatics are dialed with dried red fruit, tobacco, damp soil, and a bit of wood. In the palate, it is med- body, med+ acid, and med tannin. Showing nicely tonight but still grippy. Try again in 2-3 years.
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Nose: truffle, forest, pepper, cedar, smoke, black fruits Notes: 12.5% ABV, started serving after breathing in the bottle for 1.5 hours. Having had Mouton from this vintage several times I do feel that this is the time when this wine performed the best. With a well structured and somehow complex structure, this Mouton has its typicality and is probably at the peak of its drinking window. The time and cellaring really smoothed out this wine and it's drinking very nicely now. Drink: now+ Rating: 91
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Dinner at Foliage (San Francisco): Very nice nose with quite young and dark fruit flavors, spices, and forest notes. There's a lot going on, but the wine is not showing everything at the moment. Nice acidity on the palate with cassis, tart fruit, cherries, leather, and a hint of mushrooms. Long finish. I liked this very much although it's still quite primary. Yet, you can tell the sheer class and depth already. I'd hold for another 7-10+ years. 95+
Expansive nose after 3 hours but needs more time. Gorgeous engaging palate: I see what’s meant by a wine of refinement and elegance - less usual amidst the brooding power of Bordeaux - but this has it. Next bottle in 10+ years.
Dinner with Herwig (Foliage, SF): Youthful ruby-purple; medium aromatics, blackberry, youthful fruit; palate is full bodied, balanced alcohol and acidity; medium-plus finish. This seems young and needs more age or time. Like 2 more decades… 92++
Nose opens up within 15 minutes but the palate was not ready until about 1.5 hrs in. Had with venison and pigeon at Maison Dunand. Superb. Drinking well now but definitely not at peak. However, it has the youth, vitality, and structure to continue to develop and improve for the next decade.
Bob’s cellar and a toast to him this Christmas. Went up and down with this wine, expecting it to the superlative. Deep dark inky red, brick hints. Sweet damsons, black cherries, aged forest floor leather and tobacco nose. Woof! Initial tasting after double decanted a couple of hours ago is refined cassis and cherries, warm fruit fine ribbon of acidity, there is still a tautness there. Tannins resolved and supportive. Age shows, forest floor and dampness. A few hours later, this is showing a very pronounced redcurrant/cranberry acidity. A couple of hours later this has melded to bring darker fruit as softness. Day 2, strong redcurrant fruit returns, fragile and supportive darker fruits have receded. In the end was good but not as sublime as I hoped. Settled on an intermediate score. Will see how the remaining bottles turn out.
More rounded than the 1996 Lafite tasted side by side. For the first 30 minutes, it was not expressive on the nose and palate. Thereafter, plush cassis notes became more apparent. It lacked the concentration of the better Mouton. Bottle variation?
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Holiday Dinner - Mostly Bordeaux (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Wine 3 - Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe opulent black fruit, crème de cassis, blueberry pie, blackberry, mocha, luxurious oak, cedar, lead pencil and earth. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of rich black fruit, silky and fluid, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long opulent black fruit driven finish with a hint of oak at the end. The most modern/Napa like expression although clearly a Bordeaux. Not as nuance driven as the others. My guess is Mouton.
2 years from my last bottle and this was from a 375ml- a very polished, well balanced wine that opened up with 30 min in the glass. Still plenty of fruit. This is in its prime and depending on your preference, will drink well for a few decades. Revisit 2026
The Papies join the 13,000 Tasting Notes Club (Paris, France): Word of caution here. The nose as beautiful as it is , it is also fragile so the wine is not for a long decant. Just open rest 5-10 minutes and enjoy the masterclass that this is . Our third bottles ( Papies 97-98) and very much consistent, classic , Uber elegant, a prima ballerina of a wine that is just at another level. The phrase what more could one ask of a wine always sing true for this wine and its shy of a perfect score on account of its fragility. Exceptional once again 97-98 and really at peak now
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A Medlar lunch (Medlar, London): Last tasted almost exactly a decade ago, and as it happens about 18” anti-clockwise around the Medlar table for where I am now. Full garnet, dense. Nicely rich on the nose. Mellow with some blackcurrant and a touch of Madeira cake. There’s lots here. A lot more open than that previous bottle, this has really blossomed in the past decade but there’s still a way to go. Really very lovely. ****1/2
A superb wine that is getting into a window of joy and happiness!
A deep red that has a wonderful luscious bouquet, with intense mint, cassis and red plum notes. A highly refined and elegant palate follows that has lovely structure and flow. Lovely acid that has tension and freshness, and wonderful fruit definition. A deeply complex finish that has cedar, stewed fruits and a hint of menthol.
Drink now to 15+ years.
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Carefully poured into decanter and served immediately. Nice but subtle nose and slightly evolving palate for about 90 minutes until gone. Quite enjoyable now, no need to wait on these.
A good and solid wine - but expected more from one of the big five from Bordeaux - especially during our Blind "Summer of 96 Tasting". Lenght was average, tannins well integrated and very shy, acidity was close to inexisting, but the fruity notes were active as this wine was only 15 years old. Not sure, if this makes another reviival. Glad to have tasted it, but not one of my "Repeat to Threepeat Bucket Wine List".
Used Durand opener and cork was still intact. Right from the get go, it's in the window. Aerated for 30min and the subtle licorice, dark fruits, molasses, and earth was abound. Paired with venison tartare and lamb for main with pistachio, parsley, bread covering. Remarkable how subtle this wine is. Taste every 15min to ensure it opens up properly. Always a family favorite for the first growths and would say it has another 5-10years tops. It gave out after 2.5hrs. But the journey was well worth the time in the cellar.
Quite well kept and preserved bottle, this bottle flew high in the glass, emanating an eloquent remaining bouquet therefrom with typical tobacco honied jam noses.
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Opened in Hong Kong. Decanted for several hours before enjoying over dinner with friends.
This surprised me, as this was still quite backward and monolithic. Very big wine, and not very expressive on the nose. What was coming through were classic Pauillac x Mouton notes - black fruit with earthy, leathery tones. But everything was tight, the tannins were still there - this particular bottle must have aged at a glacial pace as it just needed more time.
This was a different experience to other 1996 Moutons that I've had before, as they were more open for business. I guess you really need to look at how a bottle has been stored. Good wine now but can show better under different circumstances.
Will definitely keep but also I feel like people should feel free to experiment with this wine. Tracking the evolution is part of the fun.
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Milan Wine Event 2 - AKA F It Dinner (Il Ristorante Trussardi alla Scala (Ristorante Trussardi by Giancarlo Perbellini), Milan): ** Our advice is open this on its own in isolation** Opened and left to rest for a good hour and we chose not to decant ( correctly) . The wine is elegant to the point of fragility so one needs to be careful with it not to disturb the fine sediment. The memory we will always have from this wine is one of " what more could we have asked from a wine?" And frankly we would have rated it 100 if it wasn't for the fragile feel of it. Exceptional and magnificent, a ballerina of a wine, effortlessly elegant. Soft spice, light leather and earthy feel. Frankly the notes are irrelevant the Wine is an experience and lets just say this. It drinks perfectly now and it will last for sure but really now its just perfect. Pointless to rick unless one has a few bottles. Luckily we do. 98 PUNTO.
Perfect Provenance. Excellent Cork. Wine is very near death. No fruit at all. Very little tannin. Tried again the next morning. Even closer to death. What a disappointment.
(SYP) slow ox for 8 hours Ocean air, spices, earth and vanilla on the nose. It was polished yet tight on the palate with bright fruit and a chewy finish. As the night went on, the aromas changed to fresh black berries and dried dates; on the palate, it picked up some weight and became fuller and darker. A hint of warmth to the slightly dry finish.
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in the right spot , great on the nose and palate , complex , resolved tannins. Leather, tobacco , blueberry fruit , lead pencil. Balanced in every aspect with a long finish
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Dark blue and black fruit, black olive and tapenade, cedar, and tobacco. Good weight, concentration and balance, medium bodied, with a long finish. In the strike zone for sure, like many left bank 96s
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Simon Beatty Memorial Dinner - Chablis Le Clos (Noizé): This was my red wine of the year last year, and I think this bottle was even better. Just transcendent - still on the upslope, and this ever so slightly unresolved spice from the oak that suggests this could go on forever. Thank you MH for sharing, this was the vinous highlight of a superb dinner.
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Simon Beatty Memorial Dinner - Les Clos table (Noize): More evolved than the GPL '96 served alongside, which was a good thing as it added some complexity and savour. Leather, tobacco and lots of deep, plummy fruit, but this seamless wine wasn't really about individual notes and more notable for its sense of completeness. Excellent balance and concentration, but also silky smooth and unpretentiously drinkable. Hell yeah! Best wine of 2023 - so far, at least. Thanks Mike!
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Mouton dinner (La Chaumiere in Georgetown): Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe blue and black fruit, crème de cassis, blackberry concentrate, blueberry, coffee, ink, lead pencil, cedar and mineral. There is a hint of green similar to the other Moutons. Perfectly integrated palate, finely layered generous black and blue fruit, rich and generous but also silky, polished and beautifully detailed, bright acidity and strong mineral, beautifully integrated fine tannins, a long generous black and blue fruit driven finish with a hint of lead pencil and coffee at the end. This clearly expresses the classic 96 vintage. Although exceptional, the 96 Mouton may be not as refined as the 96 Lafite or Margaux.
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Opened and let breathe in the bottle for an hour then drank over two hours. Deep ruby red, great nose of tobacco, perfumed black and red currants, some graphite and pencil lead. On the palate at first the wine was shining with lots of fruit, delicate acidity, superb structure and delineation, with soft tannins within the spicy finish. However after 2 hours, the wine started to fade becoming light and one dimensional and couldn’t hold its own versus the Margaux 1989 drunk alongside. Perhaps an off bottle or my tired palate?
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Pretty clearly corked. Funky wet cardboard and faint chlorine notes, completely devoid of fruit. Fortunately, the seller refunded the bottle no questions asked (K&L, woot!).
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Dark purple colour. Nose of spice and earth. a little close when just opened. Tasted a little spicy when poured from the bottle. The wine opened up after about two hours of decanting. It turned into a totally different wine with great complexity and fruit flavour staring to show. Went very well with the steak and bison main courses.
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An embarrassment of steak riches (Chez G): Ah. Well. Now the classification speaks out. Compared to the preceding Duhart Milon of the same vintage, this was just more in every dimension, a bit brighter, a bit deeper, a bit bigger in the mouth. A certain honey / vanilla element to it, almost like the oak wasn’t fully resolved, certainly this has its best years ahead of it. Thoroughly lovely and a real treat - even privilege - to drink.
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not blind, from double magnum I like the 96 vintage (not only in champagne). This is so fresh and so classical Bordeaux with vitalizing fruit aromas, not too tannic but with cracking acidity. Will live at least for 2 more decades. 97
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Le Petit Mouton Masterclass and Dinner - BBR & Chateau Mouton Rothschild: Deep ruby, nose of mature forest floor with dark fruits. Some subtle menthol on nose too. Palate dark fruit cassis, blackberry, black currant along with mature tertiary notes of forest floor, graphite, tobacco. True concentration but still with a fresh acidity. Awesome density and complexity.
Sensational finish, one of the longest I've ever experienced. Such a contrast to the Petit Mouton drank alongside on that front (although that was already good compared to most wines). It just kept going and going revealing all the layers and complexity.
From a perfectly stored bottle with BBR (actually 3). All double decanted and left to open in bottle for 2+ hours before serving. This was everything I'd want from a First Growth from a great vintage. Drinking well now but will continue going for decades. A fantastic wine. What an honour.
Continuing to develop positively, the wine seems to have entered the start of its drinking window. The tannins softened and the wine has spread out on the palate, allowing to taste and feel the ripe, sweet, fresh currants, spice and blackberries, with its touch of herbs, cedar and leafy tobacco on the nose and palate. Drink from 2022-2045.
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NY Wine Experience 2022; 10/20/2022-10/23/2022 (Marriott Marquis): Starting to get into the ready to drink stage and probably of the four wines was the most in that place. Dark fruits again. A bit pretty. Some almost razor edge to it (a tighter acid). Dark library with that smell of musty books and leather chairs. Very nice.
Drunk next to the '95 and it's the first time I've rated the '95 higher. Not that this isn't a great wine but I found the '95 to have more depth and intensity. Sleek and so fine and classy with a real streak of graphite running through the wine. Finely etched and precise with a gorgeous finish that's so complex with notes of cedar and tobacco. No doubt the tannins are finer here than the '95 but the only flaw of the '96 vintage shows a bit here with a "hole in the middle palate." Time will tell if this hole gets filled in or not.
Dinner at The Ledbury , London (The Ledbury, London): Decanted for a good 30 minutes. Nicole’s comments of what more can you ask from a wine summarises well this wine experience and aside from the fanfare of the name the wine is a masterclass of effortless class and elegance. Frankly if life has not spoiled us with with a few magnificent LaLas we would have rated this even Nose is almost Burgundian in soft complexity but of course, the soft spice, leather and cedar spring out as is the herby edge. On the palate it has a bit of the 1996 tannin and the Pauillac austerity but we are now dotting Is and crossing Ts. This is a masterclass of a wine and we could not be happier to own another 11 bottles. 97+
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Decanted two hours before serving. Deep ruby color. Nice cigar aromas on the nose along with some black currant and hint of barnyard. Medium body with fine grained tannins and medium-to-medium-plus acid. Very ripe palate with black currant, blackberries, cedar but still balanced well by some savory elements, the structure and the acidity. Overall this was a lovely Pauillac, but not offering anything above its peers that I would expect at this level.
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Dinner at Nikki's (Gallop Singapore): Still shockingly youthful, even after a couple of hours in the decanter, but this was a really lovely drop. It had such a classic Mouton nose - tobacco spice, sweet cassis, blackberries, damp earth - just lovely stuff. The palate was oh so fresh and lively, still a little tight, but opening up all the time in the glass to show a pure, superbly defined and really well-cut mouthful of cassis, spice and tobacco, all framed in fine-boned tannins and lovely acidity that carried it into a long finish. A lovely, graceful wine; effortlessly balanced, and showing all the best things of the 1996 vintage - with pure fruit wed to freshness and verve. A very good Mouton with its best years ahead of it yet. This will be lovely to try in 5-6 years' time.
Dark ruby core, minimal signs of age. Decanted at 3:00 served at 6:00. Initial impression was surprisingly soft and approachable. Rich, ripe fruited core, laced with violets and spice. Perfectly balanced, solid mid palate, polished finish.
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Dark black red. No brick tinge and deep red is clean and fine. Full dark black fruits and barnyard in the nose, red fruits in the background. Full and powerful. Powerful dry fruitful impact on tasting. Dry and austere but enough fruit behind to lift it up. A serious wine that has many years to go.
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the first of my bottles and it has the most fabulous bouquet - great initial attack and with reasonable length but the middle is somewhat 'hollowed-out' - not unusual in a wine of this age so I would be inclined to leave it a good few years before the next bottle
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45 min in the glass and this was surprisingly accessible. Very enjoyable, well balanced with a persistent finish. This is in or near its prime. Will hold for decades.
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Dark, gorgeous nose of red currant, menthol, pine needles, and lead. Tannins are just about fully resolved with a light and effeminate mid palate, tad soft structure and sweetness in the mouth with long vivacious finish.
Drank from .375 upon arrival this past weekend in Antigua. I’ve had it a few times before in the not-too-distant past and the wine has shown consistently well. Color shows slight bricking in the glass. Nose exudes cigar box, cedar and tobacco aromas. The same characteristics dominate on the palate, coinciding nicely with black fruit, cassis, pencil shavings and hints of mint. I also noticed hints of green pepper for the first time here. Finish is long and a bit coarse, tannins are not fully resolved and fairly evident at the back end. All in all, a lovely wine showing very nicely.
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rich, delicious round black cherry fruit with leather and earth flavors, excellent structure, very full nose, long finish, broader multilayered body compared to 1989 Pichon Baron and 1998 Latour.
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Absolument sublime ! le meilleur de cette vague de 6 et probablement le meilleur des 12 Mouton qu'on a bue jusqu’à présent. Belle richesse, tannins enrobés et que dire de la profondeur au nez ! En bouche c'est smooooth, beau fruit mur, juste ce qu'il faut d'acidité, bref la définition même d'un vin dans son sweet spot ! Totallement délicieux !
Jen-a-palooza with Paul, Mark and Carol; 10/22/2021-10/24/2021 (Atlanta): Not surprisingly the wine of the weekend. Drank to celebrate Mark’s recent retirement (almost) and it did not disappoint. This is why we drink wine. Double decanted 2 hours before recording and bringing to dinner where we drank over another two. Still so young and fresh, lively tobacco and mineral together with dark cherry fruit and a long ling finish. Perfectly in its window and couldn’t have paired better with the lamb course. Thank you Mark, such a treat.
Last had this in BDX back in '17. Retirement dinner tonight closing out the latest Jenapalooza with our hosts, (Jen/Paul) and Carol with Eliza along, too. Decanted about 2 hours at home, back in the bottle and to a really nice restaurant with a 6 course chef tasting menu......beautiful BDX nose with plenty of graphite. The wine is dark, soft and integrated. A trace of pine needle on the nose, the palate has strong, smooth dark red fruits, perfectly balanced acidity and such a great mouthfeel. It pairs so well with the duck portion. I love it right now, but it certainly has many years ahead of it. Much thanks to Jen and Paul for a wonderful dinner and weekend!
Going to be a great wine…but needs more time. Still tart and astringent but does have some layers that are going to reveal themselves in time. I would not open another bottle for at least 10 years, but it will be worth the wait. Buy now and enjoy later! Tobacco, cedar, etc will be waiting for you!
Nose here was wonderful with cassis, graphite, with lovely hints of pepper, spice and smoke. Everything came in waves giving a lovely persistency. Still has an overall lightness to it and feels more youthful than the Duhart. Really impressive nose
Palate is a little more fruit forward too than the Durhart but doesn't quite live up to some of the interest of the nose. There is some structure here and overall it feels more like potential to come rather than lacking anything now
I think this would be really interesting to taste again in a few years as there is something special here
Dark ruby red but no bricking on the rims. Opened for an hour then decanted for another hour next bottle I will leave 3 hours in the decanter as this wine needs it. Not quite as complex and powerful as its cousin Lafite or neighbor Margaux but still one hell of a worthy wine to have. Medium to full bodied, the wine starts out with a dusty animalistic nose along with pepper and cassis. With aeration, the wine switches to being subtle, light and deep on the palate with hints of game and a spicy long and sweet finish. Very well structured but would have benefited from a proper decant. Next bottle!
A great bottle of this with superb aromatics. On the palate, it flows like liquid graphite with dark fruits and excellent precision and cut. A medium-bodied, regal wine that is gorgeous to drink now but will clearly continue to develop for years. 95+ Double-decanted 5 hours.
Kleur: Diep robijnrood met een brede maar niet heel lichte oranjebruine rand. Aroma / bouquet: De eerste indruk van het bouquet is in eerste instantie vooral stevig, aards en gronderig, met een subtiel zwart pepertje, direct gevolgd door verfijnde indrukken van gedroogd donker fruir, chique hout, sigarenkistjes en zoethout. Na langere beluchting (3-4 uur) krijgt de wijn wat aangenaam rokerige tonen. Smaak / Afdronk: Serieus krachtige en stoere Mouton, prettige maar bescheiden zuurgraad, royaal voorzien van serieus krachtige tannines. Kruidig. Serieus lange afdronk. In deze fase - na 25! Jaar - nog steeds vitaal, krachtig en harmonieus. Lange afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Stoere en krachtige wijn, zeer benieuwd naar de verdere ontwikkkeling in de komende decennia. Nog drie flessen te gaan ;-). 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Smaak / Afdronk: 17 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 94/100
Color: Deep ruby red with a broad but not very light orange-brown edge. Aroma / bouquet: The first impression of the bouquet is initially firm, earthy and earthy, with a subtle black pepper, immediately followed by refined impressions of dried dark fruir, chic wood, cigar boxes and liquorice. . After longer aeration (3-4 hours) the wine acquires some pleasant smoky notes. Taste / Finish: Seriously powerful and tough Mouton, pleasant but modest acidity, generously provided with seriously powerful tannins. Spicy. Seriously long finish. At this stage - after 25! Years - still vital, powerful and harmonious. Long finish. General / potential: Tough and powerful wine, very curious about the further development in the coming decades. Three more bottles to go ;-). 50 + Color: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Taste / Finish: 17 + Overall / potential: 9 = 94/100
A fine example of left bank Bordeaux that's at the start of its secondary phase. This was restrained, pretty, and excellent with meat courses. That said, it suffers from the inflated expectation of being a First Growth - a recent '95 Pichon Lalande was as good perhaps even better than this wine.
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Seemingly close to fully-developed, the wine is medium/full-bodied with a catchy display of tobacco leaf, cedar, cigar box, spice, forest leaf, herbs and red currants. Most of the tannins feel melted away. Soft, chewy, spicy and fresh with an herb, spice and cedar tint to the red fruits, this is quite nice for drinking today.
M&PD Covid Tasting Night #4. A spectacular line-up of wines tasted blind:
2014 Morlet Family Vineyards La Proportion Dorée 1990 Château Léoville Las Cases 2009 Sloan 1996 Château Mouton Rothschild 2010 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1990 Château Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse)
Eric offers his usual insightful reviews here: www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2281587
A couple of additional thoughts from my pov:
I'm not rating this wine bc it was a little closed. The nose was spectacular, but the palate and finish died quickly. It's not that the wine was disjointed, it just wasn't in the right place. If the wine lives up to its nose of wood, mushroom and overall sous bois (thanks Eric ;-)), it will be a 100 point wine when it is ready to go.
M&PD Zoom Tasting: Bordeaux around the world (Zoom): Very Bordeaux-like. Pretty. Really lovely tobacco. Sweet, delicate, cherry. Mineral. Quite austere at first, stunningly so. In the end, I did correctly guess Pauillac, as it just had the signature flavors and aromas. It also fleshed out quite a bit over the night, quite considerably, but it never fully opened. It really wants 10-20 more years. A gorgeous wine.
A good, but not great vintage for Mouton Rothschild in a year where they should have shined, as you do not find the weight and density experienced in the top wines of the vintage. Still, there is a lot to like here. There is a ripeness to the tannins and fruit giving you layers of juicy, fresh, creme de cassis, tobacco, earth, spice and cigar box. It is starting to drink well-well now, so if you pop a cork, give it an hour or two of air and it will provide a beautiful night of wine.
Nose really ripped as I was decanting. Super dark. Dark cherry, violets and tobacco on the nose, but also some iodine and anise. So plush on the mouth. Lots of tangy black cherry. And there is again that anise, or even eucalyptus. I get something a tad green on the finish, maybe it’s that eucalyptus again. (Not to be picky but it’s a tad funky.) Drinking well but youthful.
The 1996 Mouton is dark and savoury and lacked the exuberant bouquet that the 96 Haut Brion had next to it, to me it is missing the First Growth quality. Low-pitched dark fruits, cedar, umami. Good concentration and acidity. A slight step up to the 1995 Mouton but still my least favourite 96 First Growth. Drink from 2022. (89/100)
PNP from .375 as I watched last nite's election in disbelief. Finishing it today--and this is a helluva wine, as many on CT have remarked. Ruby red core, with ever-so-slight browning at the glass edge. Seductive and complex nose of cedar, cigar box, ripe blackberries, currant & some sort of mint or eucalyptus. Medium bodied, with great structure and power, but also much finesse. There's a ton of fruit here, along with pencil shavings, graphite, cedar, leather, cinnamon and spice. The tannins are noticeable but not intrusive, and are somewhat on the puckery side. This wine makes a statement in your mouth, and lingers for a solid two minutes. This is a fairly mature wine (perhaps seems more so given the bottle size) but seems to be just reaching its peak. I see no signs of descent any time soon--which pleases me given that I have more in the cellar. A great wine, that is showing wonderfully right now.
Beautiful nose of wet tobacco, cedar and wintergreen, dark rich crushed blueberry fruit, and crushed pencil and minerals. Very balanced and youthful palate with a strong backbone, young sweet tannins, and consistent power with the cigar, dark fruit, and mint particularly pushing through to a gorgeous young finish.
A superb wine with a great balance of power and finesse. Delicious young claret just entering drinking window with room to continue to improve. Fantastic
World Series Mondo Wine Event (Duluth, GA): Tasted blind. This tied with the Leflaive Montrachet for #3 WOTN. My tasting notes state that while this is a noble and beautiful wine with a wonderful Pauillac nose, it is tighter on the finish that I would like. Having tasted this wine many times before, this was not the best showing of the '96 Mouton.
(Blind tasting BYO) Full, profound nose of mid development. Cedar, black currant, gravel, gently oaky. Some tertiary tobacco notes. Ink. Just a tiny hint of green bell pepper deep in the background. Fullish, very balanced palate. Properly austere. Melted, ripe tannins. Very nice black currant fruit that perhaps lacks just a tiny bit in the finish. But very good grip. Cool and harmonius. Ink, cedar, black currant. Classic Pauillac. And nobody does the classic Pauillac better than Mouton.
Pnp then decanted and followed over three hours. 12.5 pct alcohol stood out and delighted with this level. A wine if wonderful purity, balance, classic gentlemen’s claret with some pencil shavings, leather notes. Should be better with another 5-10 years.
Seductive nose, leather, lead and dried currant. Going to be fantastic now or for the next 15years. One of my favorite vintages and it doesn't get much better than this! (low-neck fill, 750ml)
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From MG. A manly, aristocratic wine, tobacco here, black fruit, there is a stony side to this as well, graphit etc. Very vertical and classic, entering maturity, but certainly no hurry - from this format at least. #Jordnær
Drank after a 2012 Dana Hershey and a 2012 Shafer Hill Side Select. It was the lightest Mouton that I have ever had. Very Burgundian like. Could of had the with fish. Yes it was balanced and clean but I couldn't have guessed that it was a Cabernet based wine. To me this is not worth half of what it costs.
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Gorgeous right out of the bottle with an intense, saturating nose. Terrifically complex, with blueberry compote, pencil, wood smoke, sandalwood, squid ink, and a kiss of lavender. The more air this gets, the more pure the blueberry becomes and the more the lavender emerges. Big on the palate, but beautifully balanced and with a long, flavorful finish it’s hard not to be optimistic about the future. Potentially one of the truly great Mouton vintages. 97-98(+?)
Textbook Pauillac, bell pepper and graphite. Dense, dark, and despite being open for hours before serving showed young. Enjoyable now but probably killer in 20 years.
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This is a beautiful Mouton that lacks the usual exotic side of this great terroir but it's very Pauillac in style with black fruits and wonderful graphite mineral notes. So silky and sleek with a firm underlying structure and just a fantastic refined complexity that builds towards a finesse-driven finish with hints of tobacco, sweet gravel and lead pencil. To me, more mature than the Margaux or Latour drunk alongside but there's still upside here as the structure softens further.
Perfect bottle out of original tissue. This is much more dense, rich, and perfumed than the magnum of 1995 alongside. Opulent with deep blackberry and currant fruit in addition to the spice and lead pencil details. That sort of muggy thick perfume hangs about the glass in a way that the '95 lacks. Very pleasurable right now but plenty of power and will likely continue to improve. Straightforwardly delicious.
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4 hour decant which was absolutely necessary- nice concentration and balance, average finish. Likely not in prime, at least for me. Few decades left on this.
Paired with the main course at NYE dinner - beef rib roast. This '96 outperformed the '95, which never developed as did the '96, remaining a bit austere throughout dinner. Both bottles were given about a two hour decant before dinner, and the '96 was clearly the star, with beautiful aromatics, cedar, creme de cassis, dark fruits.
An extension of the 1988, inkier, denser, you can tell that this has a great future, which you cannot say with the same degree of confidence about the 1986. Still a good 5-10 years away from reaching its plateau, when I reckon it will rated a couple of points higher. My sixth rated wine, but on different forward-looking criteria could easily be wotn.
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Nose: deep nose of currant, blackberry, lead pencil, mint, cedar, tobacco and sandalwood. Palate: silky and well developed bursting with black fruit, turned earth, menthol, cedar and sweet tobacco. Adds weight as it opens with blackberry/blueberry notes. Finish: black cherry, cedar and mint linger on the back end.
A great wine for sure, but requires further development. Classic Pauillac in process? Seems likely, but fruit weight as it opens clouds some of the moutonian typicity.
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Decanted for 3 hr, ruby red and light in color, penetrating floral nose filled not only glass, very elegant, perfectly balanced body, fully mature, beautiful acidity, dark fruits with blackberry, raspberry, tar, tobacco, hint of earthy tone, silky tannins, extremely smooth,no rough edge, but you can still feel its power underneath its silk velvet gloves. Delicious to drink, mouth watering delicious, long long smooth aftertaste. This is a WOW wine, it just attacked from a different angle.
Decanted half a bottle via Coravin for 1 hour. Nice nose from the start, but palate wasn't there. It evolved a bit over the following hour but probably needed to sit in the decanter a few more hours. Seems to be some bottle variance based on previous notes maybe due to storage history. Will try a longer decant with the second half of the bottle.
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Decanted for approximately 1.5 h. Fine nose, not reductive nor wide open. Lead pencil, blackberries and minerality at first. Later comes scents of spices: musk, cinnamon and cumin, almost Barolo-territory. Perhaps also some caramel. In the mouth the wine is rather perfect, perhaps to perfect? Lean and elegant. Mid length, still nice acidity, dry well-integrated tannins. About two hours after the bottle was opened the nose goes slightly muted, but also where length and body of the wine increased substantially.
This wine was in a very interesting spot. Not completely dried out and still with a lot of fruit left. No need to hurry to pop the cork.
Obviously expectations where very high here. As a wine: great craftsmanship and an very interesting experience. Given how much this vintage fetch these days: extremely doubtful QPR.
Paried with a very nice filet of beef, a Jerusalem artichoke mash and reduction of red wine. Nice pairing.
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tasted blind. this was fully mature, showing sweet tannins. Quite smooth and elegant. Not much in tertiary and drinking young. Enjoyable for sure, but don't think I would spend this $$ for it.
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Medium intense ruby red color. In the nose: Earthy aroma's. Caramel, black pepper, leather, tobacco and liquorice. On the palate: earthy, leather, tobacco, cedar, vanilla and also still some fruit. Cassis, berries and figs. Finish of 8-9 caud.
I was quite surprised that this wine still looked so good in the glass and that we still have fruit in it. This wine absolutely still has quite some reserves left!
Deep ruby, medium width rim, powerful, developing, red fruit, fleshy, cherry, plum, licorice root, vanilla bean, anise, smoke, compost, stemmy, green herbs, coffee, potpourri, leather, bark, bell pepper. medium-plus acidity, medium body, medium plus tannin, high level of complexity, long finish, round, silky, and balanced. The wine is drinking well now and has many years ahead to continue developing.
A fine wine indeed, albeit that given the influence of expectations maybe a little underwhelming. It did struggle to stand its ground versus Lynch Bages 96 - both served blind. It was double decanted some hours ahead, and I am not sure that did much good to this particular wine. Smooth, elegant with all the classic notes you look for in great, mature Bordeaux.
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GMs Mid-Week: Blind. Earth, cherry, raspberry, pencil and some meaty bretty notes. Excellent balance on the palate - savoury drive and plenty of depth. Still has signs of youth but this is developing well. Probably will hit its peak sometime in the next 10 years.
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Mouton Rothschild vertical 1878-2002 (Old Swiss House, Lucerne): Initially a convincing nose, pretty classic in fact. Mixed berries with few secondary or tertiary aromas. Unfortunately warmed up quite a bit in the glass (a general problem we encountered with the 90ies flight) and became too alcoholic. I initially pencilled down 94, but couldn't verify this hence going with a notch below.
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Mouton Vertical (Lucerne): The nose here was inviting and quite good but the wine is missing depth and length to play in the big league. Nose deserves 95+ points but the palate - at least of this bottle - is not on par. Nevertheless a good wine.
TN: Sweet toast, oppulent dark cassis and some blackberries, iron type minerality, earth, fresh, clean and with a good precision. A telltale Pauillac nose. Less power, intensity and focus on the palate. The structure is in a good place with smooth tannins and a well integrated acidity but the aromatics need more time to evolve further adding one or the other interesting layer which is not yet there. Can the already very soft structure hold-up long enough?
Decanting: Double decant & slow-ox for 2.5 hours. Probably a longer decant would have improved the palate experience.
A classic, structured Mouton. Plenty of deep dark red fruit, cedar, and earthy iron, all behind a stern wall of structure that did ease as the wine took on air. Very great Mouton here, but certainly not highest tier.
This was another example of the beauty of Mouton. While it was not that expressive (due probably to the fact that it was not decanted) it was lovely but it clearly out-shined the '96 Lafite that was disappointing. The Mouton showed floral and blueberry on the nose with hints of pencil, leather and cedar. It was very enjoyable on the palate and finished nicely.
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A classic and enjoyable Mouton that was outshined by the more opulent Vega Sicilia and more complex La Mouline. On its own would have showed better, next to these two it seemed a bit monolithic. The 78 Mondavi was a better wine tonight as well, more giving. This is young, and we shouldn’t open another bottle for at least 5 years.
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Classic Bordeaux at the start of its secondary evolution. A whisper of bricking, round and pleasant flavors of plum and mineral, a touch of vanilla on the finish. A true food wine that did even better with a truffle gnocchi dish than on its own. Bordeaux isn't my thing, but even I could appreciate this wine.
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PnP A little quiet on the nose. Some nice dark rich fruit comes out initially. Some spice and vanilla character as well. A touch of coffee. On the palate, there is some intensity here. Acidity and tannin wise this has a bit of astringency. It is delicious but the brightness and grip need to chill out. This wine will last another lifetime.
nose- phenomenal, outstanding, perfumed funk, fruit, tar, forest floor, decay, musk. screw drinking this. just sniff it. in fact if it were possible, i think they should make a 96 mouton scratch and sniff. mouth - clean, dark cherry, hints of earth. slightly faded compared to the nose, though with air this came more to life and surprised me. great funk and fruit. memorable wine.
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Beautiful now! I had this wine several times in the last years, but I never enjoyed it as much as I did yesterday during our BBQ. Bottle was in a perfect condition and must have been stored very well. Amazing deep nose with lots of black and red berries, some starting aging notes. On the palate a fruit explosion, lots of ripe dark and red berries, medium-strong tannins, very elegant and smooth structure - a quite feminine Bordeaux. Never thought a 1996 vintage could taste so good 22 years later. In my opinion it is on its peak now, I recommend to drink it within the next 6 years.
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During a walkabout tasting, only brief impressions. From Magnum. Wow, this showed well. Complex nose of barnyard, dark fruit, spices. Excellent mid mouth presence, balanced, long. Great, mature Claret!
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Excellent color and youthfulness at age 22. A bit shy on the nose and a bit austere in palate to rate higher. I am unsure time will fix the slight lack of fruit in midpalate.
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This is the fourth time having this vintage of Mouton. It was my least favorite of the four tastings, but it is still utterly delicious. This must have been cellared in a cold cellar because it seems to be on a much slower evolutionary track than my prior tastings. It needs at least a 1-2 hour decant if opening now, but I recommend waiting another 10 years to open it. Classic Pauillac nose, with black fruit, licorice, cedar, anise. The fruit was slightly stewed, which I hadn’t noticed before in prior tastings, but it was not off putting. It is currently in a clunky phase of evolution. Hold.
Two hour decant. Classic bordeaux drinking well now. The nose is red fruit, tobacco and a touch of lead pencil. The palate is multi layered, red fruit, cassis, tobacco. The finish is medium and complex. At an optimal drinking window.
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If grading on texture, this one scores a 99. Velvet, silky mouth feel. Absolutely gorgeous texture. Lacking depth and complexity, though. Fruit lacking. Thoroughly enjoyed it, but not mind blowing. Highly advised to drink now. Quite intact, but I don't see this lasting more than four more years.
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Served alongside Margaux 1996, which was hard for Mouton to cope with. The Mouton is a bit clumsy and warm compared to the cool and elegant Margaux. The nose is open and full of dark fruit, but without the classic lead pencil and other Pauillac notes. A bit stewed and over the top.
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Le niveau est très élevé (A) et les attentes étaient grandes pour cette bouteille. J'ai ouvert la.bouteille vers 15h45, question de voir ce qu'elle.avait à offrir. Au départ, c'est dense et profond. Dès les premières 2-3 minutes, le.vin évolue et semble vouloir s'ouvrir. Je le laisse en bouteile pour environ 1 heure. A ce moment, il est encore en retenue. Je décide donc de le carafer pour les 2 heures restantes avant de le boire, mais ça n'a pas semblé suffisant pour lui permettre de s'ouvrir complètement. Il s'est somme toutes présenté comme un solide Pauillac, bien découpé, élégant et équilibré, mais qui manquait de "oumph" pour confirmer son statut de 1GGC. Belle expérience néanmoins.
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Really dark color still. Amazing nose of black raspberry liqueur with woodsmoke and eucalyptus. This is quite a surprise to the upside as this wine has always been closed and reticent and it absolutely needs a 2+ hour decant to open up. Then very firm and tannic but the richness of the fruit and Mouton decadence are really becoming apparent with delicious flavors of smoky black raspberries and strong notes of eucalyptus and Asian spices. Finishes tannic and deeply intense with a great tangy, mouth-watering finish and tertiary complexity just developing. The potential of this wine in 10 years might be just be perfection as the exotic, sensual side of Mouton is finally beginning to show itself to go along with an otherwise perfectly structured wine. 96+
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very feminine for a first growth. soft cedar box, graphite, tobacco framing bright red fruit. a bit less persistent and full on the finish. charming and elegant. an hour post decanting it has opened up more - more masculine - more tannins - but still excellent
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(Blind tasting) Full, profound nose. Bdx-classic. Cigarre-box, cedar, black currant and gravel. Very pure, very immediate. Hints of coffee. Very powerful. Fullish body, very structured. Classic generous and properly austere Bdx. Absolute balance: Smoke, dark fruit, cedar, gravel. Melted tannins and in a perfect mature spot. Very long and profound. We actually guessed on Mouton, but could not really guess the vintage. Splendid and powerful showing. Drink now and possibly 10-20 years ahead.
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Started to decant it for one hour and kept drinking it with lunch for 2 hours. Quite disappointing as the nose was kind of closed and the wine never really opened up much. Very little fruit with relatively good tannin and good mineral backbone. Classic pauillac graphite tones and precision but lacking depth, complexity and fruit. Bad value for such a wine and will try the last a second bottle in a few more years...
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Opened at White's in London. 1996 First Growth Dinner.
Wasn't quite sure what to make of this bottle - I think sadly this was overshadowed in a great line-up. Enjoyable but not distinctive against the Lafite and Margaux of the same vintage, and never felt like it truly blossomed. Black fruit dominated and very structured, but drinking it felt more academic for some reason rather than purely pleasurable.
Worth trying again on its own. Will definitely keep at this level for a while.
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4th wine of a '96 dream tasting in Bourdeaux with our group. Done 2 separate times over 2 separate weeks. Still good color in the glass, no garnet or bricking here. Nose still slightly closed but the wine had only been open for an hour. Nose of briary forest floor and black fruit. Entry is smooth and full mouthed with great tannins, acid, and depth with plenty of cedar notes. Very well balanced. Decades upon decades left with this one. 2nd week? Ho hum.....more of the same. Can't believe how good and consistent this wine is at this age.
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A fabulous Mouton that was served along with a 1996 Chateau Margaux, (which was fabulous plus) and a 2007 Frederic Magnien Chambertin-Clos de Beze. The Mouton exhibited a bit more sweetness on the palate and had wonderful color, depth, balance, richness and a lovely, long finish. Please, do not ask me to select the WOTN.
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Good nose with pencil shaving, truffle, leather, forest, black fruit and earth. Palate is tannic with lots of acidity. Very tight. Needs lots of time. However, its just going to be good but not great as there is not enough depth in this wine.
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Mouton Rothschild Vertical Dinner (Vaucluse): Lovely perfumed bouquet with blueberry and vanilla bean. Bigger and tighter palate than nose suggests. Nose is actually comparable to that on the '00, if less ripe and brooding. Lead pencil shavings and forest floor are here. Consistently enjoy this Mouton. Pleasurable now, but come back in 20 years and it will still be there.
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Slightly leaner in style. Not quite as open signaling this is a long haul wine. Its obvious this is a great wine. A beast still caged yearning to come out. No question this will improve with time.
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Mouton dinner with Philippe Dhalluin and Bernard Burtschy (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Expressive youthful nose displaying crème de cassis, crushed blackberry, ink, lead pencil, cedar and earth. Excellent concentration, beautifully layered cassis fruit, silk and polished, good acidity, nicely integrated tannins and a long cassis driven finish. The fruit is purer than the 95. It resembles the 86 a lot in the purity and structure. Excellent showing.
The 1996 is a very nice Mouton-Rothchild which is still about a decade away from its apogee, opening in the glass with a classy bouquet of cassis, woodsmoke and classic Mouton cooperage. On the palate the wine is medium-full, with fine but not yet melted tannins and a juicy line of acidity, but without the amplitude or drama that this wine can sometimes attain. Qualitatively this is a notable step up above the weak 1989 and 1990 vintages here, but it can't match the alliance of elegance with intensity displayed by the 1985, or for that matter the rather more rustic, big-boned powerhouse Mouton produced in 1995.
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Wonderful Improptu/ Merged Wine Dinner (The Links Club - New York NY): Started out backward, inaccessible and frankly unfriendly, even with dense and powerful black fruit. Good flavors emerged at the 90 minutes mark, and real enjoyment an hour later. Patience still required, but this will be worth the wait.
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Darker ruby color, mildly opaque. Nose was open and expressive, showing red fruits, cedar and floral/lavender notes. Palate showing dark and red fruits, framboise, coffee, chocolate, cedar and . A bit more austere and tannic on the finish than expected...still nice just fell a bit short of (high) expectations. Medium body and medium finish.
Given drinking arc of Mouton (IMO), the tannins may soften a bit in a few years. Underlying fruit is still elegant and impressive, wine may be going through a phase right now where it needs to transition to a more secondary phase.
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Showing its age at the rim; nicely evolved aroma - this smells ready to me, a good combination of interesting development and fruit. Smooth tannins, lovely voluptuous texture. Nice flavour and no hard edges. Good mineral quality here too.
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Super 1990s Bordeaux Tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Very nice nose, but showing very young. A dark ruby color. Ripe fruit, cedar, tobacco, mint, and chocolate. Gained weight in the glass throughout the evening. Tannins firm, but did soften after a couple of hours. Acidity a bit low at this stage. Should gain more complexity with time.
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Second half of 12/14/2016 Coravin bottle. Popped and poured into decanter and it sat for about 2 hours this time before we got to it, but it tasted better than the first half of the bottle. Probably not much air needed for this one.
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Exotic spices, incense, perfume, showy, just the way I like my Mouton. Super silky, fine accessible even, with a long finish, everything there in spades. Still young, but tasting oh so good. With roasted suckling pig.
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Decanted for 3 hours. Nose of red fruit, plumbs, cinnamon spice. Smooth tannins and a good amount of acidity. Overall this was restrained and not forthcoming enough. I prefer the 95 over this
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1996 Bordeaux Blind: Very good nose with brooding black currant, forest floor, mushrooms, but also with sweet red fruit on there. Some cool cola too. Tannic and very grippy palate up front. Extremely flavorful, dense and expansive. Long finish. Young. Excellent. Wine of the night, decidedly.
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Served for 50th anniversary dinner - tenderloin of beef - along with 2 other Bordeauxs. This was certainly the star. Well balanced, complex, good fruit remaining.
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This was the perfect exclamation point on a great night of celebrating Jimmy & Larisa's wedding! Many many thanks to Mark for generously sharing this iconic, bucket list, wine with us! The nose alone was worth the price of admission with layers of graphite, tobacco, coffee, cedar and, a hint of forest floor. Bordeaux power & scale, richness, intensity, concentration and yet, magically delivering Burgundian eloquence and grace. Excellent fruit, red spectrum, cedar, dark chocolate, and forest floor combine with resolved tannins and prefect acidity bringing that old school lift often missing in CA Cab blends. This is pretty close to as good as Bordeaux gets and I prefer it to most the Lafites I've had. Happily, some of this got shared with Jimmy too!
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Wanted to check in on this as I'd heard some negative comments. Let a glass rest 2hrs at home. Fantastic nose of graphite, cedar, smoke, sweet tobacco and stones. Fresh smelling (something I associate with 96s) and not the over-ripe cassis I get in some Mouton vintages such as 03. HUGE blackcurrant, earth and new leather in the mouth - as expansive as it gets, like being slapped across the face by rich, smokey ripe (but not over-ripe) Paulliac. This is all about the mid-palate though, it fades to a frankly pedestrian (and slightly green / stalky) finish that initially disappoints after the fireworks of the first 5-10 seconds. Tannins are very fine and sweet, but there's definitely grip and good structure from the typical 96 acidity. I rarely find Mouton this fresh and lively - I like this, and there's loads of upside here. Hold to 2020 and peak could even be 2025-2030. But I'll be taking glasses every few months to see how this progresses to confirm.
edit: with more time the back-end persistence really improved, this is a truly regal wine in waiting which is NOT mature and seems under-rated by too many. 97pts easy.
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Beautiful; bouquet with dark forest fruits, cassis, graphite, vanilla, cedar and tobacco. On the palate all elements from the nose are there as well. I was surprised about the fact the wine is more elegant than extracted. There is beautiful acidity and soft tannin with still a pleasant bite and a promise for even some more finesse. At its absolute peak between 2019 and 2022? Already a superb, luxurious and beautiful wine. 95 - 96
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Oh the nose. Beautifully complex nose with mind boggling flavors. Let's see. Creme de cassis with double emphasis on the creme, and on the cassis. Burnt eucalyptus forest doused by gentle spring rains. A desert road in the night, heat dissipated from the gravel by cool air from the black sky above. Sorry these are not wine terms, but the usual words do not seem adequate to describe my reaction to the nose. On the palate, really lovely and plush, though the wine still tastes 10 years old even after a 5 hour decant. The wine is also slightly cloudy, which I find puzzling but it is in no way a complaint!
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Decanted and followed in the glass 3+ hours. I like Mouton, a lot. But this bottle, while pretty good, didn't have great verve or any excitement. It was still a very nice wine, but I expected and wanted more. It lost its way in the mid palate and then didn't have enough structure to recover on the finish. I'll label it a bit thin, but don't extrapolate the expression out to a huge negative. Not a blockbuster when you think of sound Lafite or Latour, but a gentle soul that would pair well with subtle foods of great character, like this wine. I think you would have to be one who just can't see themselves opening a 96 first growth before age 25-30 to hold this wine a long time. Age 30 strikes me as it's practical limit.
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This is drinking beautifully now and is really a powerhouse and still years from full maturity. Very regal and opulent with deep flavors of black currants and a distinct eucalyptus note. Finishes full with firm but fine tannins and it really showed its breed tonight vs. the other '96's on the table. 95+
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Talk about a perfectly mature first growth. The ‘96 Mouton was simply stunning, showing a bouquet of dark soil tones, sweet herbs and olives, then turning more exotic with dusty spice, minerals, smoke and crushed black currant. On the palate, I found intense dark fruits with massive textures that filled the senses and brisk acidity giving way to savory herbs, leather and inner floral tones. Fine tannin mounted on the palate but never seemed to get in the way, especially through its long dark fruit finish.
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Scott's Wine dinner at Honeysuckle, a bit of everything! (Honeysuckle, Washington DC): Expressive nose displaying intense sweet dark fruits, cassis, dry blueberry, strong note of lead pencil, cedar, mushroom, a hint of leather and earth. Excellent concentration, nicely layered, bright acidity, noticeable but unobtrusive tannins and very long finish. Although I have not tried it side by side with Lafite, Latour or Margaux, this seems a bit riper, showing more black fruits. It is not as precise and polished as the others. Nevertheless really solid Mouton with excellent concentration.
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Tour des Deux Rives, San Francisco: The 1996 Left Banks are really starting to come around and perhaps will drink well younger than many 1995s. This was a stunning example of that. It had a highly aromatic nose of black fruit, mint, toasty oak, and a particularly compelling barbecue/smoke component which I'm beginning to think is a Mouton tell, because I've noticed it on the 1982, 1986, and 1997 as well. The palate is smooth with 1st growth quality elegance combined with power. I real pleasure to drink.
Lighter body, low concentration but there is real elegance and balance to it. Strong earthy notes -- graphite, cedar, mushroom, good hint of blackberry but not a fruity wine. No cassis or licorice. Tannins are nearly fully integrated. Before the decant it felt like there was no structure at all but it gained its footings after a 2 hour decant. Decent long finish. Not grippy but lingers with nice acidity nonetheless. This is not really memorable but perfectly enjoyable. Almost too easy to drink for a wine of such pedigree.
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This bottle was drinking young with a bit of green so not the best showing but the wine was perfectly sound and very fine and delicious. Lovely flavors of graphite and dark fruits with a firm, etched texture. The finish is still tannic but quite smooth with notes of Asian spices and eucalyptus. 93+ At Blue Hill Stone Barns with the Klane's.
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Verticale du Château Mouton Rothschild: Un nez suave, cèdre, boite à cigare, graphite. De corps moyen, la bouche montre un bel équilibre, des tanins très soyeux. C'est austère, mais il charme par sa texture impressionnante. Excellent Pauillac classique, très bien fait. 93-94 pts
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Second Sunday Group: 1996 Bordeaux (high end) (Marty's): Dusty garnet color in the glass. Immediately appealing with a smoky overtone with meat, currants, herbs and iron underneath. Medium-bodied with softened tannins and flavors of dark fruit, red berries and iron culminating in a long finish. Initial score 94-95 pts. Seems to shut down in the glass, becoming more "simple," showing generic red fruit and iron qualities. Perhaps 'simple' is a poor choice of wording, as it is still very much a good wine, but as I am retasting just before ranking it just doesn't have the complexity of others in the line up. 93+ pts.
Double blind: My #5, Domino's #4 Group #1, 41 pts
Single blind guess: Calon Segur- I guessed the Calon because I often find a smoky quality in St. Estephe as I initially found here.
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An almost excellent wine, probably will get there in the next five years. Gave this a several hour decant at home and then brought to our favorite West Palm Italian, recently entered in the WS Grand Award tier. This is a fully integrated wine from front through a long journey to back, it's fruit pure and subtle. It almost underwhelms at the start and then is more compelling with each sip. Everything is there to suggest that when the secondaries fully engage, this will be a classic.
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Drank at Jean Georges restaurant in NYC. 1 hour decant. This is in a really nice spot right now -- still has it's youthful energy, but the tannins were soft, well integrated, and approachable, with no hard edges. I was getting a lot of secondary notes one hopes for with a 20 year old Bordeaux, although there is still a ton of fruit here. I assume this will be great for many years to come, but for my tastes, I think it's right in it's prime drinking window. This was a total crowd pleaser, to say the least.
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Super Bowl 2016 (Dunwoody, GA): Darker core with brighter crimson rim; sweet red fruit, currant, raspberry, menthol, iron, cigar, earth, green pepper, sweet leather; fresh on the palate, younger than last wine, juicy, dense, iron fist in velvet glove, tightly wound though good finesse today; great potential, very fresh example; 96+.
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Nez très profond. Bouche plus en réserve. Cerise noire, café, pointe de vanille, estragon (terre plutôt?), violette, cèdre, finale sur la truffe. Équilibre parfait, plaisir plus intellectuel que émotif cependant.
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Expressive on the nose - sweet fruit, tobacco, spices, earth, leather. On the palate much more linear with grippy tannins, good core of fruit, elegant and nicely balanced with very decent length and complexity. Certainly approachable now, but really too young in my opinion. Good future. 93-94+
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Dark garnet. A superb nose of damp earth, loamy soil, wet leather, pine needles, christmas tree, and sap. Stewy, meaty, and beefy on the palate but with good red fruit juice support. Big stoney minerality backing. A really great piece of work and decidedly superior to the '95 Mouton tasted side-by-side.
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Decanted 2+ hours prior to drinking. Paired with french rack of elk and Brussels sprout. Still some noticeable tannins - hard to believe but this feels like a young wine despite being 20 years old. Lush and textured. Notes of leather, spices, walnut, cassis. Patience is a virtue with this one. Can easily sleep a few more years before reaching its full potential.
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19th anniversary at BHSB (Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Pocantico Hills, NY): Dark, deep saturated red in the glass, with only the slightest hint of garnet at the rim; based on appearance, you'd be hard-pressed to say this was a 19 year old wine. On the nose, leather leads the way, followed by notes of crushed currant, cedar, and a very faint hint of lemongrass. On the palate, a silky texture from start to finish, with currants and cedar at the front of the mix. The fruit is alive and the tannins are modest, making this very approachable now, but there is obviously a lot of room for further development.
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We joined our neighbours for an elegant end of summer dinner at their house. Food was fantabulous and wine wonderful. The last wine of the evening and sipped after 5+ hours breathing in the bottle. A luscious red with a hint of brownish-orange at the rim. Leather, burnt sugar on licorice, black fruit, some cherries and vegetation on the nose. A massive hit on the palate with subtle tannins. Elegant finish. Everyone was of the opinion that it was a tasty, naughty teenager that would benefit from more education in the cellar. Somewhat disappointing :-(, but we hope to re-visit, say, in 2020 when we think it should be hitting its stride. Did not suck ;-)
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Nez chocolaté qui évoque la rive droite, Magnifique texture c'est encore jeune mais tellement harmonieux. Un grand vin, très jeune, il n'a pas intégré son élevage à revoir dans 10 ans.
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Impressive nose from the outset. Very exotic and spicy, touch of walnuts, coffee and leather infused into the ripe but balance cassis driven fruit. Real mouthful and presence. Still a bit of a bruiser but very Mouton like in a good year like 1996. Surprisingly approachable but will last another 50+ years without too much problem given that at 19 years old it is only just becoming approachable! Great length and balance as a first growth should be. Very memorable and pleasurable open as an early anniversary celebration. The Missus gave it her approval so it must be alright! Drink it now and marvel in the power of Mouton!
Reinterpreted Paris Tasting 'Best Bottle Circle' Style (Emmen, Switzerland): Garnet in color. Nose shows leather, barn and dark berries. Very smooth tannins, lots of power and very long finish. This is a classical Bordeaux beauty. Still on the young side but already amazing stuff. Wait 5-10 years or decant
Tasted blind. Decanted for like 45 minutes. A word of caution here. The wine had a small touch of TCA/corkiness so the TN here could be non relevant to a pristine bottle and thus no rating. Other than that though the wine was just fine. Quite evolved, earthy leafy textbook Cabernet Sauvignon old world. Nicol guessed Margaux 96 / Andreas light vintage mid 90s Napa traditionalist. Leather, light cedar. A touch dry in the mid palate. Shame for the light touch of TCA.
blind tasting of 17 different kind of wines all over the world
For me the WOTN toghether with Shafer Hillside select 1995 Magnum much better than 2 years ago where the bottle was really closed. Now you have decent fruit of cassis, red and dark berries, the palate is filled with some earth, pencil, cedar wood, ripe and present tannins, alcohol well integrated, crispy acidity making this wine still young, for me very drinkable over the next ten years, 97-98
Jason's Birthday Wine Night 2015 (Dakota Residence): Quite fruity, also showing notes of pencil lead / graphite, pencil shavings, and some herbs. This is an elegant wine, displaying sweet fruits on the palate, definitely Cabernet dominant, and the acidity is still quite high despite its age. There is a lot of life left in this bottle. It has an obvious Bordeaux nose. Showing a hint of milk chocolate, oak, and blackcurrants on the palate. The tannins were silky and velvety. Not my favourite for the evening, and most of us were surprised that this was the Mouton! I felt that it was quite restrained, even after 2 hours in the decanter. Again, disappointed by a Mouton. Was shocked that I rated it 5th of the 6 wines in this flight.
Jason's Birthday Wine Night 2015 (Dakota): Tasted blind. Aired for 2 hour in decanter then poured back into bottle and slow-oxed in bottle for another 1.5+ hours before drinking. (barnyard and graphite aromas while I was decanting it) Appearance is clear, deep ruby colour. Legs. Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of ripe black cherry, blackberry, cedar, touch of green herbs, slight earth and graphite emerging with more air. On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol, velvety smooth high tannins, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of blackcurrant, blackberry, ripe black cherries, cedar, slight earth. Long finish. Very good quality. Constantly evolving with air. Complex. Teenager at this point. Re-explore again in 8-10 years for tertiary development.
From imperial. Gorgeous nose - so much depth and complexity - silky cassis fruit, exotic spices, tobacco, cedar, earth. On the palate not overly generous, firm tannic grip, quite closed and really backward. There is good concentrated fruit and lots of acidity. Super length. Approachable and hugely impressive , but really too young based on this large format bottle. 95-97
Full bodied, long, powerful, tannic, fresh and vibrant, while approachable, and fun to drink, this is not yet mature. There is a touch of green in the finish, but in a good way, as it adds to the character of this tobacco, cedar, earth, cigar box, blackberry and spice filled personality. The wine was produced from a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 13% Merlot.
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Amazing experience. Each glass was filled with different notes of prune, coffee, sandlewood,Christmas pudding and other layers of mature flavours. Will last for many more years if we'll stored. A real joy to drink with special friends.
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Tight on first pour and not very generous. Fresh and good but 90/92
Then...
Amazingly complex and seductive! Sweet beautiful cassis, soft leather, tea, Asian spices, hints of wood and minerality. It soaked into my body and my soul. One of those amazing wines on an amazing night , because she was so special
First Growths, Yquem, 100+Madeira (John V.'s): Cool to have this to give us a three year mini-vertical of Mouton. All three were pretty consistent in style. This was inky purple in color. The nose had a soapy quality to start which blew off quickly leaving cassis, some earth, and pencil lead. On the palate, there is a tarter acidity than the other wines but plenty of fruit to balance it. Still some firm tannins. It has a sweeter fruit character than the 95, but within reason. Another gorgeous wine that is getting close to peak but not quite.
Maggie Harrison/Brad Grimes Dinner (Eleven Madison Park): Poured from a magnum. This was probably my wine of the night which is saying something given the line-up it was in. Wine was just spectacular. Constantly evolving though the 20 or so minutes we were drinking it. I didn't take detailed notes, but I remember by end it was like a fresh spice cabinet and really just wonderful.
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Drack det sida vid sida med Cos d'Estournel från samma årgång. Mouton har inte samma kraft och koncentration och har inte heller hunnit nå samma mognad. Mouton har däremot en helt annan elegans och lätthet med en helt otroligt läcker syra och underbar balans. Väldigt bra!
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Very classically Bdx, with its complex cassis and woodland red berry notes, framed by cedar and shot through with flecks of green and vegetable notes, all underlaid by minerals. There's power here, it's a very broad and sturdy wine, but higher acid than I was expecting and kind of seems like a classicist's delight. I loved it, anyway.
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Dark ruby colour and classic Mouton lead pencil nose. Medium body which is not as rich as I expected, but good structure, soft tannin and black current fruit. Enjoyable now and might improve more.
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Litt fjøs til å begynne med. Det ligger dyp frykt å lurer i bakgrunnen her. Forskjellige nyanser som ligger lagvis. Spennende nese som man blir betatt av. Ganske massiv i munn, svær konsentrasjon. Bærer fortsatt elegansen, men her er det power! Lang strukturert finish med tanniner som biter godt fra seg. De som har denne i kjelleren har mye å glede seg over i fremtiden. Wow!
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Mouton Rothschild 90's flight Oslo 16. Feb 15: Colour quite similar to the '95, dark and dense, no hints of age. Really powerful nose, pleasant aromas of barneyard, slighly reductive. Dark tones of mocca, juicy dark cherries, bonfire. Delicate, almost feminine and perfumed on the palate, but at the same time really powerful and quite integrated tannins. Long, lingering aftertaste Great to drink now, but will improve.
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Tasted alongside a 1996 Lynch Bages, this wine disappointed me (relatively) for the first time. It is perfectly put together, silky smooth with no edges, plenty of good fruit still ... But is short on length and lacking in complexity. All that against the 96 LB that was on perfect form of course.
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This surprised to the upside and is a beautiful, pure version of Mouton with wonderful eucalyptus notes to accompany the blackberry and cassis flavors. Ultra-smooth and polished with a ton of good acids that balance the perfectly ripe fruit. The finish is already showing nice complexity with hints of dark chocolate, Asian spices and floral mint but this is still young and clearly showing great promise for the future. More elegant and silky than powerful. Very fine stuff. 95+
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Took about 5+ hours of breathing in the bottle prior to serving; very intense but also elegant aromas full of dark cherries, ripe plums, strawberries, mints, lavenders, violets, and dry dusts; very complex, juicy, and structured on the palate, with lots of dark berries and cherries, dark chocolate, bell peppers, mild spices, and whipped cream; very long finish showing most of the stuff from the palate; overall, 95-96 points at this stage; very enjoyable yet still young; needed a few more years to evolve further.
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Sometimes we have finished Mouton wondering what it's all about but this one sang. Classic wine, very much evolved, what we want from a first growth and why we store them away with so much patience.
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giant loads of dirt covered cherry on the palate and coffee and cigar on the nose. My only issue with the wine is that it wasn't particularly expansive on the palate. It hit a bit thin.
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Not as full-bodied as some of Mouton's better vintages. But it still presents strong nost of blackberry, black current and cigar/cedar. Needs plenty of time to decant.
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"International Business & Wine Society Mouton Dinner, Nomad, NYC." Such a gorgeous nose of black currants, cigar box and floral spice. Juicy and crisp and full of fresh black fruits. Still tannic but the tannins are ripe and smooth and dry. Finishes with a smoky complexity and lovely floral lift. Very ripe and with high acids suggesting more time is needed.
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On the nose, strong white pepper with fruit secondary. Palate brings tar/coal, light earth, dark spice notes and integrated tannins. Slight saline notes. Requires more time and has upside. 1.5 hour decant. 94+
excellent. tobacco, herbs on the bouquet with dark red fruit. elegant mouthful. plenty of acidity to frame the fruit. Tannins so soft with fantastic finish. elegant and pretty.
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Drank from 375 at home, no decant. Inky black color, nose of tobacco & tar. Fairly well-resolved tannins, copious amount of rich black fruit, lots of tobacco & hint of coffee or mocha. Excellent length and bit spicy. The wine exhibits a definite earthiness, along with some rust or dirt qualities. Very nice mouthfeel. Drinking wonderfully at the moment from 1/2 bottle. Must decant next time
Friday Night Double Blind Tasting $40+ (Bin 75): Very dark core with 1/4 in. bricking, youthful appearance; powerful, cigar, tobacco, earth, cow pie (Pauillac), leather, currant, green pepper, so deep and luxurious; an unevolved baby compared to previous bottles though still quite enjoyable.
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Had a Magnum at our Baachelor,s party in Las Vegas. So decadently Mouton with that ethereal, earthy truffle aroma and Classic Graphite-Pauillac Cabernet. The palate was not very opulent (like a lot of 1996's) but superbly elegant. A bit of austerity, still on the finish. This is in large part to being a magnum and only 30 minutes decanting. Either hold or decant +60 minutes.
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Dinner at home with Mrs L, PH, VK and Ms C (At home): Deep dark inky purple. Luxurious nose of crème de cassis, bacon fat and tobacco ash. Plush, silky and expressive, with layers of black fruit seeming to blanket the palate in countless tiny vinous explosions. Beautiful classy wine with a bright future virtually guaranteed by the rich fruit and robust tannic structure. Still somewhat backward, not quite in full bloom just yet, I will try not to touch any more bottles for 5 years.
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The most powerful out of the 95, 96, and 97. This had a certain presence about it the moment we began decanting it. The aroma's jumped out of the glass, extremely opulent and engaging. This wine was brooding and provided a great mouthfeel and finish. On the palate, it had everything I would hope for from a first growth. Will age beautifully and I would personally hold for a few more years, but this is drinking well at this point.
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very opulent nose, initially quite a bit of vanilla which soon dissipates Then tobacco and lots of fruit - plums and strawbs. WOnderful smell, just jumps out of the glass In the mouth, great balance, not heavy, gentle but very ripe fruit - plums, red cherries, pencil shavings and some grip at the end, leathery finish very very long layers of fruit and tertiary notes, savoury great acidity, drunk with roast pork and went so well together really perfect, just the right balance of fruit and mature notes, tannins yielding beautifully. Just entering a great stage. Drank this far too quickly. I wish I had more.
Monopole 1st Growth Tasting: Exotic Asian spices exploding from the glass with mixed berries--cherry, blackberry, cassis--along with nice fragrant cedar; licorice, tart red fruits, small forest berries, and almost a sweet cherry aspect was so aromatic; this is tasting relatively soft, approachable, fine, silky, and flamboyant. Lovely and exciting wine. Most accessible of the 1st Growths for sure tonight. I could smell this a few feet away as I was pouring it around! This is good to go from now until...? (15-30 years?)
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Spectacular wine. very earthy, strong wine. I had it at a restaurant with wagu steaks. Made small mistake of not letting decant long enough so was a little tight and restrained for the first few sips. Good advice for fellow drinkers give this young buck a good 60-90 minutes of decanting. Once it opened the Mouton was splendid. Notes of mushroom, leather. fantastic finish that lasted a few seconds. Quite enjoyable evening
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Markus' 50th birthday (Markus' house): A bit backwards, some tomatoes, a hint of caramel, pencil shavings, graphite, huge acidity and quite some bitterness, lots of oak but slightly green. Not a fan of 1996 Bordeaux in general...
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Super Bowl 2014 (Roswell, GA): Youthful looking dark core with dark red rim; green pepper, cabbage, red currant, cigar, leather; fat and rich on the palate, dense, intense, tobacco, grippy tannin; similar grip as Mouton earlier but I called '96 Lafite...who knew it would be another '96 Mouton that was drinking much younger, apparently this bottle had a couple more hours of air than previous; this was delicious but I was not picking up on the nose the utter luxuriousness and nobleness of the earlier bottle though this still had impact and focus.
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Super Bowl 2014 (Roswell, GA): Fairly cloudy dark dense core with thin bricking; luxurious, stank, cigar, cow pie, mahogany and leather, freshly tilled earth, currant; firm and powerful, earth, very noble- this has the goods, finish ends with a pleasant wrap of tannin, very harmonious; though not silky yet this incredible bottle of wine was approachable now as well as being capable of lasting a long time.
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Saturday night wines: Blind. A violent attack of fruit and tannins in good proportions, spicy - almost exotic, fruit sweetness, dark berries, appears slightly unintegrated (if that is a word in English?), rich, utterly impressive, youthful. Rating for now. WOTN
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Superb wine, everything in its place. Amazing concentration while the wine is immensely drinkable and delectable. Exuberant nose with noble stable aromas, cedar, graphite, bitter chocolate and ripe cassis. Quite full bodied with enough fruit, tannins are ripe and finish is long. Majestic - so expressive and forward it leaves you to only do the drinking everything else it lays bare before you. Will improve further. I would characterize it quite old style though due mainly to the pronounced stable aromas, but what a joy to drink!
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Drank with friends over lunch for my 18th wedding anniversary. As my friend Stefanos T. commented, this was like the 1996 Lynch-Bages squared! The 2 wines showed remarkable similarity but there was more of everything here. More complex aroma, fuller body, longer aftertaste and a potential for further aging that the Lynch-Bages seemed to lack. Cedar, cassis, ink, leather, cherry fruit, graphite and tobacco on the nose. Full-bodied with fine-grained but noticeable tannins, great complexity with multi-layered fruit, perfect balance and a very long aftertaste. Fully justifying its first growth status. Simply amazing wine. Three hours in the decanter proved absolutely useful for the wine to fully express itself.
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Decanted 4+ hrs Nose - slight musky, sour plum, hints of incense, pretty perfumed nose Mouth - juicy, elegant, very nicely balanced, hints of mushroom, fine tannins on the finish. Drinking well now, no reason to hold.
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First pour was glorious and surprisingly approachable already. Lots of lead pencil on the nose and elegant red/black fruit. Repour was much less impressive, seemingly lacking body in the mid palate. Suspect it was just the wine starting to close up with air though.
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Dom Perignon @ Medlar: Dense ruby. Dense blackcurrant nose with a nicely blackcurrant leaf aspect. Sweet blackcurrant attack, really fragrant. Very concentrated across the mid-palate following g a sweet attack, but quite a dry finish. Lacks some oomph and persistence on the finish but also some charm. Harmonious though and I think time will help the dryness. **(**)
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The wine looks Garnet colored. The legs are Slow. It smells like Gooseberry, Red Currant, Fig, and Petrol. It tastes like Mineral, Fig, and Blackberry. The body is Full. The wine has Satin-like texture. The wine finishes Long.
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Deep dark color, fills the mouth with dark berries, maybe black berries, cassis, a bit of chocolate. Young and youthful and has a long life ahead of it. Interesting though that the bottle variation was noticeable as we had a few bottles
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Dark Ruby color, delightful mouton noise, soft tannins, decanted 1 1/2 hours before serving...special occasion, served at birthday party with friends, a real treat. Not sure how much this wine can improve from here...it is great a the moment but will wait another year to try another bottle.
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Drinking wonderfully. Decanted for 3 hours prior to dinner. Paired it with Grilled ribeye and Grilled Filet. Like most Mouton's, I think food enhances it. Great aged bordeaux aromas - deep and a bit dusty. The fruit is still prevalent and the finish is fairly long. I have had better Bordeaux, but this one was still really great
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Mad for Magnums (Ai Fiori - New York NY): From magnum. Huge fruit driven nose with blackberry, currant and some liqueur hints. Lots of incredibly power and concentration with structure that is nicely in balance. Charming spice emerging on long finish.
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Bordal aux Trois Tours à Bourguillon: Décanté environ 30 min. Grenat foncé, sans traces d'évolution. Nez classique de Mouton, mine de crayon, graphite, cigare, âtre froid. Belle attaque droite, fine, classique, puis complexité et, malheureusement, de la dureté, une certaine raideur, les tanins ne sont pas encore intégrés. À mon humble avis, il lui manque encore 5 ans et fera une belle bouteille très longtemps si les tanins s'arrondissent et se polissent.
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Misc Bordeaux (Frederiksberg): Lovely complex and intense fruity nose with a charming touch of dark chocolate. Some complexity of dirt, iron and rust is also coming through. Very fresh and intense young black currant fruit on the palate and generally it does feel a little restrained. The wine was easy to drink and enjoyable but with that name it was a little disappointing that it didn't perform better than this.
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With a high percentage of Cabernet Franc at 10% of the blend, cigar box, leaf, mint, cassis, blackberry, spice, smoke, coffee and tobacco notes come to the forefront without much effort. On the palate, the wine is deep, rich, concentrated, long, powerful and structured to age. Still on the young side, while approachable now, if you like young Bordeaux, I’d give it 5 – 10 more years to soften and come together before popping another bottle.
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Decanted and drank over 4 hours. This is a big wine. Initially very tight and tannic, however after a couple hours. The nose was full of coffee, tobacco, leather, and more ripe red fruit came out each hour. The palate matched with more red fruit and some chocolate. Very structured initially, with the tannin a little overwhelming, but they did smooth out over time. The finish was long and firm. Love the flavor profile, but no reason to open another bottle for at least 5 or more years.
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This wine was purchased as future and has been stored perfectly since. It had a high neck fill. Then the wine was decanted for 90 minutes before being poured back into the bottle. We drank the wine with dinner out of Riedel Sommelier Bordeaux stems at 62F The color was clear with a deep ruby garnet hue. The wine was well developed. dominated by earth, sandal wood, mint, medium roast African coffee, and black currants, blackberry, anise, cloves, wet leaves-forest floor, and chocolate. Medium acid levels with a full body. Palate was in line with the nose . This wine possessed a nice complexity and finish with silky round tannins. I think this wine need more time to reach it's full potential. Outstanding
Rick's 50th birthday notes and my 10,000th post!; 11/24/2012-11/27/2012 (Chateau Rick): Don't have much to say about this wine. Tried it when it was opened, tried it 3-4 hours later and it still was pretty much the same. Shut down hard. Not giving much up on the nose or the palate. You do get a sense of the dusty tannins and earth, but everything is still suppressed. If you have a bottle in good shape, I'd say hold it for quite awhile.
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showing very well. i prefered it to the '90 margaux drunk alongside. quite forward for a 1996. infact i'd say it was more ready than the '86 mouton tasted a few weeks ago
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Subtle flavors but lots of depth and elegance. Floral, aromatic, pencil shavings, cherry, plums, lovely oak aromas. on the palate Elegant, ripe and well refine tannin, forest berries, oak spice, fresh, firm, long and balanced
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Antique Wine Company dinner (Hong Kong Club): Mid+ ruby. Deep flavours of cassis and spice - not quite as open as the Haut Brion though. Full bodied, smooth and round but with structure. Quite mineral. Probably needs a few years to develop further. This is a great wine but it seems a shame that it was opened next to the HB - couldn't quite keep up. Oh well!
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Concentrated fruit on the nose, black cherry and cassis, cab lift, pencil shavings, spices, sweet caramel and smoke. Fullbodied and refreshingly structured palate with balanced rich CS-fruit, gunpowder, mocha oak, cigarbox and liquorice. Pretty long. Good stuff, but feels some years too young to pop open. Nice balance.
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Joli nez suave, cèdre, tabac cassis frais. Bouche très élégante, un peu exotique, texture crémeuse, superbe, aérien et charmeur, avec une finale de grande classe, délicate et fine. Superbe!! 95 pts
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Acker Merrall 1996 Left Bank Bordeaux Dinner (Balsan - Chicago IL): Dark and dense black fruit aromas with really impressive spice. Plum, black currant and black cherry flavors, with hints of cocoa and dark coffee. Good spice comes through in middle and finish, along with some very good power. Tonight this seemed like a "94 point" wine but alas, tonight's four1996 1st Growths were served in new glasses that all seemed tainted by an odd combination of dust and soap residue, making them hard to fairly assess.
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This is finally starting to come around. The green, herbal nature is not disappearing, but integrating in a pleasant, balanced way. Maturing into a massive, almost rustic mouton. Not as much of the cool eucalyptus/menthol characteristic that I expect, but loads of graphite, dark stone, blackberry fruit. This is starting to drink, but I won't touch another for 3 to 5 years (if I can resist). Had next to an 89 haut brion, which was extraordinary
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Stunning wine. Decanted 4 hours (And it needs it at this age) and drunk over 2 more. I tasted it several times from a small glass as it evolved - the smell and the taste changed with each hour. Great length, fruit and power with enough tannin to show a structure still evolving. I have only 5 more, but I am already looking forward to drinking those in a while.
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From a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the wine opens with tobacco, cigar box, crème de cassis, minerality, damp earth, fennel, smoke, and an array spice box aromas. Full bodied and powerful, this Bordeaux wine awards you with a juicy, rich mouthful of fresh, ripe cabernet sauvignon. The long finish ends with a blast of blackberry, spice and black cherry. While already showing well, this special Pauillac wine will gain additional complexity along with more opulent layers of texture with time.
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elzer cancer society charity dinner. my favorite of the bordeaux flight. still chewy in the tannin department, but showing some early maturity. drink or hold.
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First Growth Night 2011 (PRIMA): nose - a wicked nose of fermenting cranberry, mushroom, Asian spices, and tea. Duane and Brian picked out Bing cherry. This was fun to sit around and smell. In the mouth i found the cranberry and cherry flavors somewhat tight. I couldnt get a good read on it, strikes me as being shut down. Either that or I was shutting down. Probably just needs more bottle age.
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Enjoyed with leg of lamb. Powerful cassis bouquet with hint of spice.A five star wine. Drinking well at present . Even Susan was impressed and she doesn't normally enjoy bordeaux reds. Will have to save up for another bottle.
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From memory from a 95/96 Bordeaux tasting at Chateau Loreto late 2010. Blind tasted against 95 La Fleur de Gay, 96 Lynch Bages and 96 Pontet Canet. The Mouton was strong out of the gate and remained delicious over the course of several hours, winning, though not by much, WOTN. As first growths go, I've always preferred Latour and Lafite, but I have to say that, even tasted blind, the pedigree of this wine was unmistakable. Surprisingly (or maybe not) the Pontet Canet missed first place by a very small margin. The Mouton will not dissapoint, but with the Pontet selling for 1/3 the price, you have to ask if the Mouton is worth the price of admission.
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1996 Mouton Rothschild is ripe, rich, powerful and filled with juicy cassis. The fruit shows purity and intensity along with richness. Still young, this will open early for a top vintage of Mouton. It can be enjoyed today, or held for decades.
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I found this to be a great bottle, #2 in a long flight of 95/96's. Very barnyard oriented, and it reminded me of a younger 1983 Mouton. Definitely worth opening a bottle now if you've got a bunch. Good stuff.
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Slight bricking in the red color. Ripe red currant and plum aromatics with some vanilla, tobacco leaf, and espresso. Palate is quite tight with firm red fruits. Great structure, medium plus body, and moderate finish. Great acidity throughout. Needs more time.
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Very disappointing showing this evening. I have had this wine on a couple of occasions and tonight it does not have me coming back for more. The wine was dark in the glass and the nose was all alcohol. The wine tasted thin and musty. Too good to be a fake but certainly not the way I remember this one.
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Deep garnet. I see why they claim MR is the most 'exotic' of the first growth. Nose was initially kinda bubble gum and black fruits. The Double Bubble dissipated but the fruits emerged. The nose kept opening over the night and was wonderful. Taste was mouthfilling, middle aged good Bordeaux.
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My Birthday, a special occassion for a few family members and great friends, actually 5 of us enjoyed this fantastic vintage while having dinner. Without all the fanfare, i.e.description, the wine was earth lifting. More than we expected. The wine had been kept in the cellar at a constant 56F for the last 12 years. One of the most interesting developments of the tasting was on the noise. It is hard to believe that I did not wish to taste the wine for a long time since the aroma was so pleasant on the senses. Cannot see how this wine would develope more from this stage but since we have another 11 bottles left we will update you each year going forward. Recommendation, time wise, open one up and share it with some great friends...absolutely heavenly. Please Note: Wine was decanted for 8 hours......
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Definitive Bordeaux (Mirabelle Restaurant Austin, Texas): Leather, old world, books on the nose--guess if this is california or bordeaux! This was somewhere in the middle of the flight, not the favorite but a nice wine. It had good structure, adicity, and balance but was not compelling, It had a classic pauillac palate of tobacco, cedar box, graphite, minerals, but the tannins were hard and it seemed to need age. It was solid, some said delicate, and might improve with age. Tasted along side two top Californians, it lacked flavor but gave structure and balance.
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New Year's Eve 2009 (Chicago IL): Firm, dark red fruit aromatics with cedar and tobacoo leaf. Palate was somewhat less giving than I was expecting from a 96 (even a first growth). Tight, dark fruit and some coffee on the palate with very firm structure. Nice body with great components and grip to the finish. Needs more time.
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New Years 2009 (Chicago, IL): Dark fruits, tobacco, coffee notes. Finer tannins but very nice balance and clearly capable of much improvement. Medium bodied. Very nice wine.
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Still way to young. None of the mouton elegance and coolness. Opened several hours and still tight, herbal and closed, some of the green vegitativeness I have had is gone, and starting to come arond, but maybe 10 more years?
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Beautiful classical bouquet with cassis, toasted French oak, a beautiful bit of barnyard and a lot more. On the palate a rustic wine, cassis, meat and a lot of juice. Good acidity and bitterness and still firm tannin. The bouquet is just great, but on the palate it lacks a bit refinement, definitely because it is still too young. Give it 6+ years of ageing and the score might even improve. Great Mouton!
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Soaring, beautiful, leaf- and tobacco- tinged nose. The palate is quite closed but still showing gorgeous smoky dark fruit and classic Pauillac cedar and lead pencil flavors. Medium-weight with ultra-suave tannins. This wine has an acidic/herbal edge that I found very appealing -- a jammy, lush fruit bomb this is not. Should be awesome in several years.
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This is my third bottle and as usual it is performing exellent. It is changing a lot during the evening which just make it so much more interesting. The nose is in the beginning almost primary but lovely sweet has an almost new world character and a lot of fat fruit. The palate is very rich with enormous fruit. Later it is much more structured with plenty of dryness but still there is so much fruit to balance. So spicy with blackcurrant and great nerve. The finish is quite long but not at the same level as Comtesse 95.
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A complete wine. Needs time in the decanter. A classic Pauillac nose of brilliant cedar, lead pencil and black fruits. An impeccable balance between fruit, acid and tannin. Sweetness, structure and depth all at the same time. An incredibly long finish. Drink now to 2020. Brilliant!
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Dark red, beginning to turn yellow at the rim, 5½. Open classic nose, cedar, pencil, well integrated oak. Rather elegant taste, cedar, dark fruit, some tannin. Fine elegant finish. Very harmonious wine that are ready to be enjoyed but should hold at least 10-15 years.
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Surprising forward and open knit and quite delicious. There’s plenty going on here, with loads of ripe berry fruits, dark plums, a little spice and coffee. The tannins are there but are sweet and spherical.
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Dark in color and filled with even darker fruit, exotic spice, incense, coffee and cassis. Rich, concentrated, deep and filled with ripe fruit and soft tannins. This polished wine will be be sublime in another decade or two, patience is required.
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Classic mocha and coffee Mouton but slightly less harmonious then the 1992 Ridge Montebello. Showing more right now than the Latour 1993 drunk on the same night. Not a bad night at all.
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Waterford slides to Hinterland. (Hinterland Erie Street Gastropub, Milwaukee): Consistent with previous note. Coffee and cassis dominate the nose, but again it was outshone by another wine. This time the '92 Monte Bello just stole the show. Did everyone really think so? Great Mouton, but again, my thoughts are the components need more time to really sing.
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March Bordeax Tasting (Waterford Wine Company): Garnet-purple hue, intensity on the plus side of medium. Fragrant, forward nose of black fruits, creme de cassis, pronounced herbaceous notes, rich tobacco and cedar with an underlying earthiness...a lot going on here! Medium body. The palate is greeted with beautiful, pure flavors of currants and cassis, dark fruits, earth, minerals, and fresh cedar that's nicely framed with a faint kiss of toasty oak. Such great balance, with nice harmony between the chewy tannins and acidity. Moderate-plus finish. This Mouton is still quite youthful and should only improve with another 8-13+ years in the cellar.
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Bordeaux Tasting (Waterford Wines Milwaukee): cassis and coffee nose. so much fruit jammed in this nose. almost blackberry jam. oak tannin integration well on it's way, but... violets on the palate and a touch of green in the nose. opulent cassis and blackberry fruit all over the mouth. but honestly the 1998 gruaud larose is at the forefront of my mind right now. there is some harmony missing among the components of this wine, but obviously very nice.
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Dark red ripe fruits and a welcome Merlot-like lushness. Forward, with some smokey, grainy character and slightly hard tannins. Some unitegrated oak influence. Medium-large bodied and masculine styling. Really good.
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Vintage blind! Dark opaque red which told me it's a young wine. Big nose of crushed coffee bean, caramel, pretty unbalanced, everything is everywhere. Last time was better, more ready.
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Sleep ?? Too light or too strong ?? Just a nice bottle of Mouton. Maybe I have to buy another bottle to drink in 2013 but this moment 92/100 not more. I prefer 1995.
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deep dark red color with a golden edge, drunk over 5,5 hours very closed the first 30 mins, this was just way too young needs another ten years at least, in the nose there was peppar good oak and cassis tobacco and a kind of wet forest bed, the palate was so overdominated with the strong tannins only just showing the fruit with some blackcurrant minerals and cinnamon a 40-45 sec long finish, would be fun to visit this one again in a decade might climb up to 96-98
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Pleasant barnyard, cedar, cassis and a little lead pencil in the bouquet. Meaty wine. Full bodied with good cassis juice and ripe and soft tannin which still holds a promise. Good bitterness in the long finish. This is a great wine in its adolescent stage. Already beautiful, but with good cellaring it might even gain a bit in complexity. Nevertheless a great score already.
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Showing develpoment this has a dark garnet core but no orange rim at present. Quite dark and brooding on the nose hiding a potentially outstanding wine. Notes of soy, dark fruits, smoke and earth are present with an underlying sweet cassis fruit. Typical Pauillac fruit on the palate - quite muscular but with plenty to enjoy even now. All the elements are there for this to mature beautifully. Needs another 10-15 years at least to be at its best.
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THREE bottles opened tonight, all showing fairly extreme brett and virtually nothing else. After three days open, the brett began to dissipate and only faint signs of Mouton fruit and roasted coffee notes appeared. Beyond closed, these bottles were badly flawed.
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Even better than the bottle I had last October, popped and poured this time, wonderful nose, almost floral. In the mouth its less smoke and leather and more of fruit, elegant tannins that still gives you a dry after taste. Lovely!
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Violets and crushed rock on the nose, with perfumed currant. Silky tannins, black currant, red currant, and huckleberry flavors linger on a finish that goes on and on. [Tasting notes from May, 2006]
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Tasting Of Chateau Mouton Rothschild (At The Wine Summit 2008 – Lake Louise, Alberta): 72% CS, 20% M, 8% CF; Extremely dark – opaque in the glass; medley of aromas that include sweet edged black currants, light smoke, truffles, a bit of tanned leather, some oak, all with a slightly herbaceous background; structure is firm with noticeable tannins – ample acidity; hasn’t mellowed much to show the fruit and other flavour nuances that much, but there is some sweet edged black currant along with some black raspberry; finishes long with the wine not in full sync – needs more time in bottle to bring the various components into harmony
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There were many amazing moments at the 2008 Post Hotel Wine Summit in Lake Louise Alberta Canada, but one of the highlights was a standing room only technical tasting of nine vintages from Chateau Mouton Rothschild. The charismatic and entertaining Adrien Laurent, North American Export Manager for Baroness Rothschild led us through this barrage of big Bordeaux and explained label by label nuances of the various artists who have graced the labels over the years. My first observation was how all nine glasses appeared the same dark inky purple beautiful color. The 1996 was one of my top 2 favorites from this amazing technical tasting. Its disappointing now to my notes note that says “get one case-cellar at least 5 years”. This babe had coffees, licorice, currants or crème de cassis (I can never get them straight), smokiness but not BBQish more pipe or cigar. Most of these aromas carried over to the taste plus leather, chewy fruits line candied cherries or berries, and you know the edges of a blueberry pie where the fruit kinda jams up a bit, well it had that. It went on and on and well, I really like it.
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Very dense and closed so quite hard to evaluate despite double decanting in the morning and drinking in the evening. Dark with lovely texture and a restrained but powerful nose. You get the sense this will be great one day but it's far too young now.
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HDH 95/96 Comparative Tasting (Newberry Library, Chicago IL): nose: big heavy and brooding nose that has a ton of power behind it. It's on that verge of being too much, but it's right there in the pocket and filled with tobbacco, cedar, cassis, leather, and a nice jammy red licorice component
taste: big and broad with mocha, cocoa, leather, and earth
overall: there is some serious power behind this and yet, it's firmly balanced. This one still needs time to really come around, but it will be a fun ride when it does
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First bottle was corked. Second however was sublime, excellent fresh dark berries bouqet straight from bottle. Had the wine decanted for 2 hrs, full bodied on the palate and still quite tannic with a long aftertaste. Everything is in balance here, can only get better with more time.
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(at Lulu's - SF) Had to order this as the price was below current retail. Deep garnet. Fantastic nose of black current, soy and fresh herbs. The palate was impressive, but not special. Good flavor intensity with out balancing richness to go along with the high acid profile. Very good, that's it. Conclusion: not a great bottle, the wine has been recently over hyped and/or Mouton just isn’t my wine as I have never been blown away - even in the heralded vintages. (92)
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Huge massive wine with olives and massive black fruits on the nose....on the palate a huge dense wine with a oversized mid-palate....still youthful with boat loads of tannin, this wine will be much better on 10-20 years. The wine is very well balanced the alcohol not noticable against the backdrop of the huge fruit.
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A bit of a dissapointment, this wine was clearly closed down. You can tell it has power and class... nothing out of place... but the nose was subdued and it was pretty tightly wound. My guess is that it needs a few years
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Opened about three hours before drinking. Poured into a decanter about two hours before drinking. Bouquet was very forthcoming, the wine less so. Color was dark, dark, dark. It barley let any light through at all. The nose was big and evocative of blackberries and dried strawberries. It still tasted closed (it opened throughout the evening) I would guess this wine really needs another several years to show its best. But what a wine!
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I glad we opened this wine with children to celebrate our 4th year wedding anniversary. Full body, very slight menthol notes on the finish which lasts 45 seconds plus. Very soft tannins and more layers than I can count. Black currants are there, perfect balnce is there, this wine is much more than just a compliment to the dish. Should be good between now and another 15 years
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The color was a near opaque jelweled ruby and the nose was full on black olives, cassis, blackbberries, some wet leather, hint of bricks and some saline character I have not yet seen in Mouton. The mouthfeel was the highpoint of the wine. Great texture, black olives and cassis again, wet bricks, graphite, anise and smoke. Too young a wine today with this amount of decanting. I'll revisit in five years. 94+
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(from memory) Near perfection, dark purple in color, nose of scorched earth, tobacco leaf, cedar, menthol and dark fruits, haunting palate was more dense and focused than tight and tannic, relentless finish that just keeps giving, do yourself a favor
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Pure, balanced. A nice nose that leads to less fulfillment in the mouth. Beautiful color. I can't really describe it, but the bouquet and flavor were "clean", if that makes sense. I really enjoyed them and just wished there had been slightly better mouthfeel and finish. Still, a very enjoyable wine.
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Soft and approachable palate, exhibiting plums, tobacco, leather, belle pepper. very earthy, i dont sense the great depth of fruit like some other 96 medocs. Finishes quite long, and drinking very nice right now with some good decanting.
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Baron Philippe de Rothschild wine (with food) tasting (Roberts and Speight): The opaque black core gives way to a dark purple/red rim. Rich, powerful aromas of cassis, plums, cigar box and hints of earth leapt from the glass. The nose on this wine was something else. On the palate it showed a wonderfully complex structure and harmonious balance, intense fruit and silky tannins with a powerful finish. This wine was improving in the glass by the minute but unfortunately didn't last very long.
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From memory - Opaque purple crimson. Forward aromas (hard to tell with cigar smoke) of black fruit. Nice, fairly round black fruit and cassis on the palate with old world peet flavors as well. Not as wound up as I would have thought. Nice, but not great. 12/04
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Wine Icons tasting with Sarah Ahmed/Oddbins Fine Wine (Alba Restaurant, London): Deep purple-black core with a narrow ruby rim. Intense, complex nose with notes of coffee, cassis, leather and roast beef. Hints of a slightly astringet, chemical note (c.f. urinals) which did blow off. On the palate an intense fruit flavour of plums, cassis, chocolate, spice, pencil shavings with a lingering mineral finish. Ripe, velvety tannins. Classy.
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Wine tasting. A step up in every dimension from the very good 1995 just tasted. Big wine that will require another decade+ to reach complete balance. Big black fruit - black cherry, black currant and cassis. Big fruit on palate behind today's even bigger tannins.
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Copenhagen Tasting Group welcomes Tom in DC; 9/5/2004-9/10/2004 (Copenhagen): Dark red. Scents of ink, dried leaves, and tobacco. Dense, complex and well structured with marvellous weight and intensity on the palate. Superb grip and poise with flavours of prunes, and dark chocolate. There's a touch of oak, but nothing that gets in the way. My third time trying this wine, and while it was probably slightly better last year, it is really a nice drink. Of course, this wine is by no means ready, and it is still quite tannic, so I would suggest tucking this away for 10+ years. An unmistakeably great wine, though.
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Dark red. A hint of brown at the rim, which let me to believe that this wine was older. Even the aromas suggested some degree of maturity. It presented nuances such as mushrooms and cigar box. In the mouth, this wine has a deliciously smooth viscousity and packs flavours such as white chocolate. Seems quite mature and very defined on the 40 seconds finish. Delicious
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The single biggest disappointment of the WS Chicago Grand Tour. 1996 was supposed to be a Northern Medoc vintage. Green pepper nose with a rich texture. Medium bodied with simple red fruit notes but nothing special. Again, this is a 1st growth? 90-92 at the present time.
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Dark, smooth, layers and layers that keep on truckin'. This was so masculine in nature and deeply tannic (even with a day of decanting!), I have finally grown chest hair!
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Probably the most approachable of the ‘96 First Growths, it marks the resurgence of this consistently disappointing and underachieving property. Delightfully spicy and intense, with soft, ripe tannin, it is drinking very well now, but still should improve for some time.
Wine tasting. Color close to black, I was afraid this would show like the 1995 just tasted, which thankfully was not the case. Expressive nose of black cherry, ripe plum, cassis, espresso and chocolate. Palate also had the same dense, ripe fruit with really good spice from both fruit and oak, then sensational minerality and textures. Perhaps this wine is still so young and will shut down, or perhaps it had enough decanter time to open up. I don't know, but this was sensational today, with the structure and backbone to continue to be great for decades to come.
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Tasting the 1995, 96, 97, 98 and 99 beside each other, the 1996 is definitely the winner. I am even much more positive than 3 years ago. Very full bodied, lead pencil, good sweetness and soft but firm tannin and very complex altogether. This really is a great wine.
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Tasted at vertical Mouton dinner at the Belgian Lion. Dark (opaque) ruby with red rim. Intense nose of dominant coffee and smoky aromas. Flavors are similar, with a full-bodied palate that is loaded with supple tannins. Medium, elegant finish. At this stage, the wine is showing the coffee that reflects the use of heavily-toasted new oak. Although pleasant, it will definitely need time to strut its stuff.
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Black color, with lots of oak sitting on top of spicy cassis, blackberry, black plum, anise, and coffee, and a pleasant hint of smoke. An excellent wine, but I don’t love it.
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A dusty, smoky character dominated the nose, which I don't know that I particularly cared for, paired with black fruit and some five spice powder. It is roughly tannic and shorter than I would have liked. Very good, and air brought out more complexity, but I wouldn't buy it.
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4/21/2024 - aof wrote: 94 Points
Dark tasting profile compared to the 95 Mouton with more fruit on display. It didn’t quite have the balance, composure or the length of the 95. Tannins somewhat dusty.
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4/17/2024 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 96 Points
Last of my Mouton. Been 2 years since my last bottle.
Decanted 90 minutes. Initially tart red fruit with a lot of barnyard. Over 60 minutes of air, this all disappeared.
Palate of blackberry and good acidity with nicely integrated elements all around. Solid but not great. Down 1 point from my last bottle 2 years ago. This bottle I noted a very loose cork which probably allowed for more aging/oxidation.
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4/13/2024 - buckeye76 wrote: flawed
The biggest disappointment of the night was clearly a counterfeit version of 1996 Mouton Rothschild which was purchased in the aftermarket well after release. Past the slightly stained label and soft Mouton cork was a suspiciously good fill. The most obvious clue was the lack of any sediment in the bottle when decanting though it did have an earthy Bordeaux nose. However, when poured there was zero resemblance to a Mouton Rothschild. The wine was poured down the drain and replaced with a 2008 Kapcsandy Grand Vin and a 2007 Bryant Family both of which were excellent.
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3/1/2024 - garymouton Likes this wine: 96 Points
To be fair, this was a wine served to me as a PnP, probably at 55 degrees. As you would expect, initially reticent, but over the course of two hours it absolutely opened up to show its first growth qualities. There was some menthol on the nose and palate, but not enough to put me off, as I am usually not a fan. Some definite secondary and tertiary tea and earth characteristics on opening that softened over the two hours. Probably with a decant would get a few points higher from me.
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2/29/2024 - aquacongas wrote: 96 Points
not blind
Still fruit dominated. Still in a nice drinking window. Beginning secondary and tertiary aromas. One of my favourite Mouton vintages. Old school but some ripe fruit elements as you find in New World wines. 96
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2/24/2024 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
This has come a long way since my last bottle.
Aromatics are dialed with dried red fruit, tobacco, damp soil, and a bit of wood.
In the palate, it is med- body, med+ acid, and med tannin.
Showing nicely tonight but still grippy. Try again in 2-3 years.
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1/20/2024 - TWSA Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nose: truffle, forest, pepper, cedar, smoke, black fruits
Notes: 12.5% ABV, started serving after breathing in the bottle for 1.5 hours. Having had Mouton from this vintage several times I do feel that this is the time when this wine performed the best. With a well structured and somehow complex structure, this Mouton has its typicality and is probably at the peak of its drinking window. The time and cellaring really smoothed out this wine and it's drinking very nicely now.
Drink: now+
Rating: 91
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1/10/2024 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 95 Points
Dinner at Foliage (San Francisco): Very nice nose with quite young and dark fruit flavors, spices, and forest notes. There's a lot going on, but the wine is not showing everything at the moment. Nice acidity on the palate with cassis, tart fruit, cherries, leather, and a hint of mushrooms. Long finish. I liked this very much although it's still quite primary. Yet, you can tell the sheer class and depth already. I'd hold for another 7-10+ years. 95+
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1/10/2024 - Richard P Howden wrote: 94 Points
Expansive nose after 3 hours but needs more time. Gorgeous engaging palate: I see what’s meant by a wine of refinement and elegance - less usual amidst the brooding power of Bordeaux - but this has it. Next bottle in 10+ years.
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1/10/2024 - aagrawal wrote: 92 Points
Dinner with Herwig (Foliage, SF): Youthful ruby-purple; medium aromatics, blackberry, youthful fruit; palate is full bodied, balanced alcohol and acidity; medium-plus finish. This seems young and needs more age or time. Like 2 more decades… 92++
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12/28/2023 - Drinkslogger Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nose opens up within 15 minutes but the palate was not ready until about 1.5 hrs in. Had with venison and pigeon at Maison Dunand. Superb. Drinking well now but definitely not at peak. However, it has the youth, vitality, and structure to continue to develop and improve for the next decade.
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12/25/2023 - Cremuel wrote: 92 Points
Bob’s cellar and a toast to him this Christmas.
Went up and down with this wine, expecting it to the superlative.
Deep dark inky red, brick hints. Sweet damsons, black cherries, aged forest floor leather and tobacco nose. Woof! Initial tasting after double decanted a couple of hours ago is refined cassis and cherries, warm fruit fine ribbon of acidity, there is still a tautness there. Tannins resolved and supportive. Age shows, forest floor and dampness. A few hours later, this is showing a very pronounced redcurrant/cranberry acidity. A couple of hours later this has melded to bring darker fruit as softness.
Day 2, strong redcurrant fruit returns, fragile and supportive darker fruits have receded.
In the end was good but not as sublime as I hoped. Settled on an intermediate score. Will see how the remaining bottles turn out.
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12/24/2023 - Burgnick wrote: 91 Points
It had more structure compared to the 96 Lafite on the side but lacking nuance tonight.
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12/24/2023 - vinhslee wrote: 91 Points
More rounded than the 1996 Lafite tasted side by side. For the first 30 minutes, it was not expressive on the nose and palate. Thereafter, plush cassis notes became more apparent. It lacked the concentration of the better Mouton. Bottle variation?
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12/7/2023 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Holiday Dinner - Mostly Bordeaux (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Wine 3 - Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe opulent black fruit, crème de cassis, blueberry pie, blackberry, mocha, luxurious oak, cedar, lead pencil and earth. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of rich black fruit, silky and fluid, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long opulent black fruit driven finish with a hint of oak at the end. The most modern/Napa like expression although clearly a Bordeaux. Not as nuance driven as the others. My guess is Mouton.
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12/6/2023 - N.Bonaparte wrote: 94 Points
2 years from my last bottle and this was from a 375ml- a very polished, well balanced wine that opened up with 30 min in the glass. Still plenty of fruit. This is in its prime and depending on your preference, will drink well for a few decades. Revisit 2026
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10/13/2023 - Papies wrote: 97 Points
The Papies join the 13,000 Tasting Notes Club (Paris, France): Word of caution here. The nose as beautiful as it is , it is also fragile so the wine is not for a long decant. Just open rest 5-10 minutes and enjoy the masterclass that this is .
Our third bottles ( Papies 97-98) and very much consistent, classic , Uber elegant, a prima ballerina of a wine that is just at another level. The phrase what more could one ask of a wine always sing true for this wine and its shy of a perfect score on account of its fragility. Exceptional once again 97-98 and really at peak now
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10/6/2023 - SimonG wrote: 94 Points
A Medlar lunch (Medlar, London): Last tasted almost exactly a decade ago, and as it happens about 18” anti-clockwise around the Medlar table for where I am now. Full garnet, dense. Nicely rich on the nose. Mellow with some blackcurrant and a touch of Madeira cake. There’s lots here. A lot more open than that previous bottle, this has really blossomed in the past decade but there’s still a way to go. Really very lovely. ****1/2
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9/29/2023 - tanduybui wrote: 96 Points
A superb wine that is getting into a window of joy and happiness!
A deep red that has a wonderful luscious bouquet, with intense mint, cassis and red plum notes. A highly refined and elegant palate follows that has lovely structure and flow. Lovely acid that has tension and freshness, and wonderful fruit definition. A deeply complex finish that has cedar, stewed fruits and a hint of menthol.
Drink now to 15+ years.
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8/6/2023 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Carefully poured into decanter and served immediately. Nice but subtle nose and slightly evolving palate for about 90 minutes until gone. Quite enjoyable now, no need to wait on these.
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7/28/2023 - luHar1423 Likes this wine: 96 Points
A good and solid wine - but expected more from one of the big five from Bordeaux - especially during our Blind "Summer of 96 Tasting".
Lenght was average, tannins well integrated and very shy, acidity was close to inexisting, but the fruity notes were active as this wine was only 15 years old. Not sure, if this makes another reviival. Glad to have tasted it, but not one of my "Repeat to Threepeat Bucket Wine List".
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6/18/2023 - Silver Thunder wrote: 96 Points
Used Durand opener and cork was still intact. Right from the get go, it's in the window. Aerated for 30min and the subtle licorice, dark fruits, molasses, and earth was abound. Paired with venison tartare and lamb for main with pistachio, parsley, bread covering. Remarkable how subtle this wine is. Taste every 15min to ensure it opens up properly. Always a family favorite for the first growths and would say it has another 5-10years tops. It gave out after 2.5hrs. But the journey was well worth the time in the cellar.
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6/1/2023 - Travislee0113 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Quite well kept and preserved bottle, this bottle flew high in the glass, emanating an eloquent remaining bouquet therefrom with typical tobacco honied jam noses.
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4/22/2023 - oxwombat Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opened in Hong Kong. Decanted for several hours before enjoying over dinner with friends.
This surprised me, as this was still quite backward and monolithic. Very big wine, and not very expressive on the nose. What was coming through were classic Pauillac x Mouton notes - black fruit with earthy, leathery tones. But everything was tight, the tannins were still there - this particular bottle must have aged at a glacial pace as it just needed more time.
This was a different experience to other 1996 Moutons that I've had before, as they were more open for business. I guess you really need to look at how a bottle has been stored. Good wine now but can show better under different circumstances.
Will definitely keep but also I feel like people should feel free to experiment with this wine. Tracking the evolution is part of the fun.
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3/28/2023 - Papies wrote: 98 Points
Milan Wine Event 2 - AKA F It Dinner (Il Ristorante Trussardi alla Scala (Ristorante Trussardi by Giancarlo Perbellini), Milan): ** Our advice is open this on its own in isolation**
Opened and left to rest for a good hour and we chose not to decant ( correctly) . The wine is elegant to the point of fragility so one needs to be careful with it not to disturb the fine sediment.
The memory we will always have from this wine is one of " what more could we have asked from a wine?" And frankly we would have rated it 100 if it wasn't for the fragile feel of it. Exceptional and magnificent, a ballerina of a wine, effortlessly elegant. Soft spice, light leather and earthy feel. Frankly the notes are irrelevant the Wine is an experience and lets just say this. It drinks perfectly now and it will last for sure but really now its just perfect. Pointless to rick unless one has a few bottles. Luckily we do. 98 PUNTO.
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3/17/2023 - SGoo wrote: 92 Points
The past two Moutons I have had have disappointed me a bit. Still good wine though not as complex and elegant as what I had hoped for
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3/11/2023 - PersonalWino Does not like this wine:
Perfect Provenance. Excellent Cork. Wine is very near death. No fruit at all. Very little tannin. Tried again the next morning. Even closer to death. What a disappointment.
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3/10/2023 - LTTC wrote: 92 Points
(SYP) slow ox for 8 hours
Ocean air, spices, earth and vanilla on the nose. It was polished yet tight on the palate with bright fruit and a chewy finish. As the night went on, the aromas changed to fresh black berries and dried dates; on the palate, it picked up some weight and became fuller and darker. A hint of warmth to the slightly dry finish.
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3/3/2023 - Gian wrote: 94 Points
in the right spot , great on the nose and palate , complex , resolved tannins. Leather, tobacco , blueberry fruit , lead pencil. Balanced in every aspect with a long finish
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2/27/2023 - mchern02 wrote: 95 Points
3 Hour Decant
Dark blue and black fruit, black olive and tapenade, cedar, and tobacco. Good weight, concentration and balance, medium bodied, with a long finish. In the strike zone for sure, like many left bank 96s
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2/22/2023 - lozatron Likes this wine:
Simon Beatty Memorial Dinner - Chablis Le Clos (Noizé): This was my red wine of the year last year, and I think this bottle was even better. Just transcendent - still on the upslope, and this ever so slightly unresolved spice from the oak that suggests this could go on forever. Thank you MH for sharing, this was the vinous highlight of a superb dinner.
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2/21/2023 - NickA Likes this wine: 96 Points
Simon Beatty Memorial Dinner - Les Clos table (Noize): More evolved than the GPL '96 served alongside, which was a good thing as it added some complexity and savour. Leather, tobacco and lots of deep, plummy fruit, but this seamless wine wasn't really about individual notes and more notable for its sense of completeness. Excellent balance and concentration, but also silky smooth and unpretentiously drinkable. Hell yeah! Best wine of 2023 - so far, at least. Thanks Mike!
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1/25/2023 - dcwino wrote: 97 Points
Mouton dinner (La Chaumiere in Georgetown): Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe blue and black fruit, crème de cassis, blackberry concentrate, blueberry, coffee, ink, lead pencil, cedar and mineral. There is a hint of green similar to the other Moutons. Perfectly integrated palate, finely layered generous black and blue fruit, rich and generous but also silky, polished and beautifully detailed, bright acidity and strong mineral, beautifully integrated fine tannins, a long generous black and blue fruit driven finish with a hint of lead pencil and coffee at the end. This clearly expresses the classic 96 vintage. Although exceptional, the 96 Mouton may be not as refined as the 96 Lafite or Margaux.
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1/7/2023 - the player Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opened and let breathe in the bottle for an hour then drank over two hours. Deep ruby red, great nose of tobacco, perfumed black and red currants, some graphite and pencil lead. On the palate at first the wine was shining with lots of fruit, delicate acidity, superb structure and delineation, with soft tannins within the spicy finish. However after 2 hours, the wine started to fade becoming light and one dimensional and couldn’t hold its own versus the Margaux 1989 drunk alongside. Perhaps an off bottle or my tired palate?
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1/5/2023 - JS199 wrote: 94 Points
Opened and drank over 8+ hours. Gamy meats on the nose. This appeared young and has plenty of time.
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12/26/2022 - dnnk88 Likes this wine: 95 Points
One of the better Mouton vintages IMO. Enjoyed this. Open up. Long life ahead
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12/25/2022 - rlove wrote: 94 Points
Black & red currant, tobacco, cedar, and graphite. Medium bodied with fine tannins. Decent density but not on par with the best wines this vintage.
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12/25/2022 - SeattlePaul wrote: flawed
Pretty clearly corked. Funky wet cardboard and faint chlorine notes, completely devoid of fruit. Fortunately, the seller refunded the bottle no questions asked (K&L, woot!).
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12/24/2022 - BigDaddy2000 wrote: 93 Points
Dark purple colour. Nose of spice and earth. a little close when just opened. Tasted a little spicy when poured from the bottle. The wine opened up after about two hours of decanting. It turned into a totally different wine with great complexity and fruit flavour staring to show. Went very well with the steak and bison main courses.
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12/8/2022 - lozatron Likes this wine:
An embarrassment of steak riches (Chez G): Ah. Well. Now the classification speaks out. Compared to the preceding Duhart Milon of the same vintage, this was just more in every dimension, a bit brighter, a bit deeper, a bit bigger in the mouth. A certain honey / vanilla element to it, almost like the oak wasn’t fully resolved, certainly this has its best years ahead of it. Thoroughly lovely and a real treat - even privilege - to drink.
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12/3/2022 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 97 Points
not blind, from double magnum
I like the 96 vintage (not only in champagne). This is so fresh and so classical Bordeaux with vitalizing fruit aromas, not too tannic but with cracking acidity. Will live at least for 2 more decades. 97
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11/16/2022 - remyworldpeace Likes this wine: 99 Points
Le Petit Mouton Masterclass and Dinner - BBR & Chateau Mouton Rothschild: Deep ruby, nose of mature forest floor with dark fruits. Some subtle menthol on nose too. Palate dark fruit cassis, blackberry, black currant along with mature tertiary notes of forest floor, graphite, tobacco. True concentration but still with a fresh acidity. Awesome density and complexity.
Sensational finish, one of the longest I've ever experienced. Such a contrast to the Petit Mouton drank alongside on that front (although that was already good compared to most wines). It just kept going and going revealing all the layers and complexity.
From a perfectly stored bottle with BBR (actually 3). All double decanted and left to open in bottle for 2+ hours before serving. This was everything I'd want from a First Growth from a great vintage. Drinking well now but will continue going for decades. A fantastic wine. What an honour.
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11/2/2022 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Continuing to develop positively, the wine seems to have entered the start of its drinking window. The tannins softened and the wine has spread out on the palate, allowing to taste and feel the ripe, sweet, fresh currants, spice and blackberries, with its touch of herbs, cedar and leafy tobacco on the nose and palate. Drink from 2022-2045.
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10/30/2022 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Decanted 1 hour.
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10/21/2022 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
NY Wine Experience 2022; 10/20/2022-10/23/2022 (Marriott Marquis): Starting to get into the ready to drink stage and probably of the four wines was the most in that place. Dark fruits again. A bit pretty. Some almost razor edge to it (a tighter acid). Dark library with that smell of musty books and leather chairs. Very nice.
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9/23/2022 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drunk next to the '95 and it's the first time I've rated the '95 higher. Not that this isn't a great wine but I found the '95 to have more depth and intensity. Sleek and so fine and classy with a real streak of graphite running through the wine. Finely etched and precise with a gorgeous finish that's so complex with notes of cedar and tobacco. No doubt the tannins are finer here than the '95 but the only flaw of the '96 vintage shows a bit here with a "hole in the middle palate." Time will tell if this hole gets filled in or not.
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9/12/2022 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 95 Points
A bit shy and acidic at first, but opened up nicely after 30 minutes or so. Dark and deep with rich, ripe fruit. Still a baby but drinking quite well!
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9/9/2022 - jmoon Likes this wine: 97 Points
Must be at peak now. 1 hour decant min. Then… What a fantastic elegant, deep dark and delicous beauty. Understated elegance.
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9/8/2022 - Burgundy Al wrote:
1996 Dinner...Top Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux (Park Ridge Country Club): A great wine that is still in its infancy. Ultra firm with dense, meaty and powerful black plum, currant well spiced with liqueur hints. A powerhouse that wis so good now, but will be great 2030-2056.
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8/23/2022 - onboisduvin Likes this wine: 93 Points
Mature with fading tannin. Smooth and easy for Mouton. Still a great wine.
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8/13/2022 - Papies wrote: 97 Points
Dinner at The Ledbury , London (The Ledbury, London): Decanted for a good 30 minutes.
Nicole’s comments of what more can you ask from a wine summarises well this wine experience and aside from the fanfare of the name the wine is a masterclass of effortless class and elegance. Frankly if life has not spoiled us with with a few magnificent LaLas we would have rated this even Nose is almost Burgundian in soft complexity but of course, the soft spice, leather and cedar spring out as is the herby edge. On the palate it has a bit of the 1996 tannin and the Pauillac austerity but we are now dotting Is and crossing Ts. This is a masterclass of a wine and we could not be happier to own another 11 bottles. 97+
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5/1/2022 - timothynbond Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted two hours before serving. Deep ruby color. Nice cigar aromas on the nose along with some black currant and hint of barnyard. Medium body with fine grained tannins and medium-to-medium-plus acid. Very ripe palate with black currant, blackberries, cedar but still balanced well by some savory elements, the structure and the acidity. Overall this was a lovely Pauillac, but not offering anything above its peers that I would expect at this level.
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4/18/2022 - Paul S wrote: 94 Points
Dinner at Nikki's (Gallop Singapore): Still shockingly youthful, even after a couple of hours in the decanter, but this was a really lovely drop. It had such a classic Mouton nose - tobacco spice, sweet cassis, blackberries, damp earth - just lovely stuff. The palate was oh so fresh and lively, still a little tight, but opening up all the time in the glass to show a pure, superbly defined and really well-cut mouthful of cassis, spice and tobacco, all framed in fine-boned tannins and lovely acidity that carried it into a long finish. A lovely, graceful wine; effortlessly balanced, and showing all the best things of the 1996 vintage - with pure fruit wed to freshness and verve. A very good Mouton with its best years ahead of it yet. This will be lovely to try in 5-6 years' time.
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1/2/2022 - paul195 wrote: 94 Points
Dark ruby core, minimal signs of age. Decanted at 3:00 served at 6:00. Initial impression was surprisingly soft and approachable. Rich, ripe fruited core, laced with violets and spice. Perfectly balanced, solid mid palate, polished finish.
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12/25/2021 - Cremuel Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark black red. No brick tinge and deep red is clean and fine. Full dark black fruits and barnyard in the nose, red fruits in the background. Full and powerful. Powerful dry fruitful impact on tasting. Dry and austere but enough fruit behind to lift it up. A serious wine that has many years to go.
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12/24/2021 - hargy Likes this wine: 92 Points
the first of my bottles and it has the most fabulous bouquet - great initial attack and with reasonable length but the middle is somewhat 'hollowed-out' - not unusual in a wine of this age so I would be inclined to leave it a good few years before the next bottle
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12/7/2021 - DAN BAILEY Likes this wine:
Wonderful, elegant red and black fruut. Persistent, sweet finish. Superb.
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12/5/2021 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 95 Points
Still a baby. Lots of ripe, primary fruit, and a good amount of acid. Drinking well.
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12/4/2021 - N.Bonaparte wrote: 94 Points
45 min in the glass and this was surprisingly accessible. Very enjoyable, well balanced with a persistent finish. This is in or near its prime. Will hold for decades.
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11/30/2021 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Decanted 1 hour.
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11/23/2021 - mchern02 wrote: 95 Points
3 hour decant
Dark, gorgeous nose of red currant, menthol, pine needles, and lead. Tannins are just about fully resolved with a light and effeminate mid palate, tad soft structure and sweetness in the mouth with long vivacious finish.
Right in the sweet spot
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11/2/2021 - cephomer Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank from .375 upon arrival this past weekend in Antigua. I’ve had it a few times before in the not-too-distant past and the wine has shown consistently well. Color shows slight bricking in the glass. Nose exudes cigar box, cedar and tobacco aromas. The same characteristics dominate on the palate, coinciding nicely with black fruit, cassis, pencil shavings and hints of mint. I also noticed hints of green pepper for the first time here. Finish is long and a bit coarse, tannins are not fully resolved and fairly evident at the back end. All in all, a lovely wine showing very nicely.
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10/30/2021 - Amerique wrote: 96 Points
rich, delicious round black cherry fruit with leather and earth flavors, excellent structure, very full nose, long finish, broader multilayered body compared to 1989 Pichon Baron and 1998 Latour.
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10/25/2021 - Goodwine4ever wrote: 96 Points
Dégustation de 24 millésimes de Mouton Rothschild
1996
Absolument sublime ! le meilleur de cette vague de 6 et probablement le meilleur des 12 Mouton qu'on a bue jusqu’à présent.
Belle richesse, tannins enrobés et que dire de la profondeur au nez !
En bouche c'est smooooth, beau fruit mur, juste ce qu'il faut d'acidité, bref la définition même d'un vin dans son sweet spot ! Totallement délicieux !
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10/24/2021 - Decanting Queen Likes this wine: 97 Points
Jen-a-palooza with Paul, Mark and Carol; 10/22/2021-10/24/2021 (Atlanta): Not surprisingly the wine of the weekend. Drank to celebrate Mark’s recent retirement (almost) and it did not disappoint. This is why we drink wine. Double decanted 2 hours before recording and bringing to dinner where we drank over another two. Still so young and fresh, lively tobacco and mineral together with dark cherry fruit and a long ling finish. Perfectly in its window and couldn’t have paired better with the lamb course. Thank you Mark, such a treat.
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10/24/2021 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 97 Points
Last had this in BDX back in '17. Retirement dinner tonight closing out the latest Jenapalooza with our hosts, (Jen/Paul) and Carol with Eliza along, too. Decanted about 2 hours at home, back in the bottle and to a really nice restaurant with a 6 course chef tasting menu......beautiful BDX nose with plenty of graphite. The wine is dark, soft and integrated. A trace of pine needle on the nose, the palate has strong, smooth dark red fruits, perfectly balanced acidity and such a great mouthfeel. It pairs so well with the duck portion. I love it right now, but it certainly has many years ahead of it. Much thanks to Jen and Paul for a wonderful dinner and weekend!
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9/10/2021 - Myownscale wrote: 83 Points
Nose:
Palate:
Taste older, funk, dried fruits, raisin, decent tannin, cooked fruit, vanilla, opened as it sat
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8/25/2021 - gaveaux Likes this wine: 93 Points
Only decanted for two hours - initial reaction, classic Paulliac - cedar and black current
Aroma of ash, smoke, soft tannins, medium body, integrated spice and super long finish - at least 2mins
At 3 hours - much more body in the wine, really rich,
Spice and long finish - 3 hour decant optimal
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8/5/2021 - RayOB Likes this wine: 96 Points
Drank at 67
This really is coming on nicely. An absolute beauty. Get some
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6/21/2021 - GA Old World Guy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Going to be a great wine…but needs more time. Still tart and astringent but does have some layers that are going to reveal themselves in time. I would not open another bottle for at least 10 years, but it will be worth the wait. Buy now and enjoy later! Tobacco, cedar, etc will be waiting for you!
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6/10/2021 - Radders12345 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wine Pages Dinner at 67 Pall Mall (67 Pall Mall): 1996 Bordeaux flight - Duhart Milon vs Mouton
Nose here was wonderful with cassis, graphite, with lovely hints of pepper, spice and smoke. Everything came in waves giving a lovely persistency. Still has an overall lightness to it and feels more youthful than the Duhart. Really impressive nose
Palate is a little more fruit forward too than the Durhart but doesn't quite live up to some of the interest of the nose. There is some structure here and overall it feels more like potential to come rather than lacking anything now
I think this would be really interesting to taste again in a few years as there is something special here
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5/22/2021 - the player Likes this wine: 95 Points
Dark ruby red but no bricking on the rims. Opened for an hour then decanted for another hour next bottle I will leave 3 hours in the decanter as this wine needs it. Not quite as complex and powerful as its cousin Lafite or neighbor Margaux but still one hell of a worthy wine to have. Medium to full bodied, the wine starts out with a dusty animalistic nose along with pepper and cassis. With aeration, the wine switches to being subtle, light and deep on the palate with hints of game and a spicy long and sweet finish. Very well structured but would have benefited from a proper decant. Next bottle!
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5/20/2021 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
A great bottle of this with superb aromatics. On the palate, it flows like liquid graphite with dark fruits and excellent precision and cut. A medium-bodied, regal wine that is gorgeous to drink now but will clearly continue to develop for years. 95+ Double-decanted 5 hours.
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5/8/2021 - Malarky997 wrote: 92 Points
Remains very tart
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5/1/2021 - WildeMeeuw Likes this wine: 94 Points
Kleur: Diep robijnrood met een brede maar niet heel lichte oranjebruine rand. Aroma / bouquet: De eerste indruk van het bouquet is in eerste instantie vooral stevig, aards en gronderig, met een subtiel zwart pepertje, direct gevolgd door verfijnde indrukken van gedroogd donker fruir, chique hout, sigarenkistjes en zoethout. Na langere beluchting (3-4 uur) krijgt de wijn wat aangenaam rokerige tonen. Smaak / Afdronk: Serieus krachtige en stoere Mouton, prettige maar bescheiden zuurgraad, royaal voorzien van serieus krachtige tannines. Kruidig. Serieus lange afdronk. In deze fase - na 25! Jaar - nog steeds vitaal, krachtig en harmonieus. Lange afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Stoere en krachtige wijn, zeer benieuwd naar de verdere ontwikkkeling in de komende decennia. Nog drie flessen te gaan ;-). 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Smaak / Afdronk: 17 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 94/100
Color: Deep ruby red with a broad but not very light orange-brown edge. Aroma / bouquet: The first impression of the bouquet is initially firm, earthy and earthy, with a subtle black pepper, immediately followed by refined impressions of dried dark fruir, chic wood, cigar boxes and liquorice. . After longer aeration (3-4 hours) the wine acquires some pleasant smoky notes. Taste / Finish: Seriously powerful and tough Mouton, pleasant but modest acidity, generously provided with seriously powerful tannins. Spicy. Seriously long finish. At this stage - after 25! Years - still vital, powerful and harmonious. Long finish. General / potential: Tough and powerful wine, very curious about the further development in the coming decades. Three more bottles to go ;-). 50 + Color: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Taste / Finish: 17 + Overall / potential: 9 = 94/100
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4/17/2021 - Sean Tay Likes this wine: 95 Points
Pronounced nose intensity with notes of oak, toast, strong cedar, black fruits. Medium+ acidity and tannin. Decanted 1 hour.
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3/24/2021 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
A fine example of left bank Bordeaux that's at the start of its secondary phase. This was restrained, pretty, and excellent with meat courses. That said, it suffers from the inflated expectation of being a First Growth - a recent '95 Pichon Lalande was as good perhaps even better than this wine.
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3/22/2021 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
Seemingly close to fully-developed, the wine is medium/full-bodied with a catchy display of tobacco leaf, cedar, cigar box, spice, forest leaf, herbs and red currants. Most of the tannins feel melted away. Soft, chewy, spicy and fresh with an herb, spice and cedar tint to the red fruits, this is quite nice for drinking today.
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2/23/2021 - Brolawa Likes this wine:
M&PD Covid Tasting Night #4. A spectacular line-up of wines tasted blind:
2014 Morlet Family Vineyards La Proportion Dorée
1990 Château Léoville Las Cases
2009 Sloan
1996 Château Mouton Rothschild
2010 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon
1990 Château Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse)
Eric offers his usual insightful reviews here: www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2281587
A couple of additional thoughts from my pov:
I'm not rating this wine bc it was a little closed. The nose was spectacular, but the palate and finish died quickly. It's not that the wine was disjointed, it just wasn't in the right place. If the wine lives up to its nose of wood, mushroom and overall sous bois (thanks Eric ;-)), it will be a 100 point wine when it is ready to go.
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2/23/2021 - Eric wrote:
M&PD Zoom Tasting: Bordeaux around the world (Zoom): Very Bordeaux-like. Pretty. Really lovely tobacco. Sweet, delicate, cherry. Mineral. Quite austere at first, stunningly so. In the end, I did correctly guess Pauillac, as it just had the signature flavors and aromas. It also fleshed out quite a bit over the night, quite considerably, but it never fully opened. It really wants 10-20 more years. A gorgeous wine.
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2/13/2021 - jrh82 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Great wine, nowhere near its peak, but drinking beautifully, flamboyant fruit, spice, great intensity to the fruit, great ripe tannins.
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12/22/2020 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
A good, but not great vintage for Mouton Rothschild in a year where they should have shined, as you do not find the weight and density experienced in the top wines of the vintage. Still, there is a lot to like here. There is a ripeness to the tannins and fruit giving you layers of juicy, fresh, creme de cassis, tobacco, earth, spice and cigar box. It is starting to drink well-well now, so if you pop a cork, give it an hour or two of air and it will provide a beautiful night of wine.
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11/20/2020 - rcg62 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nose really ripped as I was decanting. Super dark. Dark cherry, violets and tobacco on the nose, but also some iodine and anise. So plush on the mouth. Lots of tangy black cherry. And there is again that anise, or even eucalyptus. I get something a tad green on the finish, maybe it’s that eucalyptus again. (Not to be picky but it’s a tad funky.) Drinking well but youthful.
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11/8/2020 - Jammy Wine wrote: 89 Points
The 1996 Mouton is dark and savoury and lacked the exuberant bouquet that the 96 Haut Brion had next to it, to me it is missing the First Growth quality. Low-pitched dark fruits, cedar, umami. Good concentration and acidity. A slight step up to the 1995 Mouton but still my least favourite 96 First Growth. Drink from 2022. (89/100)
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11/4/2020 - cephomer Likes this wine: 96 Points
PNP from .375 as I watched last nite's election in disbelief. Finishing it today--and this is a helluva wine, as many on CT have remarked. Ruby red core, with ever-so-slight browning at the glass edge. Seductive and complex nose of cedar, cigar box, ripe blackberries, currant & some sort of mint or eucalyptus. Medium bodied, with great structure and power, but also much finesse. There's a ton of fruit here, along with pencil shavings, graphite, cedar, leather, cinnamon and spice. The tannins are noticeable but not intrusive, and are somewhat on the puckery side. This wine makes a statement in your mouth, and lingers for a solid two minutes. This is a fairly mature wine (perhaps seems more so given the bottle size) but seems to be just reaching its peak. I see no signs of descent any time soon--which pleases me given that I have more in the cellar. A great wine, that is showing wonderfully right now.
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11/1/2020 - mchern02 wrote: 96 Points
2.5 hour decant.
Beautiful nose of wet tobacco, cedar and wintergreen, dark rich crushed blueberry fruit, and crushed pencil and minerals. Very balanced and youthful palate with a strong backbone, young sweet tannins, and consistent power with the cigar, dark fruit, and mint particularly pushing through to a gorgeous young finish.
A superb wine with a great balance of power and finesse. Delicious young claret just entering drinking window with room to continue to improve. Fantastic
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10/24/2020 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
World Series Mondo Wine Event (Duluth, GA): Tasted blind. This tied with the Leflaive Montrachet for #3 WOTN. My tasting notes state that while this is a noble and beautiful wine with a wonderful Pauillac nose, it is tighter on the finish that I would like. Having tasted this wine many times before, this was not the best showing of the '96 Mouton.
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10/16/2020 - Argrath wrote: 97 Points
(Blind tasting BYO)
Full, profound nose of mid development. Cedar, black currant, gravel, gently oaky. Some tertiary tobacco notes. Ink. Just a tiny hint of green bell pepper deep in the background.
Fullish, very balanced palate. Properly austere. Melted, ripe tannins. Very nice black currant fruit that perhaps lacks just a tiny bit in the finish. But very good grip. Cool and harmonius. Ink, cedar, black currant.
Classic Pauillac. And nobody does the classic Pauillac better than Mouton.
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10/10/2020 - Zweder wrote: 97 Points
Bordeaux 1996 Left bank versus 1998 Right bank (more or less) (By SK In Vught Aan het Fornuis): Complex bouquet with dark berries, graphite, cedar and some cinnamon. On the palate the same impressions. Beautiful acidity and still slightly sticky tannin. Beautiful wine with a good concentration. Might show even more finesse over the next 10+ years.
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8/15/2020 - BenBlu Likes this wine: 94 Points
Pnp then decanted and followed over three hours. 12.5 pct alcohol stood out and delighted with this level. A wine if wonderful purity, balance, classic gentlemen’s claret with some pencil shavings, leather notes. Should be better with another 5-10 years.
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8/9/2020 - khutchi2 wrote: 99 Points
Seductive nose, leather, lead and dried currant. Going to be fantastic now or for the next 15years. One of my favorite vintages and it doesn't get much better than this! (low-neck fill, 750ml)
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7/20/2020 - Mikeh89 Likes this wine: 99 Points
A-MAZ-ING !!! Lead pencil and cigar on the nose. Incredible incredible complexity.
The drink to retry before I die !
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7/9/2020 - fcxj wrote: 88 Points
For this level, very plain.
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6/13/2020 - beatles wrote: 95 Points
From MG. A manly, aristocratic wine, tobacco here, black fruit, there is a stony side to this as well, graphit etc. Very vertical and classic, entering maturity, but certainly no hurry - from this format at least.
#Jordnær
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5/7/2020 - Clever Wine wrote: 89 Points
Drank after a 2012 Dana Hershey and a 2012 Shafer Hill Side Select. It was the lightest Mouton that I have ever had. Very Burgundian like. Could of had the with fish. Yes it was balanced and clean but I couldn't have guessed that it was a Cabernet based wine. To me this is not worth half of what it costs.
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4/4/2020 - englishman's claret wrote: 98 Points
Gorgeous right out of the bottle with an intense, saturating nose. Terrifically complex, with blueberry compote, pencil, wood smoke, sandalwood, squid ink, and a kiss of lavender. The more air this gets, the more pure the blueberry becomes and the more the lavender emerges. Big on the palate, but beautifully balanced and with a long, flavorful finish it’s hard not to be optimistic about the future. Potentially one of the truly great Mouton vintages. 97-98(+?)
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3/5/2020 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Textbook Pauillac, bell pepper and graphite. Dense, dark, and despite being open for hours before serving showed young. Enjoyable now but probably killer in 20 years.
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2/25/2020 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is a beautiful Mouton that lacks the usual exotic side of this great terroir but it's very Pauillac in style with black fruits and wonderful graphite mineral notes. So silky and sleek with a firm underlying structure and just a fantastic refined complexity that builds towards a finesse-driven finish with hints of tobacco, sweet gravel and lead pencil. To me, more mature than the Margaux or Latour drunk alongside but there's still upside here as the structure softens further.
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2/19/2020 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 94 Points
Perfect bottle out of original tissue. This is much more dense, rich, and perfumed than the magnum of 1995 alongside. Opulent with deep blackberry and currant fruit in addition to the spice and lead pencil details. That sort of muggy thick perfume hangs about the glass in a way that the '95 lacks. Very pleasurable right now but plenty of power and will likely continue to improve. Straightforwardly delicious.
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2/14/2020 - N.Bonaparte wrote: 93 Points
4 hour decant which was absolutely necessary- nice concentration and balance, average finish. Likely not in prime, at least for me. Few decades left on this.
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12/31/2019 - DCHawkeye Likes this wine: 95 Points
Paired with the main course at NYE dinner - beef rib roast. This '96 outperformed the '95, which never developed as did the '96, remaining a bit austere throughout dinner. Both bottles were given about a two hour decant before dinner, and the '96 was clearly the star, with beautiful aromatics, cedar, creme de cassis, dark fruits.
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11/21/2019 - Comte Flaneur wrote: 95 Points
An extension of the 1988, inkier, denser, you can tell that this has a great future, which you cannot say with the same degree of confidence about the 1986. Still a good 5-10 years away from reaching its plateau, when I reckon it will rated a couple of points higher. My sixth rated wine, but on different forward-looking criteria could easily be wotn.
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11/14/2019 - RockinCabs wrote: 94 Points
Nose: deep nose of currant, blackberry, lead pencil, mint, cedar, tobacco and sandalwood. Palate: silky and well developed bursting with black fruit, turned earth, menthol, cedar and sweet tobacco. Adds weight as it opens with blackberry/blueberry notes. Finish: black cherry, cedar and mint linger on the back end.
A great wine for sure, but requires further development. Classic Pauillac in process? Seems likely, but fruit weight as it opens clouds some of the moutonian typicity.
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11/8/2019 - Hawk94 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted for 3 hr, ruby red and light in color, penetrating floral nose filled not only glass, very elegant, perfectly balanced body, fully mature, beautiful acidity, dark fruits with blackberry, raspberry, tar, tobacco, hint of earthy tone, silky tannins, extremely smooth,no rough edge, but you can still feel its power underneath its silk velvet gloves. Delicious to drink, mouth watering delicious, long long smooth aftertaste. This is a WOW wine, it just attacked from a different angle.
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10/16/2019 - King Julien wrote: 92 Points
Decanted half a bottle via Coravin for 1 hour. Nice nose from the start, but palate wasn't there. It evolved a bit over the following hour but probably needed to sit in the decanter a few more hours. Seems to be some bottle variance based on previous notes maybe due to storage history. Will try a longer decant with the second half of the bottle.
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10/13/2019 - KidC Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for approximately 1.5 h. Fine nose, not reductive nor wide open. Lead pencil, blackberries and minerality at first. Later comes scents of spices: musk, cinnamon and cumin, almost Barolo-territory. Perhaps also some caramel. In the mouth the wine is rather perfect, perhaps to perfect? Lean and elegant. Mid length, still nice acidity, dry well-integrated tannins. About two hours after the bottle was opened the nose goes slightly muted, but also where length and body of the wine increased substantially.
This wine was in a very interesting spot. Not completely dried out and still with a lot of fruit left. No need to hurry to pop the cork.
Obviously expectations where very high here. As a wine: great craftsmanship and an very interesting experience. Given how much this vintage fetch these days: extremely doubtful QPR.
Paried with a very nice filet of beef, a Jerusalem artichoke mash and reduction of red wine. Nice pairing.
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10/8/2019 - lolo66 wrote: 93 Points
tasted blind. this was fully mature, showing sweet tannins. Quite smooth and elegant. Not much in tertiary and drinking young. Enjoyable for sure, but don't think I would spend this $$ for it.
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9/13/2019 - Mr Coone Likes this wine: 94 Points
Medium intense ruby red color.
In the nose: Earthy aroma's. Caramel, black pepper, leather, tobacco and liquorice.
On the palate: earthy, leather, tobacco, cedar, vanilla and also still some fruit. Cassis, berries and figs.
Finish of 8-9 caud.
I was quite surprised that this wine still looked so good in the glass and that we still have fruit in it.
This wine absolutely still has quite some reserves left!
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7/7/2019 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Decanted about an hour. Quite pleasant for the next couple hours with little change.
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5/11/2019 - SommWineGuy Likes this wine: 96 Points
Deep ruby, medium width rim, powerful, developing, red fruit, fleshy, cherry, plum, licorice root, vanilla bean, anise, smoke, compost, stemmy, green herbs, coffee, potpourri, leather, bark, bell pepper. medium-plus acidity, medium body, medium plus tannin, high level of complexity, long finish, round, silky, and balanced. The wine is drinking well now and has many years ahead to continue developing.
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4/28/2019 - jcasey555 Does not like this wine: 88 Points
Very earthy, sheep poop style. Not my favorite although my first bottle.
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4/7/2019 - Honeyburst Likes this wine: 93 Points
A fine wine indeed, albeit that given the influence of expectations maybe a little underwhelming. It did struggle to stand its ground versus Lynch Bages 96 - both served blind. It was double decanted some hours ahead, and I am not sure that did much good to this particular wine. Smooth, elegant with all the classic notes you look for in great, mature Bordeaux.
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4/3/2019 - CamWheeler wrote: 92 Points
GMs Mid-Week: Blind. Earth, cherry, raspberry, pencil and some meaty bretty notes. Excellent balance on the palate - savoury drive and plenty of depth. Still has signs of youth but this is developing well. Probably will hit its peak sometime in the next 10 years.
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3/26/2019 - fcxj wrote: 88 Points
It's fine but nothing I'd seek out.
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2/14/2019 - sirpat00 wrote: 93 Points
Mouton Rothschild vertical 1878-2002 (Old Swiss House, Lucerne): Initially a convincing nose, pretty classic in fact. Mixed berries with few secondary or tertiary aromas. Unfortunately warmed up quite a bit in the glass (a general problem we encountered with the 90ies flight) and became too alcoholic. I initially pencilled down 94, but couldn't verify this hence going with a notch below.
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2/14/2019 - Cailles wrote: 92 Points
Mouton Vertical (Lucerne): The nose here was inviting and quite good but the wine is missing depth and length to play in the big league. Nose deserves 95+ points but the palate - at least of this bottle - is not on par. Nevertheless a good wine.
TN: Sweet toast, oppulent dark cassis and some blackberries, iron type minerality, earth, fresh, clean and with a good precision. A telltale Pauillac nose. Less power, intensity and focus on the palate. The structure is in a good place with smooth tannins and a well integrated acidity but the aromatics need more time to evolve further adding one or the other interesting layer which is not yet there. Can the already very soft structure hold-up long enough?
Decanting: Double decant & slow-ox for 2.5 hours. Probably a longer decant would have improved the palate experience.
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2/14/2019 - Russocaster wrote: flawed
Complejo. Maravilloso. Delicado. Abundante fruta negra, cuero, regaliz. Mucho mas elocuente en nariz que en boca. Un clasico. Tomarse ya.
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12/17/2018 - Charlie Carnes Likes this wine: 94 Points
A classic, structured Mouton. Plenty of deep dark red fruit, cedar, and earthy iron, all behind a stern wall of structure that did ease as the wine took on air. Very great Mouton here, but certainly not highest tier.
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11/17/2018 - Labrador Likes this wine: 91 Points
This was another example of the beauty of Mouton. While it was not that expressive (due probably to the fact that it was not decanted) it was lovely but it clearly out-shined the '96 Lafite that was disappointing.
The Mouton showed floral and blueberry on the nose with hints of pencil, leather and cedar. It was very enjoyable on the palate and finished nicely.
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11/7/2018 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
A classic and enjoyable Mouton that was outshined by the more opulent Vega Sicilia and more complex La Mouline. On its own would have showed better, next to these two it seemed a bit monolithic. The 78 Mondavi was a better wine tonight as well, more giving. This is young, and we shouldn’t open another bottle for at least 5 years.
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10/16/2018 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Classic Bordeaux at the start of its secondary evolution. A whisper of bricking, round and pleasant flavors of plum and mineral, a touch of vanilla on the finish. A true food wine that did even better with a truffle gnocchi dish than on its own. Bordeaux isn't my thing, but even I could appreciate this wine.
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10/7/2018 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
PnP
A little quiet on the nose. Some nice dark rich fruit comes out initially. Some spice and vanilla character as well. A touch of coffee.
On the palate, there is some intensity here. Acidity and tannin wise this has a bit of astringency. It is delicious but the brightness and grip need to chill out. This wine will last another lifetime.
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9/26/2018 - fcxj wrote: 92 Points
Lightness, floral and playful. Lacks the stuffing of Lafite or Latour alongside.
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9/21/2018 - soyhead wrote:
nose- phenomenal, outstanding, perfumed funk, fruit, tar, forest floor, decay, musk. screw drinking this. just sniff it. in fact if it were possible, i think they should make a 96 mouton scratch and sniff.
mouth - clean, dark cherry, hints of earth. slightly faded compared to the nose, though with air this came more to life and surprised me. great funk and fruit. memorable wine.
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8/11/2018 - DrZett wrote: 96 Points
Beautiful now! I had this wine several times in the last years, but I never enjoyed it as much as I did yesterday during our BBQ. Bottle was in a perfect condition and must have been stored very well. Amazing deep nose with lots of black and red berries, some starting aging notes. On the palate a fruit explosion, lots of ripe dark and red berries, medium-strong tannins, very elegant and smooth structure - a quite feminine Bordeaux. Never thought a 1996 vintage could taste so good 22 years later. In my opinion it is on its peak now, I recommend to drink it within the next 6 years.
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6/18/2018 - steinersing wrote: 96 Points
from mag - quite forward but only in its early drinking window
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6/16/2018 - Collector1855 wrote: 97 Points
During a walkabout tasting, only brief impressions. From Magnum. Wow, this showed well. Complex nose of barnyard, dark fruit, spices. Excellent mid mouth presence, balanced, long. Great, mature Claret!
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6/8/2018 - hcampana Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent color and youthfulness at age 22. A bit shy on the nose and a bit austere in palate to rate higher. I am unsure time will fix the slight lack of fruit in midpalate.
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6/1/2018 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is the fourth time having this vintage of Mouton. It was my least favorite of the four tastings, but it is still utterly delicious. This must have been cellared in a cold cellar because it seems to be on a much slower evolutionary track than my prior tastings. It needs at least a 1-2 hour decant if opening now, but I recommend waiting another 10 years to open it. Classic Pauillac nose, with black fruit, licorice, cedar, anise. The fruit was slightly stewed, which I hadn’t noticed before in prior tastings, but it was not off putting. It is currently in a clunky phase of evolution. Hold.
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5/28/2018 - mclanew Likes this wine: 95 Points
Two hour decant. Classic bordeaux drinking well now. The nose is red fruit, tobacco and a touch of lead pencil. The palate is multi layered, red fruit, cassis, tobacco. The finish is medium and complex. At an optimal drinking window.
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5/26/2018 - Jz71 wrote: 92 Points
If grading on texture, this one scores a 99. Velvet, silky mouth feel. Absolutely gorgeous texture. Lacking depth and complexity, though. Fruit lacking. Thoroughly enjoyed it, but not mind blowing. Highly advised to drink now. Quite intact, but I don't see this lasting more than four more years.
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4/19/2018 - UTPK wrote:
Served alongside Margaux 1996, which was hard for Mouton to cope with. The Mouton is a bit clumsy and warm compared to the cool and elegant Margaux. The nose is open and full of dark fruit, but without the classic lead pencil and other Pauillac notes. A bit stewed and over the top.
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2/11/2018 - Ed Veritas wrote:
Drank at Eleven Madison Daphs b-day Feb/2018.
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1/3/2018 - martcouz wrote: 92 Points
Le niveau est très élevé (A) et les attentes étaient grandes pour cette bouteille. J'ai ouvert la.bouteille vers 15h45, question de voir ce qu'elle.avait à offrir. Au départ, c'est dense et profond. Dès les premières 2-3 minutes, le.vin évolue et semble vouloir s'ouvrir. Je le laisse en bouteile pour environ 1 heure. A ce moment, il est encore en retenue. Je décide donc de le carafer pour les 2 heures restantes avant de le boire, mais ça n'a pas semblé suffisant pour lui permettre de s'ouvrir complètement. Il s'est somme toutes présenté comme un solide Pauillac, bien découpé, élégant et équilibré, mais qui manquait de "oumph" pour confirmer son statut de 1GGC. Belle expérience néanmoins.
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11/26/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 96 Points
Really dark color still. Amazing nose of black raspberry liqueur with woodsmoke and eucalyptus. This is quite a surprise to the upside as this wine has always been closed and reticent and it absolutely needs a 2+ hour decant to open up. Then very firm and tannic but the richness of the fruit and Mouton decadence are really becoming apparent with delicious flavors of smoky black raspberries and strong notes of eucalyptus and Asian spices. Finishes tannic and deeply intense with a great tangy, mouth-watering finish and tertiary complexity just developing. The potential of this wine in 10 years might be just be perfection as the exotic, sensual side of Mouton is finally beginning to show itself to go along with an otherwise perfectly structured wine. 96+
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11/17/2017 - Nordy wrote: 96 Points
Wine for TJ Martell wine dinner on 11/16/17
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11/16/2017 - RayOB Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank in London
Elegant, smooth and wonderful. Iron fist in a velvet glove. Competes with the Margaux.
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10/15/2017 - winelover1808 wrote: 95 Points
very feminine for a first growth. soft cedar box, graphite, tobacco framing bright red fruit. a bit less persistent and full on the finish. charming and elegant.
an hour post decanting it has opened up more - more masculine - more tannins - but still excellent
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10/13/2017 - Argrath wrote: 97 Points
(Blind tasting)
Full, profound nose. Bdx-classic. Cigarre-box, cedar, black currant and gravel. Very pure, very immediate. Hints of coffee. Very powerful.
Fullish body, very structured. Classic generous and properly austere Bdx. Absolute balance: Smoke, dark fruit, cedar, gravel. Melted tannins and in a perfect mature spot. Very long and profound.
We actually guessed on Mouton, but could not really guess the vintage. Splendid and powerful showing. Drink now and possibly 10-20 years ahead.
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9/30/2017 - VinoDog8 wrote: 88 Points
Started to decant it for one hour and kept drinking it with lunch for 2 hours. Quite disappointing as the nose was kind of closed and the wine never really opened up much. Very little fruit with relatively good tannin and good mineral backbone. Classic pauillac graphite tones and precision but lacking depth, complexity and fruit. Bad value for such a wine and will try the last a second bottle in a few more years...
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9/28/2017 - oxwombat wrote: 92 Points
Opened at White's in London. 1996 First Growth Dinner.
Wasn't quite sure what to make of this bottle - I think sadly this was overshadowed in a great line-up. Enjoyable but not distinctive against the Lafite and Margaux of the same vintage, and never felt like it truly blossomed. Black fruit dominated and very structured, but drinking it felt more academic for some reason rather than purely pleasurable.
Worth trying again on its own. Will definitely keep at this level for a while.
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9/17/2017 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 98 Points
4th wine of a '96 dream tasting in Bourdeaux with our group. Done 2 separate times over 2 separate weeks. Still good color in the glass, no garnet or bricking here. Nose still slightly closed but the wine had only been open for an hour. Nose of briary forest floor and black fruit. Entry is smooth and full mouthed with great tannins, acid, and depth with plenty of cedar notes. Very well balanced. Decades upon decades left with this one. 2nd week? Ho hum.....more of the same. Can't believe how good and consistent this wine is at this age.
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8/12/2017 - Labrador Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is a wonderful wine - great nose and flavors with a lovely, long finish.
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8/6/2017 - ricknat1 wrote:
bottle was dumb as a stone
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7/22/2017 - Labrador Likes this wine: 93 Points
A fabulous Mouton that was served along with a 1996 Chateau Margaux, (which was fabulous plus) and a 2007 Frederic Magnien Chambertin-Clos de Beze. The Mouton exhibited a bit more sweetness on the palate and had wonderful color, depth, balance, richness and a lovely, long finish.
Please, do not ask me to select the WOTN.
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6/22/2017 - Burgnick wrote: 93 Points
Good nose with pencil shaving, truffle, leather, forest, black fruit and earth. Palate is tannic with lots of acidity. Very tight. Needs lots of time. However, its just going to be good but not great as there is not enough depth in this wine.
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5/24/2017 - burgcamel wrote: 95 Points
Very young still but starting to show a little something. Solid core of fruit with perfume notes. I will give a long decant next time.
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5/16/2017 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 94 Points
Mouton Rothschild Vertical Dinner (Vaucluse): Lovely perfumed bouquet with blueberry and vanilla bean. Bigger and tighter palate than nose suggests. Nose is actually comparable to that on the '00, if less ripe and brooding. Lead pencil shavings and forest floor are here. Consistently enjoy this Mouton. Pleasurable now, but come back in 20 years and it will still be there.
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5/16/2017 - Kemo Sabe Likes this wine: 93 Points
Slightly leaner in style. Not quite as open signaling this is a long haul wine. Its obvious this is a great wine. A beast still caged yearning to come out. No question this will improve with time.
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5/10/2017 - dcwino wrote: 97 Points
Mouton dinner with Philippe Dhalluin and Bernard Burtschy (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Expressive youthful nose displaying crème de cassis, crushed blackberry, ink, lead pencil, cedar and earth. Excellent concentration, beautifully layered cassis fruit, silk and polished, good acidity, nicely integrated tannins and a long cassis driven finish. The fruit is purer than the 95. It resembles the 86 a lot in the purity and structure. Excellent showing.
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5/3/2017 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 93 Points
The 1996 is a very nice Mouton-Rothchild which is still about a decade away from its apogee, opening in the glass with a classy bouquet of cassis, woodsmoke and classic Mouton cooperage. On the palate the wine is medium-full, with fine but not yet melted tannins and a juicy line of acidity, but without the amplitude or drama that this wine can sometimes attain. Qualitatively this is a notable step up above the weak 1989 and 1990 vintages here, but it can't match the alliance of elegance with intensity displayed by the 1985, or for that matter the rather more rustic, big-boned powerhouse Mouton produced in 1995.
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4/6/2017 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Wonderful Improptu/ Merged Wine Dinner (The Links Club - New York NY): Started out backward, inaccessible and frankly unfriendly, even with dense and powerful black fruit. Good flavors emerged at the 90 minutes mark, and real enjoyment an hour later. Patience still required, but this will be worth the wait.
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3/25/2017 - walkerjfw wrote: 92 Points
Jay's Big Bottle Extravaganza (Jay's Home - Martinsville, New Jersey): First of the Bdx flight on this evening. From a 3L that had been decanted and re-bottled. Nice to check in on this at 20 years...
Darker ruby color, mildly opaque. Nose was open and expressive, showing red fruits, cedar and floral/lavender notes. Palate showing dark and red fruits, framboise, coffee, chocolate, cedar and . A bit more austere and tannic on the finish than expected...still nice just fell a bit short of (high) expectations. Medium body and medium finish.
Given drinking arc of Mouton (IMO), the tannins may soften a bit in a few years. Underlying fruit is still elegant and impressive, wine may be going through a phase right now where it needs to transition to a more secondary phase.
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3/19/2017 - Serge Birbrair wrote:
ready to go
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3/17/2017 - vespasian wrote:
Showing its age at the rim; nicely evolved aroma - this smells ready to me, a good combination of interesting development and fruit. Smooth tannins, lovely voluptuous texture. Nice flavour and no hard edges. Good mineral quality here too.
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3/10/2017 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 93 Points
Super 1990s Bordeaux Tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Very nice nose, but showing very young. A dark ruby color. Ripe fruit, cedar, tobacco, mint, and chocolate. Gained weight in the glass throughout the evening. Tannins firm, but did soften after a couple of hours. Acidity a bit low at this stage. Should gain more complexity with time.
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2/3/2017 - haluyoung Likes this wine: 93 Points
依旧年轻,教科书般的波尔多,优雅细腻甜美多汁。还有很强的陈年潜力,但是似乎缺少了点个性,浓缩度算是中上水准。
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1/2/2017 - jusuf Likes this wine: 96 Points
Very good wine. Even higher price. Complex nose but not with too much pressure. Cassis. Cassis again on the palate. Good retention.
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12/24/2016 - King Julien wrote: 95 Points
Second half of 12/14/2016 Coravin bottle. Popped and poured into decanter and it sat for about 2 hours this time before we got to it, but it tasted better than the first half of the bottle. Probably not much air needed for this one.
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12/14/2016 - King Julien wrote: 94 Points
Decanted 3 hours, perhaps didn't need that much, seemed a bit tired.
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12/11/2016 - peternelson wrote: 94 Points
Exotic spices, incense, perfume, showy, just the way I like my Mouton. Super silky, fine accessible even, with a long finish, everything there in spades. Still young, but tasting oh so good. With roasted suckling pig.
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12/11/2016 - jasonh Likes this wine: 97 Points
Oh my. This is an amazing wine. Such richness. This is an iron fist in a velvet glove. Tasty and compelling.
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11/24/2016 - Ispendtoomuchmoneyonwine Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted for 3 hours. Nose of red fruit, plumbs, cinnamon spice. Smooth tannins and a good amount of acidity. Overall this was restrained and not forthcoming enough. I prefer the 95 over this
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10/25/2016 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 95 Points
1996 Bordeaux Blind: Very good nose with brooding black currant, forest floor, mushrooms, but also with sweet red fruit on there. Some cool cola too. Tannic and very grippy palate up front. Extremely flavorful, dense and expansive. Long finish. Young. Excellent. Wine of the night, decidedly.
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10/14/2016 - jeremy@ Likes this wine: 95 Points
Very nice. time to drink!
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9/9/2016 - Kim Gerner wrote: 95 Points
1. cru Chateaux Haut Medoc 1996 horisontal - Wine tasting dinner (At home): Closed in the beginning but developed in the glass
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8/3/2016 - jbehrendt Likes this wine: 96 Points
Served for 50th anniversary dinner - tenderloin of beef - along with 2 other Bordeauxs. This was certainly the star. Well balanced, complex, good fruit remaining.
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7/23/2016 - chablis28 wrote: 98 Points
This was the perfect exclamation point on a great night of celebrating Jimmy & Larisa's wedding! Many many thanks to Mark for generously sharing this iconic, bucket list, wine with us! The nose alone was worth the price of admission with layers of graphite, tobacco, coffee, cedar and, a hint of forest floor. Bordeaux power & scale, richness, intensity, concentration and yet, magically delivering Burgundian eloquence and grace. Excellent fruit, red spectrum, cedar, dark chocolate, and forest floor combine with resolved tannins and prefect acidity bringing that old school lift often missing in CA Cab blends. This is pretty close to as good as Bordeaux gets and I prefer it to most the Lafites I've had. Happily, some of this got shared with Jimmy too!
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7/14/2016 - JulianSkeels Likes this wine: 97 Points
Wanted to check in on this as I'd heard some negative comments. Let a glass rest 2hrs at home. Fantastic nose of graphite, cedar, smoke, sweet tobacco and stones. Fresh smelling (something I associate with 96s) and not the over-ripe cassis I get in some Mouton vintages such as 03. HUGE blackcurrant, earth and new leather in the mouth - as expansive as it gets, like being slapped across the face by rich, smokey ripe (but not over-ripe) Paulliac. This is all about the mid-palate though, it fades to a frankly pedestrian (and slightly green / stalky) finish that initially disappoints after the fireworks of the first 5-10 seconds. Tannins are very fine and sweet, but there's definitely grip and good structure from the typical 96 acidity. I rarely find Mouton this fresh and lively - I like this, and there's loads of upside here. Hold to 2020 and peak could even be 2025-2030. But I'll be taking glasses every few months to see how this progresses to confirm.
edit: with more time the back-end persistence really improved, this is a truly regal wine in waiting which is NOT mature and seems under-rated by too many. 97pts easy.
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7/9/2016 - Zweder wrote: 96 Points
Beautiful; bouquet with dark forest fruits, cassis, graphite, vanilla, cedar and tobacco. On the palate all elements from the nose are there as well. I was surprised about the fact the wine is more elegant than extracted. There is beautiful acidity and soft tannin with still a pleasant bite and a promise for even some more finesse. At its absolute peak between 2019 and 2022? Already a superb, luxurious and beautiful wine. 95 - 96
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7/8/2016 - ilee Likes this wine: 97 Points
Oh the nose. Beautifully complex nose with mind boggling flavors. Let's see. Creme de cassis with double emphasis on the creme, and on the cassis. Burnt eucalyptus forest doused by gentle spring rains. A desert road in the night, heat dissipated from the gravel by cool air from the black sky above. Sorry these are not wine terms, but the usual words do not seem adequate to describe my reaction to the nose. On the palate, really lovely and plush, though the wine still tastes 10 years old even after a 5 hour decant. The wine is also slightly cloudy, which I find puzzling but it is in no way a complaint!
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6/25/2016 - starkravingmad Likes this wine: 93 Points
Group Wine Tasting - new unanimous favorite of the group as compared to other Bordeaux and CA Meritage. Opens nicely after a few hours decanted
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6/3/2016 - jeff nowak wrote: 91 Points
Decanted and followed in the glass 3+ hours. I like Mouton, a lot. But this bottle, while pretty good, didn't have great verve or any excitement. It was still a very nice wine, but I expected and wanted more. It lost its way in the mid palate and then didn't have enough structure to recover on the finish. I'll label it a bit thin, but don't extrapolate the expression out to a huge negative. Not a blockbuster when you think of sound Lafite or Latour, but a gentle soul that would pair well with subtle foods of great character, like this wine. I think you would have to be one who just can't see themselves opening a 96 first growth before age 25-30 to hold this wine a long time. Age 30 strikes me as it's practical limit.
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5/4/2016 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is drinking beautifully now and is really a powerhouse and still years from full maturity. Very regal and opulent with deep flavors of black currants and a distinct eucalyptus note. Finishes full with firm but fine tannins and it really showed its breed tonight vs. the other '96's on the table. 95+
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5/1/2016 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 95 Points
Talk about a perfectly mature first growth. The ‘96 Mouton was simply stunning, showing a bouquet of dark soil tones, sweet herbs and olives, then turning more exotic with dusty spice, minerals, smoke and crushed black currant. On the palate, I found intense dark fruits with massive textures that filled the senses and brisk acidity giving way to savory herbs, leather and inner floral tones. Fine tannin mounted on the palate but never seemed to get in the way, especially through its long dark fruit finish.
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4/28/2016 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Scott's Wine dinner at Honeysuckle, a bit of everything! (Honeysuckle, Washington DC): Expressive nose displaying intense sweet dark fruits, cassis, dry blueberry, strong note of lead pencil, cedar, mushroom, a hint of leather and earth. Excellent concentration, nicely layered, bright acidity, noticeable but unobtrusive tannins and very long finish. Although I have not tried it side by side with Lafite, Latour or Margaux, this seems a bit riper, showing more black fruits. It is not as precise and polished as the others. Nevertheless really solid Mouton with excellent concentration.
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4/25/2016 - Bordeaux_Jon Likes this wine: 95 Points
Tour des Deux Rives, San Francisco: The 1996 Left Banks are really starting to come around and perhaps will drink well younger than many 1995s. This was a stunning example of that. It had a highly aromatic nose of black fruit, mint, toasty oak, and a particularly compelling barbecue/smoke component which I'm beginning to think is a Mouton tell, because I've noticed it on the 1982, 1986, and 1997 as well. The palate is smooth with 1st growth quality elegance combined with power. I real pleasure to drink.
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4/17/2016 - convex Likes this wine: 93 Points
Lighter body, low concentration but there is real elegance and balance to it. Strong earthy notes -- graphite, cedar, mushroom, good hint of blackberry but not a fruity wine. No cassis or licorice. Tannins are nearly fully integrated. Before the decant it felt like there was no structure at all but it gained its footings after a 2 hour decant. Decent long finish. Not grippy but lingers with nice acidity nonetheless. This is not really memorable but perfectly enjoyable. Almost too easy to drink for a wine of such pedigree.
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4/10/2016 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
This bottle was drinking young with a bit of green so not the best showing but the wine was perfectly sound and very fine and delicious. Lovely flavors of graphite and dark fruits with a firm, etched texture. The finish is still tannic but quite smooth with notes of Asian spices and eucalyptus. 93+ At Blue Hill Stone Barns with the Klane's.
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4/8/2016 - d'Artagnan wrote: 94 Points
Verticale du Château Mouton Rothschild: Un nez suave, cèdre, boite à cigare, graphite.
De corps moyen, la bouche montre un bel équilibre, des tanins très soyeux. C'est austère, mais il charme par sa texture impressionnante. Excellent Pauillac classique, très bien fait. 93-94 pts
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3/13/2016 - AllRed wrote: 93 Points
Second Sunday Group: 1996 Bordeaux (high end) (Marty's): Dusty garnet color in the glass. Immediately appealing with a smoky overtone with meat, currants, herbs and iron underneath. Medium-bodied with softened tannins and flavors of dark fruit, red berries and iron culminating in a long finish. Initial score 94-95 pts. Seems to shut down in the glass, becoming more "simple," showing generic red fruit and iron qualities. Perhaps 'simple' is a poor choice of wording, as it is still very much a good wine, but as I am retasting just before ranking it just doesn't have the complexity of others in the line up. 93+ pts.
Double blind:
My #5, Domino's #4
Group #1, 41 pts
Single blind guess:
Calon Segur- I guessed the Calon because I often find a smoky quality in St. Estephe as I initially found here.
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3/5/2016 - capacious Likes this wine: 94 Points
An almost excellent wine, probably will get there in the next five years. Gave this a several hour decant at home and then brought to our favorite West Palm Italian, recently entered in the WS Grand Award tier. This is a fully integrated wine from front through a long journey to back, it's fruit pure and subtle. It almost underwhelms at the start and then is more compelling with each sip. Everything is there to suggest that when the secondaries fully engage, this will be a classic.
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2/21/2016 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 96 Points
Drank at Jean Georges restaurant in NYC. 1 hour decant. This is in a really nice spot right now -- still has it's youthful energy, but the tannins were soft, well integrated, and approachable, with no hard edges. I was getting a lot of secondary notes one hopes for with a 20 year old Bordeaux, although there is still a ton of fruit here. I assume this will be great for many years to come, but for my tastes, I think it's right in it's prime drinking window. This was a total crowd pleaser, to say the least.
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2/7/2016 - Rezy13 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Super Bowl 2016 (Dunwoody, GA): Darker core with brighter crimson rim; sweet red fruit, currant, raspberry, menthol, iron, cigar, earth, green pepper, sweet leather; fresh on the palate, younger than last wine, juicy, dense, iron fist in velvet glove, tightly wound though good finesse today; great potential, very fresh example; 96+.
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1/26/2016 - Burgnick wrote: flawed
From a magnum. Heated at some point during storage. Nose had wet cardboard and a strong vegetal note. Corked.
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12/9/2015 - Ridgerunner Likes this wine: 93 Points
Grand old bordeaux
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12/5/2015 - FrancoisD Likes this wine: 95 Points
Nez très profond. Bouche plus en réserve.
Cerise noire, café, pointe de vanille, estragon (terre plutôt?), violette, cèdre, finale sur la truffe.
Équilibre parfait, plaisir plus intellectuel que émotif cependant.
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11/5/2015 - rossi.wine wrote: 94 Points
Expressive on the nose - sweet fruit, tobacco, spices, earth, leather. On the palate much more linear with grippy tannins, good core of fruit, elegant and nicely balanced with very decent length and complexity. Certainly approachable now, but really too young in my opinion. Good future. 93-94+
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10/14/2015 - The Vines That Bind Likes this wine: 95 Points
Dark garnet. A superb nose of damp earth, loamy soil, wet leather, pine needles, christmas tree, and sap. Stewy, meaty, and beefy on the palate but with good red fruit juice support. Big stoney minerality backing. A really great piece of work and decidedly superior to the '95 Mouton tasted side-by-side.
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9/25/2015 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Ficofi. Slightly closed nose. Pretty round. Good length. Very enjoyable.
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9/23/2015 - vinodonpedro Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted 2+ hours prior to drinking. Paired with french rack of elk and Brussels sprout. Still some noticeable tannins - hard to believe but this feels like a young wine despite being 20 years old. Lush and textured. Notes of leather, spices, walnut, cassis. Patience is a virtue with this one. Can easily sleep a few more years before reaching its full potential.
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9/21/2015 - steinersing wrote: 96 Points
this is quite lush and forward - getting close to its drinking window
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9/5/2015 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
19th anniversary at BHSB (Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Pocantico Hills, NY): Dark, deep saturated red in the glass, with only the slightest hint of garnet at the rim; based on appearance, you'd be hard-pressed to say this was a 19 year old wine. On the nose, leather leads the way, followed by notes of crushed currant, cedar, and a very faint hint of lemongrass. On the palate, a silky texture from start to finish, with currants and cedar at the front of the mix. The fruit is alive and the tannins are modest, making this very approachable now, but there is obviously a lot of room for further development.
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8/29/2015 - BuzzzzOff Likes this wine: 93 Points
We joined our neighbours for an elegant end of summer dinner at their house. Food was fantabulous and wine wonderful. The last wine of the evening and sipped after 5+ hours breathing in the bottle. A luscious red with a hint of brownish-orange at the rim. Leather, burnt sugar on licorice, black fruit, some cherries and vegetation on the nose. A massive hit on the palate with subtle tannins. Elegant finish. Everyone was of the opinion that it was a tasty, naughty teenager that would benefit from more education in the cellar. Somewhat disappointing :-(, but we hope to re-visit, say, in 2020 when we think it should be hitting its stride. Did not suck ;-)
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8/28/2015 - d'Artagnan wrote:
Nez chocolaté qui évoque la rive droite, Magnifique texture c'est encore jeune mais tellement harmonieux. Un grand vin, très jeune, il n'a pas intégré son élevage à revoir dans 10 ans.
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8/16/2015 - dchain Likes this wine: 96 Points
Impressive nose from the outset. Very exotic and spicy, touch of walnuts, coffee and leather infused into the ripe but balance cassis driven fruit. Real mouthful and presence. Still a bit of a bruiser but very Mouton like in a good year like 1996. Surprisingly approachable but will last another 50+ years without too much problem given that at 19 years old it is only just becoming approachable! Great length and balance as a first growth should be. Very memorable and pleasurable open as an early anniversary celebration. The Missus gave it her approval so it must be alright! Drink it now and marvel in the power of Mouton!
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8/1/2015 - Wine_lvr wrote: 95 Points
Reinterpreted Paris Tasting 'Best Bottle Circle' Style (Emmen, Switzerland): Garnet in color. Nose shows leather, barn and dark berries. Very smooth tannins, lots of power and very long finish. This is a classical Bordeaux beauty. Still on the young side but already amazing stuff. Wait 5-10 years or decant
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7/10/2015 - Papies wrote:
Tasted blind. Decanted for like 45 minutes.
A word of caution here. The wine had a small touch of TCA/corkiness so the TN here could be non relevant to a pristine bottle and thus no rating. Other than that though the wine was just fine.
Quite evolved, earthy leafy textbook Cabernet Sauvignon old world. Nicol guessed Margaux 96 / Andreas light vintage mid 90s Napa traditionalist. Leather, light cedar. A touch dry in the mid palate. Shame for the light touch of TCA.
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7/9/2015 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 97 Points
blind tasting of 17 different kind of wines all over the world
For me the WOTN toghether with Shafer Hillside select 1995 Magnum
much better than 2 years ago where the bottle was really closed. Now you have decent fruit of cassis, red and dark berries, the palate is filled with some earth, pencil, cedar wood, ripe and present tannins, alcohol well integrated, crispy acidity making this wine still young, for me very drinkable over the next ten years, 97-98
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6/19/2015 - Davyd Chong wrote: 91 Points
Jason's Birthday Wine Night 2015 (Dakota Residence): Quite fruity, also showing notes of pencil lead / graphite, pencil shavings, and some herbs. This is an elegant wine, displaying sweet fruits on the palate, definitely Cabernet dominant, and the acidity is still quite high despite its age. There is a lot of life left in this bottle. It has an obvious Bordeaux nose. Showing a hint of milk chocolate, oak, and blackcurrants on the palate. The tannins were silky and velvety. Not my favourite for the evening, and most of us were surprised that this was the Mouton! I felt that it was quite restrained, even after 2 hours in the decanter. Again, disappointed by a Mouton. Was shocked that I rated it 5th of the 6 wines in this flight.
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6/19/2015 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 94 Points
Jason's Birthday Wine Night 2015 (Dakota): Tasted blind. Aired for 2 hour in decanter then poured back into bottle and slow-oxed in bottle for another 1.5+ hours before drinking. (barnyard and graphite aromas while I was decanting it)
Appearance is clear, deep ruby colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of ripe black cherry, blackberry, cedar, touch of green herbs, slight earth and graphite emerging with more air.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol, velvety smooth high tannins, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of blackcurrant, blackberry, ripe black cherries, cedar, slight earth. Long finish.
Very good quality. Constantly evolving with air. Complex. Teenager at this point. Re-explore again in 8-10 years for tertiary development.
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6/18/2015 - rossi.wine wrote: 96 Points
From imperial. Gorgeous nose - so much depth and complexity - silky cassis fruit, exotic spices, tobacco, cedar, earth. On the palate not overly generous, firm tannic grip, quite closed and really backward. There is good concentrated fruit and lots of acidity. Super length. Approachable and hugely impressive , but really too young based on this large format bottle. 95-97
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6/11/2015 - MarceloIdeses wrote: 95 Points
Classic vintage. Classic Mouton.
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5/24/2015 - starkravingmad Likes this wine: 91 Points
Earthen, gravely. Deep berries.
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5/12/2015 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Full bodied, long, powerful, tannic, fresh and vibrant, while approachable, and fun to drink, this is not yet mature. There is a touch of green in the finish, but in a good way, as it adds to the character of this tobacco, cedar, earth, cigar box, blackberry and spice filled personality. The wine was produced from a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 13% Merlot.
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5/3/2015 - MFenton wrote: 96 Points
Amazing experience. Each glass was filled with different notes of prune, coffee, sandlewood,Christmas pudding and other layers of mature flavours. Will last for many more years if we'll stored. A real joy to drink with special friends.
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5/1/2015 - rjsgm wrote:
Waiting on a special occasion to drink this one!
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4/29/2015 - jmoon Likes this wine: 96 Points
Tight on first pour and not very generous. Fresh and good but 90/92
Then...
Amazingly complex and seductive! Sweet beautiful cassis, soft leather, tea, Asian spices, hints of wood and minerality. It soaked into my body and my soul. One of those amazing wines on an amazing night , because she was so special
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4/22/2015 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 95 Points
First Growths, Yquem, 100+Madeira (John V.'s): Cool to have this to give us a three year mini-vertical of Mouton. All three were pretty consistent in style. This was inky purple in color. The nose had a soapy quality to start which blew off quickly leaving cassis, some earth, and pencil lead. On the palate, there is a tarter acidity than the other wines but plenty of fruit to balance it. Still some firm tannins. It has a sweeter fruit character than the 95, but within reason. Another gorgeous wine that is getting close to peak but not quite.
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4/12/2015 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Maggie Harrison/Brad Grimes Dinner (Eleven Madison Park): Poured from a magnum. This was probably my wine of the night which is saying something given the line-up it was in. Wine was just spectacular. Constantly evolving though the 20 or so minutes we were drinking it. I didn't take detailed notes, but I remember by end it was like a fresh spice cabinet and really just wonderful.
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3/31/2015 - FamilyLarsson wrote: 95 Points
Drack det sida vid sida med Cos d'Estournel från samma årgång.
Mouton har inte samma kraft och koncentration och har inte heller hunnit nå samma mognad.
Mouton har däremot en helt annan elegans och lätthet med en helt otroligt läcker syra och underbar balans.
Väldigt bra!
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3/16/2015 - yofog wrote:
Very classically Bdx, with its complex cassis and woodland red berry notes, framed by cedar and shot through with flecks of green and vegetable notes, all underlaid by minerals. There's power here, it's a very broad and sturdy wine, but higher acid than I was expecting and kind of seems like a classicist's delight. I loved it, anyway.
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3/7/2015 - mwanasheria Likes this wine: 95 Points
Mouton-Rothschild Tasting (Kronenschlösschen, Eltville): Nose of cedar, underwood. Nice Mouton sweetness, elegant, filigreed with slightly rough acidity.
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2/25/2015 - Serge Birbrair wrote:
Popped and poured - fantastic!
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2/20/2015 - Gabbby Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark ruby colour and classic Mouton lead pencil nose. Medium body which is not as rich as I expected, but good structure, soft tannin and black current fruit. Enjoyable now and might improve more.
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2/18/2015 - hajoha wrote: 96 Points
Litt fjøs til å begynne med.
Det ligger dyp frykt å lurer i bakgrunnen her. Forskjellige nyanser som ligger lagvis.
Spennende nese som man blir betatt av.
Ganske massiv i munn, svær konsentrasjon.
Bærer fortsatt elegansen, men her er det power!
Lang strukturert finish med tanniner som biter godt fra seg.
De som har denne i kjelleren har mye å glede seg over i fremtiden.
Wow!
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2/17/2015 - GuWin wrote: 96 Points
Mouton Rothschild 90's flight Oslo 16. Feb 15: Colour quite similar to the '95, dark and dense, no hints of age. Really powerful nose, pleasant aromas of barneyard, slighly reductive. Dark tones of mocca, juicy dark cherries, bonfire. Delicate, almost feminine and perfumed on the palate, but at the same time really powerful and quite integrated tannins. Long, lingering aftertaste Great to drink now, but will improve.
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2/1/2015 - Serge Birbrair Likes this wine:
drinking well, while there was one opinion it needs more to go.
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1/1/2015 - AlanM68 wrote: 93 Points
Tasted alongside a 1996 Lynch Bages, this wine disappointed me (relatively) for the first time. It is perfectly put together, silky smooth with no edges, plenty of good fruit still ... But is short on length and lacking in complexity. All that against the 96 LB that was on perfect form of course.
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12/23/2014 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
This surprised to the upside and is a beautiful, pure version of Mouton with wonderful eucalyptus notes to accompany the blackberry and cassis flavors. Ultra-smooth and polished with a ton of good acids that balance the perfectly ripe fruit. The finish is already showing nice complexity with hints of dark chocolate, Asian spices and floral mint but this is still young and clearly showing great promise for the future. More elegant and silky than powerful. Very fine stuff. 95+
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11/29/2014 - CWang wrote: 96 Points
Took about 5+ hours of breathing in the bottle prior to serving; very intense but also elegant aromas full of dark cherries, ripe plums, strawberries, mints, lavenders, violets, and dry dusts; very complex, juicy, and structured on the palate, with lots of dark berries and cherries, dark chocolate, bell peppers, mild spices, and whipped cream; very long finish showing most of the stuff from the palate; overall, 95-96 points at this stage; very enjoyable yet still young; needed a few more years to evolve further.
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11/21/2014 - capacious Likes this wine: 94 Points
Sometimes we have finished Mouton wondering what it's all about but this one sang. Classic wine, very much evolved, what we want from a first growth and why we store them away with so much patience.
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11/20/2014 - clayfu wrote:
giant loads of dirt covered cherry on the palate and coffee and cigar on the nose. My only issue with the wine is that it wasn't particularly expansive on the palate. It hit a bit thin.
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11/19/2014 - gtjj Likes this wine: 95 Points
Not as full-bodied as some of Mouton's better vintages. But it still presents strong nost of blackberry, black current and cigar/cedar. Needs plenty of time to decant.
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11/15/2014 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
"International Business & Wine Society Mouton Dinner, Nomad, NYC." Such a gorgeous nose of black currants, cigar box and floral spice. Juicy and crisp and full of fresh black fruits. Still tannic but the tannins are ripe and smooth and dry. Finishes with a smoky complexity and lovely floral lift. Very ripe and with high acids suggesting more time is needed.
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11/12/2014 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
On the nose, strong white pepper with fruit secondary. Palate brings tar/coal, light earth, dark spice notes and integrated tannins. Slight saline notes. Requires more time and has upside. 1.5 hour decant. 94+
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9/1/2014 - winelover1808 wrote: 96 Points
excellent. tobacco, herbs on the bouquet with dark red fruit. elegant mouthful. plenty of acidity to frame the fruit. Tannins so soft with fantastic finish. elegant and pretty.
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8/23/2014 - cephomer Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drank from 375 at home, no decant. Inky black color, nose of tobacco & tar. Fairly well-resolved tannins, copious amount of rich black fruit, lots of tobacco & hint of coffee or mocha. Excellent length and bit spicy. The wine exhibits a definite earthiness, along with some rust or dirt qualities. Very nice mouthfeel. Drinking wonderfully at the moment from 1/2 bottle. Must decant next time
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8/8/2014 - Rezy13 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Friday Night Double Blind Tasting $40+ (Bin 75): Very dark core with 1/4 in. bricking, youthful appearance; powerful, cigar, tobacco, earth, cow pie (Pauillac), leather, currant, green pepper, so deep and luxurious; an unevolved baby compared to previous bottles though still quite enjoyable.
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6/25/2014 - Winemaker51 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Had a Magnum at our Baachelor,s party in Las Vegas. So decadently Mouton with that ethereal, earthy truffle aroma and Classic Graphite-Pauillac Cabernet. The palate was not very opulent (like a lot of 1996's) but superbly elegant. A bit of austerity, still on the finish. This is in large part to being a magnum and only 30 minutes decanting. Either hold or decant +60 minutes.
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6/6/2014 - ilee Likes this wine: 95 Points
Dinner at home with Mrs L, PH, VK and Ms C (At home): Deep dark inky purple. Luxurious nose of crème de cassis, bacon fat and tobacco ash. Plush, silky and expressive, with layers of black fruit seeming to blanket the palate in countless tiny vinous explosions. Beautiful classy wine with a bright future virtually guaranteed by the rich fruit and robust tannic structure. Still somewhat backward, not quite in full bloom just yet, I will try not to touch any more bottles for 5 years.
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6/1/2014 - jonanator wrote: 94 Points
The most powerful out of the 95, 96, and 97. This had a certain presence about it the moment we began decanting it. The aroma's jumped out of the glass, extremely opulent and engaging. This wine was brooding and provided a great mouthfeel and finish. On the palate, it had everything I would hope for from a first growth. Will age beautifully and I would personally hold for a few more years, but this is drinking well at this point.
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5/31/2014 - henrygjeffreys Likes this wine:
very opulent nose, initially quite a bit of vanilla which soon dissipates
Then tobacco and lots of fruit - plums and strawbs. WOnderful smell, just jumps out of the glass
In the mouth, great balance, not heavy, gentle but very ripe fruit - plums, red cherries, pencil shavings and some grip at the end, leathery finish
very very long
layers of fruit and tertiary notes, savoury
great acidity, drunk with roast pork and went so well together
really perfect, just the right balance of fruit and mature notes, tannins yielding beautifully. Just entering a great stage.
Drank this far too quickly. I wish I had more.
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4/26/2014 - peternelson wrote: 96 Points
Monopole 1st Growth Tasting: Exotic Asian spices exploding from the glass with mixed berries--cherry, blackberry, cassis--along with nice fragrant cedar; licorice, tart red fruits, small forest berries, and almost a sweet cherry aspect was so aromatic; this is tasting relatively soft, approachable, fine, silky, and flamboyant. Lovely and exciting wine. Most accessible of the 1st Growths for sure tonight. I could smell this a few feet away as I was pouring it around! This is good to go from now until...? (15-30 years?)
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4/26/2014 - vinodonpedro Likes this wine: 96 Points
Spectacular wine. very earthy, strong wine. I had it at a restaurant with wagu steaks. Made small mistake of not letting decant long enough so was a little tight and restrained for the first few sips. Good advice for fellow drinkers give this young buck a good 60-90 minutes of decanting. Once it opened the Mouton was splendid. Notes of mushroom, leather. fantastic finish that lasted a few seconds. Quite enjoyable evening
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3/21/2014 - G_H Likes this wine: 92 Points
Markus' 50th birthday (Markus' house): A bit backwards, some tomatoes, a hint of caramel, pencil shavings, graphite, huge acidity and quite some bitterness, lots of oak but slightly green. Not a fan of 1996 Bordeaux in general...
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2/2/2014 - Rezy13 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Super Bowl 2014 (Roswell, GA): Youthful looking dark core with dark red rim; green pepper, cabbage, red currant, cigar, leather; fat and rich on the palate, dense, intense, tobacco, grippy tannin; similar grip as Mouton earlier but I called '96 Lafite...who knew it would be another '96 Mouton that was drinking much younger, apparently this bottle had a couple more hours of air than previous; this was delicious but I was not picking up on the nose the utter luxuriousness and nobleness of the earlier bottle though this still had impact and focus.
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2/2/2014 - Rezy13 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Super Bowl 2014 (Roswell, GA): Fairly cloudy dark dense core with thin bricking; luxurious, stank, cigar, cow pie, mahogany and leather, freshly tilled earth, currant; firm and powerful, earth, very noble- this has the goods, finish ends with a pleasant wrap of tannin, very harmonious; though not silky yet this incredible bottle of wine was approachable now as well as being capable of lasting a long time.
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1/18/2014 - LWI wrote: 96 Points
Saturday night wines: Blind. A violent attack of fruit and tannins in good proportions, spicy - almost exotic, fruit sweetness, dark berries, appears slightly unintegrated (if that is a word in English?), rich, utterly impressive, youthful. Rating for now. WOTN
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12/31/2013 - Stefanos T. Likes this wine: 97 Points
Superb wine, everything in its place. Amazing concentration while the wine is immensely drinkable and delectable. Exuberant nose with noble stable aromas, cedar, graphite, bitter chocolate and ripe cassis.
Quite full bodied with enough fruit, tannins are ripe and finish is long. Majestic - so expressive and forward it leaves you to only do the drinking everything else it lays bare before you. Will improve further.
I would characterize it quite old style though due mainly to the pronounced stable aromas, but what a joy to drink!
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12/29/2013 - Yiannis Likes this wine: 97 Points
Drank with friends over lunch for my 18th wedding anniversary. As my friend Stefanos T. commented, this was like the 1996 Lynch-Bages squared! The 2 wines showed remarkable similarity but there was more of everything here. More complex aroma, fuller body, longer aftertaste and a potential for further aging that the Lynch-Bages seemed to lack. Cedar, cassis, ink, leather, cherry fruit, graphite and tobacco on the nose. Full-bodied with fine-grained but noticeable tannins, great complexity with multi-layered fruit, perfect balance and a very long aftertaste. Fully justifying its first growth status. Simply amazing wine. Three hours in the decanter proved absolutely useful for the wine to fully express itself.
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12/22/2013 - soyhead wrote:
Decanted 4+ hrs
Nose - slight musky, sour plum, hints of incense, pretty perfumed nose
Mouth - juicy, elegant, very nicely balanced, hints of mushroom, fine tannins on the finish. Drinking well now, no reason to hold.
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11/21/2013 - DAN BAILEY Likes this wine:
First pour was glorious and surprisingly approachable already. Lots of lead pencil on the nose and elegant red/black fruit. Repour was much less impressive, seemingly lacking body in the mid palate. Suspect it was just the wine starting to close up with air though.
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11/21/2013 - SimonG wrote: 92 Points
Dom Perignon @ Medlar: Dense ruby. Dense blackcurrant nose with a nicely blackcurrant leaf aspect. Sweet blackcurrant attack, really fragrant. Very concentrated across the mid-palate following g a sweet attack, but quite a dry finish. Lacks some oomph and persistence on the finish but also some charm. Harmonious though and I think time will help the dryness. **(**)
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10/13/2013 - Jeffrey Silver Likes this wine: 97 Points
The wine looks Garnet colored. The legs are Slow. It smells like Gooseberry, Red Currant, Fig, and Petrol. It tastes like Mineral, Fig, and Blackberry. The body is Full. The wine has Satin-like texture. The wine finishes Long.
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9/14/2013 - reichken wrote: 93 Points
Deep dark color, fills the mouth with dark berries, maybe black berries, cassis, a bit of chocolate. Young and youthful and has a long life ahead of it. Interesting though that the bottle variation was noticeable as we had a few bottles
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5/31/2013 - bibhau Likes this wine: 97 Points
Dark Ruby color, delightful mouton noise, soft tannins, decanted 1 1/2 hours before serving...special occasion, served at birthday party with friends, a real treat. Not sure how much this wine can improve from here...it is great a the moment but will wait another year to try another bottle.
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5/10/2013 - psusfca Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking wonderfully. Decanted for 3 hours prior to dinner. Paired it with Grilled ribeye and Grilled Filet. Like most Mouton's, I think food enhances it. Great aged bordeaux aromas - deep and a bit dusty. The fruit is still prevalent and the finish is fairly long. I have had better Bordeaux, but this one was still really great
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4/24/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Mad for Magnums (Ai Fiori - New York NY): From magnum. Huge fruit driven nose with blackberry, currant and some liqueur hints. Lots of incredibly power and concentration with structure that is nicely in balance. Charming spice emerging on long finish.
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4/19/2013 - Ericsson wrote: 90 Points
Bordal aux Trois Tours à Bourguillon: Décanté environ 30 min. Grenat foncé, sans traces d'évolution. Nez classique de Mouton, mine de crayon, graphite, cigare, âtre froid. Belle attaque droite, fine, classique, puis complexité et, malheureusement, de la dureté, une certaine raideur, les tanins ne sont pas encore intégrés. À mon humble avis, il lui manque encore 5 ans et fera une belle bouteille très longtemps si les tanins s'arrondissent et se polissent.
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3/26/2013 - premiercru1973 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Great bottle, but not quite at first growth level. Perfectly mature at the moment and will keep well for several years.
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3/23/2013 - canan wrote: 93 Points
Misc Bordeaux (Frederiksberg): Lovely complex and intense fruity nose with a charming touch of dark chocolate. Some complexity of dirt, iron and rust is also coming through.
Very fresh and intense young black currant fruit on the palate and generally it does feel a little restrained.
The wine was easy to drink and enjoyable but with that name it was a little disappointing that it didn't perform better than this.
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3/13/2013 - Flavito wrote: 93 Points
Round, fleshy and a little over the top, but still great.
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2/3/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
With a high percentage of Cabernet Franc at 10% of the blend, cigar box, leaf, mint, cassis, blackberry, spice, smoke, coffee and tobacco notes come to the forefront without much effort. On the palate, the wine is deep, rich, concentrated, long, powerful and structured to age. Still on the young side, while approachable now, if you like young Bordeaux, I’d give it 5 – 10 more years to soften and come together before popping another bottle.
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1/4/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 94 Points
Decanted and drank over 4 hours. This is a big wine. Initially very tight and tannic, however after a couple hours. The nose was full of coffee, tobacco, leather, and more ripe red fruit came out each hour. The palate matched with more red fruit and some chocolate. Very structured initially, with the tannin a little overwhelming, but they did smooth out over time. The finish was long and firm. Love the flavor profile, but no reason to open another bottle for at least 5 or more years.
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1/1/2013 - profiler54 wrote: 95 Points
This wine was purchased as future and has been stored perfectly since. It had a high neck fill. Then the wine was decanted for 90 minutes before being poured back into the bottle. We drank the wine with dinner out of Riedel Sommelier Bordeaux stems at 62F The color was clear with a deep ruby garnet hue. The wine was well developed. dominated by earth, sandal wood, mint, medium roast African coffee, and black currants, blackberry, anise, cloves, wet leaves-forest floor, and chocolate. Medium acid levels with a full body. Palate was in line with the nose . This wine possessed a nice complexity and finish with silky round tannins. I think this wine need more time to reach it's full potential. Outstanding
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11/27/2012 - clayfu wrote:
Rick's 50th birthday notes and my 10,000th post!; 11/24/2012-11/27/2012 (Chateau Rick): Don't have much to say about this wine. Tried it when it was opened, tried it 3-4 hours later and it still was pretty much the same. Shut down hard. Not giving much up on the nose or the palate. You do get a sense of the dusty tannins and earth, but everything is still suppressed. If you have a bottle in good shape, I'd say hold it for quite awhile.
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11/23/2012 - psmith wrote: 91 Points
Friday after Thanksgiving II (Palm Beach Gardens, FL): Dark, very bold, rich wine, but a bit top heavy and tips towards pruny and over the top. Lacking a bit in structure.
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10/18/2012 - G_H Likes this wine: 93 Points
The White Club private tasting and dinner (Basel): Still very young, nearly monolithic, big bold but still beautiful. very long finish
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10/11/2012 - jamie24 wrote: 95 Points
showing very well. i prefered it to the '90 margaux drunk alongside. quite forward for a 1996. infact i'd say it was more ready than the '86 mouton tasted a few weeks ago
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6/27/2012 - psanchez wrote: 95 Points
Spectacular wine. Decanted 1 1/2 hours before and it was ready!!! Looking forward to drinking the other ones.
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5/14/2012 - Clos & Cru Likes this wine: 95 Points
Subtle flavors but lots of depth and elegance. Floral, aromatic, pencil shavings, cherry, plums, lovely oak aromas. on the palate Elegant, ripe and well refine tannin, forest berries, oak spice, fresh, firm, long and balanced
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4/12/2012 - DonalOB wrote: 95 Points
Antique Wine Company dinner (Hong Kong Club): Mid+ ruby. Deep flavours of cassis and spice - not quite as open as the Haut Brion though. Full bodied, smooth and round but with structure. Quite mineral. Probably needs a few years to develop further. This is a great wine but it seems a shame that it was opened next to the HB - couldn't quite keep up. Oh well!
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2/24/2012 - avp wrote:
Concentrated fruit on the nose, black cherry and cassis, cab lift, pencil shavings, spices, sweet caramel and smoke.
Fullbodied and refreshingly structured palate with balanced rich CS-fruit, gunpowder, mocha oak, cigarbox and liquorice. Pretty long.
Good stuff, but feels some years too young to pop open. Nice balance.
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12/16/2011 - winecowboy wrote: 95 Points
Dark purple. Gorgeous cassis and chocolate bouquet. Powerful mocha infused blackcurrant fill the palate. Complete and well rounded. Fantastico.
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12/16/2011 - Lord Rayas wrote: 96 Points
Long lunch with Alex, KH, 7, Mun, Rich, Gary, Cary and DF (The Principal): flamboyant and sexy mix of cigar box, asian spices and roast coffee beans. decadent, rich and long. top drawer.
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12/8/2011 - d'Artagnan wrote: 95 Points
Joli nez suave, cèdre, tabac cassis frais. Bouche très élégante, un peu exotique, texture crémeuse, superbe, aérien et charmeur, avec une finale de grande classe, délicate et fine. Superbe!! 95 pts
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10/18/2011 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Acker Merrall 1996 Left Bank Bordeaux Dinner (Balsan - Chicago IL): Dark and dense black fruit aromas with really impressive spice. Plum, black currant and black cherry flavors, with hints of cocoa and dark coffee. Good spice comes through in middle and finish, along with some very good power. Tonight this seemed like a "94 point" wine but alas, tonight's four1996 1st Growths were served in new glasses that all seemed tainted by an odd combination of dust and soap residue, making them hard to fairly assess.
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10/8/2011 - Margauxguy wrote: 94 Points
This is finally starting to come around. The green, herbal nature is not disappearing, but integrating in a pleasant, balanced way. Maturing into a massive, almost rustic mouton. Not as much of the cool eucalyptus/menthol characteristic that I expect, but loads of graphite, dark stone, blackberry fruit. This is starting to drink, but I won't touch another for 3 to 5 years (if I can resist). Had next to an 89 haut brion, which was extraordinary
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9/24/2011 - AlanM68 wrote: 96 Points
Stunning wine. Decanted 4 hours (And it needs it at this age) and drunk over 2 more. I tasted it several times from a small glass as it evolved - the smell and the taste changed with each hour. Great length, fruit and power with enough tannin to show a structure still evolving. I have only 5 more, but I am already looking forward to drinking those in a while.
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7/31/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
From a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the wine opens with tobacco, cigar box, crème de cassis, minerality, damp earth, fennel, smoke, and an array spice box aromas. Full bodied and powerful, this Bordeaux wine awards you with a juicy, rich mouthful of fresh, ripe cabernet sauvignon. The long finish ends with a blast of blackberry, spice and black cherry. While already showing well, this special Pauillac wine will gain additional complexity along with more opulent layers of texture with time.
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6/5/2011 - jeff nowak wrote: 92 Points
elzer cancer society charity dinner. my favorite of the bordeaux flight. still chewy in the tannin department, but showing some early maturity. drink or hold.
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5/23/2011 - Porchino wrote: 98 Points
great nose ultra ripe fruit smooth and yet thick.
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5/6/2011 - soyhead wrote: 91 Points
First Growth Night 2011 (PRIMA): nose - a wicked nose of fermenting cranberry, mushroom, Asian spices, and tea. Duane and Brian picked out Bing cherry. This was fun to sit around and smell. In the mouth i found the cranberry and cherry flavors somewhat tight. I couldnt get a good read on it, strikes me as being shut down. Either that or I was shutting down. Probably just needs more bottle age.
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4/25/2011 - GerryP wrote:
Enjoyed with leg of lamb. Powerful cassis bouquet with hint of spice.A five star wine. Drinking well at present . Even Susan was impressed and she doesn't normally enjoy bordeaux reds. Will have to save up for another bottle.
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2/24/2011 - Jdog wrote: 95 Points
From memory from a 95/96 Bordeaux tasting at Chateau Loreto late 2010. Blind tasted against 95 La Fleur de Gay, 96 Lynch Bages and 96 Pontet Canet. The Mouton was strong out of the gate and remained delicious over the course of several hours, winning, though not by much, WOTN. As first growths go, I've always preferred Latour and Lafite, but I have to say that, even tasted blind, the pedigree of this wine was unmistakable. Surprisingly (or maybe not) the Pontet Canet missed first place by a very small margin. The Mouton will not dissapoint, but with the Pontet selling for 1/3 the price, you have to ask if the Mouton is worth the price of admission.
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11/3/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
1996 Mouton Rothschild is ripe, rich, powerful and filled with juicy cassis. The fruit shows purity and intensity along with richness. Still young, this will open early for a top vintage of Mouton. It can be enjoyed today, or held for decades.
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9/21/2010 - BradE wrote:
I found this to be a great bottle, #2 in a long flight of 95/96's. Very barnyard oriented, and it reminded me of a younger 1983 Mouton. Definitely worth opening a bottle now if you've got a bunch. Good stuff.
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8/30/2010 - petitblanc wrote: flawed
The last of 4 flawed half-bottles purchased from the same source. Showing soy, beef bouillon cube, and Milk Bone.
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8/11/2010 - MatthewF wrote:
Slight bricking in the red color. Ripe red currant and plum aromatics with some vanilla, tobacco leaf, and espresso. Palate is quite tight with firm red fruits. Great structure, medium plus body, and moderate finish. Great acidity throughout. Needs more time.
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7/30/2010 - mjvieira wrote: 95 Points
Very good wine
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7/10/2010 - pikemasterflash wrote: 90 Points
Very disappointing showing this evening. I have had this wine on a couple of occasions and tonight it does not have me coming back for more. The wine was dark in the glass and the nose was all alcohol. The wine tasted thin and musty. Too good to be a fake but certainly not the way I remember this one.
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4/25/2010 - Harry Cantrell wrote: 96 Points
Deep garnet. I see why they claim MR is the most 'exotic' of the first growth. Nose was initially kinda bubble gum and black fruits. The Double Bubble dissipated but the fruits emerged. The nose kept opening over the night and was wonderful. Taste was mouthfilling, middle aged good Bordeaux.
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3/29/2010 - bibhau wrote: 98 Points
My Birthday, a special occassion for a few family members and great friends, actually 5 of us enjoyed this fantastic vintage while having dinner. Without all the fanfare, i.e.description, the wine was earth lifting.
More than we expected. The wine had been kept in the cellar at a constant 56F for the last 12 years. One of the most interesting developments of the tasting was on the noise. It is hard to believe that I did not wish to taste the wine for a long time since the aroma was so pleasant on the senses. Cannot see how this wine would develope more from this stage but since we have another 11 bottles left we will update you each year going forward. Recommendation, time wise, open one up and share it with some great friends...absolutely heavenly.
Please Note: Wine was decanted for 8 hours......
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2/21/2010 - austinwinesalon wrote:
Definitive Bordeaux (Mirabelle Restaurant Austin, Texas): Leather, old world, books on the nose--guess if this is california or bordeaux! This was somewhere in the middle of the flight, not the favorite but a nice wine. It had good structure, adicity, and balance but was not compelling, It had a classic pauillac palate of tobacco, cedar box, graphite, minerals, but the tannins were hard and it seemed to need age. It was solid, some said delicate, and might improve with age. Tasted along side two top Californians, it lacked flavor but gave structure and balance.
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1/2/2010 - bbwood_98 wrote:
good, big bordeaux, a great vintage- and solid with food- drank last year at xmas day.
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12/31/2009 - MatthewF wrote:
New Year's Eve 2009 (Chicago IL): Firm, dark red fruit aromatics with cedar and tobacoo leaf. Palate was somewhat less giving than I was expecting from a 96 (even a first growth). Tight, dark fruit and some coffee on the palate with very firm structure. Nice body with great components and grip to the finish. Needs more time.
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12/31/2009 - psmith wrote:
New Years 2009 (Chicago, IL): Dark fruits, tobacco, coffee notes. Finer tannins but very nice balance and clearly capable of much improvement. Medium bodied. Very nice wine.
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12/30/2009 - Margauxguy wrote: 90 Points
Still way to young. None of the mouton elegance and coolness. Opened several hours and still tight, herbal and closed, some of the green vegitativeness I have had is gone, and starting to come arond, but maybe 10 more years?
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12/4/2009 - la turque wrote: 97 Points
See tasting note from 02/11/09.
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11/14/2009 - Zweder wrote: 96 Points
Beautiful classical bouquet with cassis, toasted French oak, a beautiful bit of barnyard and a lot more. On the palate a rustic wine, cassis, meat and a lot of juice. Good acidity and bitterness and still firm tannin. The bouquet is just great, but on the palate it lacks a bit refinement, definitely because it is still too young. Give it 6+ years of ageing and the score might even improve. Great Mouton!
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11/14/2009 - WildeMeeuw wrote: 93 Points
Paris Tasting in Zwolle (De Librije - Zwolle): 1996 Château Mouton Rothschild (Frankrijk, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac) Kleur: Diep donkerrood Aroma / bouquet: Prachtige neus. Uitgesproken, rijp en zwoel, beetje stallerig, ook bloemig-zoetig, hout en zoethout, Smaak / Afdronk: Krachtige aanzet. frisse zuren, krachtige maar mooi ronde tanines. Kruidig, iets drogend, veel lengte. Algemeen / potentieel: Mooi rijp, krachtig en klassiek glas. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Smaak / Afdronk: 18 + Algemeen / potentieel: 7 = 93/100
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11/10/2009 - Siggy wrote: 94 Points
Soaring, beautiful, leaf- and tobacco- tinged nose. The palate is quite closed but still showing gorgeous smoky dark fruit and classic Pauillac cedar and lead pencil flavors. Medium-weight with ultra-suave tannins. This wine has an acidic/herbal edge that I found very appealing -- a jammy, lush fruit bomb this is not. Should be awesome in several years.
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11/7/2009 - Whitman wrote: 96 Points
This is my third bottle and as usual it is performing exellent. It is changing a lot during the evening which just make it so much more interesting. The nose is in the beginning almost primary but lovely sweet has an almost new world character and a lot of fat fruit. The palate is very rich with enormous fruit. Later it is much more structured with plenty of dryness but still there is so much fruit to balance. So spicy with blackcurrant and great nerve. The finish is quite long but not at the same level as Comtesse 95.
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11/2/2009 - la turque wrote: 98 Points
A complete wine. Needs time in the decanter. A classic Pauillac nose of brilliant cedar, lead pencil and black fruits. An impeccable balance between fruit, acid and tannin. Sweetness, structure and depth all at the same time. An incredibly long finish. Drink now to 2020. Brilliant!
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10/26/2009 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 94 Points
Christie's Private Pre-Sale Tasting and Dinner (Amsterdam): Still closed, finesse, many layers, depth, structure and length. Long life. 2016 - 2036.
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9/24/2009 - asgerG wrote: 94 Points
Dark red, beginning to turn yellow at the rim, 5½. Open classic nose, cedar, pencil, well integrated oak. Rather elegant taste, cedar, dark fruit, some tannin. Fine elegant finish. Very harmonious wine that are ready to be enjoyed but should hold at least 10-15 years.
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8/22/2009 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:
Surprising forward and open knit and quite delicious. There’s plenty going on here, with loads of ripe berry fruits, dark plums, a little spice and coffee. The tannins are there but are sweet and spherical.
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6/30/2009 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Dark in color and filled with even darker fruit, exotic spice, incense, coffee and cassis. Rich, concentrated, deep and filled with ripe fruit and soft tannins. This polished wine will be be sublime in another decade or two, patience is required.
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5/30/2009 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Classic mocha and coffee Mouton but slightly less harmonious then the 1992 Ridge Montebello. Showing more right now than the Latour 1993 drunk on the same night. Not a bad night at all.
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5/29/2009 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Waterford slides to Hinterland. (Hinterland Erie Street Gastropub, Milwaukee): Consistent with previous note. Coffee and cassis dominate the nose, but again it was outshone by another wine. This time the '92 Monte Bello just stole the show. Did everyone really think so? Great Mouton, but again, my thoughts are the components need more time to really sing.
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3/18/2009 - *Vine* wrote: 93 Points
March Bordeax Tasting (Waterford Wine Company): Garnet-purple hue, intensity on the plus side of medium. Fragrant, forward nose of black fruits, creme de cassis, pronounced herbaceous notes, rich tobacco and cedar with an underlying earthiness...a lot going on here! Medium body. The palate is greeted with beautiful, pure flavors of currants and cassis, dark fruits, earth, minerals, and fresh cedar that's nicely framed with a faint kiss of toasty oak. Such great balance, with nice harmony between the chewy tannins and acidity. Moderate-plus finish. This Mouton is still quite youthful and should only improve with another 8-13+ years in the cellar.
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3/18/2009 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Bordeaux Tasting (Waterford Wines Milwaukee): cassis and coffee nose. so much fruit jammed in this nose. almost blackberry jam. oak tannin integration well on it's way, but... violets on the palate and a touch of green in the nose. opulent cassis and blackberry fruit all over the mouth. but honestly the 1998 gruaud larose is at the forefront of my mind right now. there is some harmony missing among the components of this wine, but obviously very nice.
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2/21/2009 - psmith wrote:
Dark red ripe fruits and a welcome Merlot-like lushness. Forward, with some smokey, grainy character and slightly hard tannins. Some unitegrated oak influence. Medium-large bodied and masculine styling. Really good.
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2/5/2009 - loverboy wrote: 92 Points
Vintage blind! Dark opaque red which told me it's a young wine. Big nose of crushed coffee bean, caramel, pretty unbalanced, everything is everywhere. Last time was better, more ready.
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2/5/2009 - noppakit s. wrote: 92 Points
Sleep ??
Too light or too strong ??
Just a nice bottle of Mouton. Maybe I have to buy another bottle to drink in 2013 but this moment 92/100 not more.
I prefer 1995.
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1/24/2009 - Hecht_Pede wrote: 93 Points
deep dark red color with a golden edge, drunk over 5,5 hours very closed the first 30 mins, this was just way too young needs another ten years at least, in the nose there was peppar good oak and cassis tobacco and a kind of wet forest bed, the palate was so overdominated with the strong tannins only just showing the fruit with some blackcurrant minerals and cinnamon a 40-45 sec long finish, would be fun to visit this one again in a decade might climb up to 96-98
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1/3/2009 - xiconeta wrote: 87 Points
Too young consumed. Nose pretty closed.
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12/26/2008 - Zweder wrote: 96 Points
Pleasant barnyard, cedar, cassis and a little lead pencil in the bouquet. Meaty wine. Full bodied with good cassis juice and ripe and soft tannin which still holds a promise. Good bitterness in the long finish. This is a great wine in its adolescent stage. Already beautiful, but with good cellaring it might even gain a bit in complexity. Nevertheless a great score already.
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12/5/2008 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
A finish like water. Clean, refreshing, with a sustained coffee and cherry note. Enchanting nose. Delcious wine.
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11/21/2008 - vespasian wrote: 92 Points
Showing develpoment this has a dark garnet core but no orange rim at present. Quite dark and brooding on the nose hiding a potentially outstanding wine. Notes of soy, dark fruits, smoke and earth are present with an underlying sweet cassis fruit. Typical Pauillac fruit on the palate - quite muscular but with plenty to enjoy even now. All the elements are there for this to mature beautifully. Needs another 10-15 years at least to be at its best.
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9/30/2008 - petitblanc wrote: flawed
THREE bottles opened tonight, all showing fairly extreme brett and virtually nothing else. After three days open, the brett began to dissipate and only faint signs of Mouton fruit and roasted coffee notes appeared. Beyond closed, these bottles were badly flawed.
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8/16/2008 - TomH wrote: 94 Points
Deeply aromatic, but still showing a touch of austere tannins. Wait another 2 or 3 years.
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8/6/2008 - PatrikO wrote: 96 Points
Even better than the bottle I had last October, popped and poured this time, wonderful nose, almost floral.
In the mouth its less smoke and leather and more of fruit, elegant tannins that still gives you a dry after taste.
Lovely!
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7/31/2008 - jmd60611 wrote: 95 Points
Delicious, smooth and earthy with layers of stuff...Great dry loamy finish that makes me very interested in watching this wine develop
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7/17/2008 - FieldingYost wrote: 96 Points
Violets and crushed rock on the nose, with perfumed currant. Silky tannins, black currant, red currant, and huckleberry flavors linger on a finish that goes on and on. [Tasting notes from May, 2006]
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5/31/2008 - Hank Gillespie wrote:
Tasting Of Chateau Mouton Rothschild (At The Wine Summit 2008 – Lake Louise, Alberta): 72% CS, 20% M, 8% CF;
Extremely dark – opaque in the glass; medley of aromas that include sweet edged black currants, light smoke, truffles, a bit of tanned leather, some oak, all with a slightly herbaceous background; structure is firm with noticeable tannins – ample acidity; hasn’t mellowed much to show the fruit and other flavour nuances that much, but there is some sweet edged black currant along with some black raspberry; finishes long with the wine not in full sync – needs more time in bottle to bring the various components into harmony
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5/31/2008 - ewineguy wrote: 97 Points
There were many amazing moments at the 2008 Post Hotel Wine Summit in Lake Louise Alberta Canada, but one of the highlights was a standing room only technical tasting of nine vintages from Chateau Mouton Rothschild. The charismatic and entertaining Adrien Laurent, North American Export Manager for Baroness Rothschild led us through this barrage of big Bordeaux and explained label by label nuances of the various artists who have graced the labels over the years. My first observation was how all nine glasses appeared the same dark inky purple beautiful color. The 1996 was one of my top 2 favorites from this amazing technical tasting. Its disappointing now to my notes note that says “get one case-cellar at least 5 years”. This babe had coffees, licorice, currants or crème de cassis (I can never get them straight), smokiness but not BBQish more pipe or cigar. Most of these aromas carried over to the taste plus leather, chewy fruits line candied cherries or berries, and you know the edges of a blueberry pie where the fruit kinda jams up a bit, well it had that. It went on and on and well, I really like it.
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4/20/2008 - Pacherant wrote: 93 Points
Very dense and closed so quite hard to evaluate despite double decanting in the morning and drinking in the evening. Dark with lovely texture and a restrained but powerful nose. You get the sense this will be great one day but it's far too young now.
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2/1/2008 - Claudio161 wrote: 95 Points
Hart Davis Hart Wine Co Comparative Bordeaux Tasting Vintages 1995 & 1996 (Newberry Library, Chicago IL): Wow - first impression.... this is very different from the 1995. I liked it better than the 1995. This to me, is a more typical Bordeaux styled wine. Cocoa/coffee notes and leather. Really really nice and elegant.
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2/1/2008 - KeithAkers wrote: 95 Points
HDH 95/96 Comparative Tasting (Newberry Library, Chicago IL): nose: big heavy and brooding nose that has a ton of power behind it. It's on that verge of being too much, but it's right there in the pocket and filled with tobbacco, cedar, cassis, leather, and a nice jammy red licorice component
taste: big and broad with mocha, cocoa, leather, and earth
overall: there is some serious power behind this and yet, it's firmly balanced. This one still needs time to really come around, but it will be a fun ride when it does
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1/3/2008 - mattiasjansson wrote: 96 Points
Backstreet - No theme (Backstreet Wine Salon, Phoenix): Wow. Magnificent.
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1/3/2008 - goofy Yno wrote: 96 Points
blackberry, tobacco, very complex with a long finish
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10/25/2007 - Serge Birbrair wrote: 95 Points
Elegance, longevity, let this baby sleep for another 10+ years
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9/10/2007 - PatrikO wrote: 95 Points
First bottle was corked. Second however was sublime, excellent fresh dark berries bouqet straight from bottle. Had the wine decanted for 2 hrs, full bodied on the palate and still quite tannic with a long aftertaste. Everything is in balance here, can only get better with more time.
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8/6/2007 - dbkitc wrote: 92 Points
(at Lulu's - SF) Had to order this as the price was below current retail. Deep garnet. Fantastic nose of black current, soy and fresh herbs. The palate was impressive, but not special. Good flavor intensity with out balancing richness to go along with the high acid profile. Very good, that's it. Conclusion: not a great bottle, the wine has been recently over hyped and/or Mouton just isn’t my wine as I have never been blown away - even in the heralded vintages. (92)
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6/6/2007 - Alpine wrote: 96 Points
Huge massive wine with olives and massive black fruits on the nose....on the palate a huge dense wine with a oversized mid-palate....still youthful with boat loads of tannin, this wine will be much better on 10-20 years. The wine is very well balanced the alcohol not noticable against the backdrop of the huge fruit.
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3/2/2007 - Pacherant wrote: 90 Points
A bit of a dissapointment, this wine was clearly closed down. You can tell it has power and class... nothing out of place... but the nose was subdued and it was pretty tightly wound. My guess is that it needs a few years
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2/25/2007 - Danny Joe wrote: 95 Points
Opened about three hours before drinking. Poured into a decanter about two hours before drinking. Bouquet was very forthcoming, the wine less so. Color was dark, dark, dark. It barley let any light through at all. The nose was big and evocative of blackberries and dried strawberries. It still tasted closed (it opened throughout the evening) I would guess this wine really needs another several years to show its best. But what a wine!
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2/11/2007 - Serge Birbrair wrote:
Hard to keep the hands off. Buy
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1/3/2007 - Serge Birbrair wrote: 96 Points
I glad we opened this wine with children to celebrate our 4th year wedding anniversary. Full body, very slight menthol notes on the finish which lasts 45 seconds plus. Very soft tannins and more layers than I can count. Black currants are there, perfect balnce is there, this wine is much more than just a compliment to the dish. Should be good between now and another 15 years
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10/25/2006 - Cheryl wrote:
This was my WOTN at my first tasting with my new NYC wine group. I chose the ringer. Fantastic wine, lots of upfront fruit.
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8/12/2006 - cct wrote: 94 Points
The color was a near opaque jelweled ruby and the nose was full on black olives, cassis, blackbberries, some wet leather, hint of bricks and some saline character I have not yet seen in Mouton. The mouthfeel was the highpoint of the wine. Great texture, black olives and cassis again, wet bricks, graphite, anise and smoke. Too young a wine today with this amount of decanting. I'll revisit in five years. 94+
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4/27/2006 - Rupert wrote:
Lots of small tastes of some very grand wines (Royal Academy, London): Stunningly deep, ripe nose, tannic, but plenty of fruit there to make this enjoyable already [93]
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3/26/2006 - duchamp wrote: 98 Points
(from memory) Near perfection, dark purple in color, nose of scorched earth, tobacco leaf, cedar, menthol and dark fruits, haunting palate was more dense and focused than tight and tannic, relentless finish that just keeps giving, do yourself a favor
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2/9/2006 - MRichman wrote:
Mouton Vertical at Hearth in NYC (Hearth Restaurant): Young and tight. Beautiful fruit. some dark earth. Complex. Will mature beatifully. Very rich fruit, punchy. Has a lot going on.
A-
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2/6/2006 - merschel wrote: 91 Points
Pure, balanced. A nice nose that leads to less fulfillment in the mouth. Beautiful color. I can't really describe it, but the bouquet and flavor were "clean", if that makes sense. I really enjoyed them and just wished there had been slightly better mouthfeel and finish. Still, a very enjoyable wine.
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6/9/2005 - Koods wrote:
Soft and approachable palate, exhibiting plums, tobacco, leather, belle pepper. very earthy, i dont sense the great depth of fruit like some other 96 medocs. Finishes quite long, and drinking very nice right now with some good decanting.
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4/14/2005 - Vinoguy wrote: 96 Points
Baron Philippe de Rothschild wine (with food) tasting (Roberts and Speight): The opaque black core gives way to a dark purple/red rim. Rich, powerful aromas of cassis, plums, cigar box and hints of earth leapt from the glass. The nose on this wine was something else. On the palate it showed a wonderfully complex structure and harmonious balance, intense fruit and silky tannins with a powerful finish. This wine was improving in the glass by the minute but unfortunately didn't last very long.
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12/1/2004 - winefool wrote: 93 Points
From memory - Opaque purple crimson. Forward aromas (hard to tell with cigar smoke) of black fruit. Nice, fairly round black fruit and cassis on the palate with old world peet flavors as well. Not as wound up as I would have thought. Nice, but not great. 12/04
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10/7/2004 - IanL wrote: 94 Points
Wine Icons tasting with Sarah Ahmed/Oddbins Fine Wine (Alba Restaurant, London): Deep purple-black core with a narrow ruby rim. Intense, complex nose with notes of coffee, cassis, leather and roast beef. Hints of a slightly astringet, chemical note (c.f. urinals) which did blow off. On the palate an intense fruit flavour of plums, cassis, chocolate, spice, pencil shavings with a lingering mineral finish. Ripe, velvety tannins. Classy.
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9/18/2004 - Burgundy Al wrote: 94 Points
Wine tasting. A step up in every dimension from the very good 1995 just tasted. Big wine that will require another decade+ to reach complete balance. Big black fruit - black cherry, black currant and cassis. Big fruit on palate behind today's even bigger tannins.
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9/10/2004 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 94 Points
Copenhagen Tasting Group welcomes Tom in DC; 9/5/2004-9/10/2004 (Copenhagen): Dark red. Scents of ink, dried leaves, and tobacco. Dense, complex and well structured with marvellous weight and intensity on the palate. Superb grip and poise with flavours of prunes, and dark chocolate. There's a touch of oak, but nothing that gets in the way. My third time trying this wine, and while it was probably slightly better last year, it is really a nice drink. Of course, this wine is by no means ready, and it is still quite tannic, so I would suggest tucking this away for 10+ years. An unmistakeably great wine, though.
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8/8/2003 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 96 Points
Dark red. A hint of brown at the rim, which let me to believe that this wine was older. Even the aromas suggested some degree of maturity. It presented nuances such as mushrooms and cigar box. In the mouth, this wine has a deliciously smooth viscousity and packs flavours such as white chocolate. Seems quite mature and very defined on the 40 seconds finish. Delicious
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5/16/2003 - peternelson wrote: 95 Points
WS: Great sweet nose; impecable mth; well-balanced; beaut. dark wet forest; very viscous w.sweet leather.
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5/3/2003 - Vino Me wrote: 91 Points
The single biggest disappointment of the WS Chicago Grand Tour. 1996 was supposed to be a Northern Medoc vintage. Green pepper nose with a rich texture. Medium bodied with simple red fruit notes but nothing special. Again, this is a 1st growth? 90-92 at the present time.
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1/31/2003 - peternelson wrote: 95 Points
Red Carpet: Nice, big cassis; spicey nose, med body, med t’s, very big dirt taste in mth with dark fruit.
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10/4/2002 - R2-D2 wrote: 94 Points
Dark, smooth, layers and layers that keep on truckin'. This was so masculine in nature and deeply tannic (even with a day of decanting!), I have finally grown chest hair!
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6/29/2002 - MikeATL wrote:
Probably the most approachable of the ‘96 First Growths, it marks the resurgence of this consistently disappointing and underachieving property. Delightfully spicy and intense, with soft, ripe tannin, it is drinking very well now, but still should improve for some time.
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2/6/2002 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
Wine tasting. Color close to black, I was afraid this would show like the 1995 just tasted, which thankfully was not the case. Expressive nose of black cherry, ripe plum, cassis, espresso and chocolate. Palate also had the same dense, ripe fruit with really good spice from both fruit and oak, then sensational minerality and textures. Perhaps this wine is still so young and will shut down, or perhaps it had enough decanter time to open up. I don't know, but this was sensational today, with the structure and backbone to continue to be great for decades to come.
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12/9/2001 - Zweder wrote: 96 Points
Tasting the 1995, 96, 97, 98 and 99 beside each other, the 1996 is definitely the winner. I am even much more positive than 3 years ago. Very full bodied, lead pencil, good sweetness and soft but firm tannin and very complex altogether. This really is a great wine.
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2/11/2000 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 90 Points
Tasted at vertical Mouton dinner at the Belgian Lion. Dark (opaque) ruby with red rim. Intense nose of dominant coffee and smoky aromas. Flavors are similar, with a full-bodied palate that is loaded with supple tannins. Medium, elegant finish. At this stage, the wine is showing the coffee that reflects the use of heavily-toasted new oak. Although pleasant, it will definitely need time to strut its stuff.
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6/19/1999 - MikeATL wrote:
Black color, with lots of oak sitting on top of spicy cassis, blackberry, black plum, anise, and coffee, and a pleasant hint of smoke. An excellent wine, but I don’t love it.
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6/12/1999 - MikeATL wrote:
A dusty, smoky character dominated the nose, which I don't know that I particularly cared for, paired with black fruit and some five spice powder. It is roughly tannic and shorter than I would have liked. Very good, and air brought out more complexity, but I wouldn't buy it.
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12/13/1998 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Very dark. Full bodied, fat and complex. Very concentrated juice with hidden tannin. Beautiful and complete wine.
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