From a bottle purchased at auction, with a base-neck fill. Reportedly stored in a passive subterranean cellar. Excellent cork that was a bit spongy and crumbly but only soaked three-quarters of the way up and came out fully intact with the Durand. Decanted for sediment and served.
Very dark in the glass, showing garnet at the edge and while pouring. Initially, it had a nice nose of decaying leaves and indistinct aged fruit. It was not heavily concentrated but not at all dried out. Sweet on the attack, showing thinning, aged black fruits, bitters, and orange zest on the palate with a bright vein of acidity and dusty tannins. It had a very nice mouthfeel. An hour of air made the most of this bottle allowing the bitters notes to give way to some fresher red fruit.
Nice on the whole, but in the final analysis, this was just a very well-kept old wine with fairly generic old wine characteristics. 12.5% ABV (good/**/15/87)
Followed for a few hours, this shows some pleasant raspberry and smoky cedar, but much of the rest of the notes are simply brett-derived. There’s not much wine underneath and the palate’s wooly tannins and modest depth corroborate that.
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This is drinking remarkably smoothly for me. Opened the bottle about an hour before drinking and decanted to glasses 15 minutes before drinking. It still had some farm funkiest at the start but that went away really quickly. Aromas of dark red fruits, plums and cherries. A beautiful ruby color. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I plan to do a vertical tasting with the 2015 vintage in the next hour.
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Agree that this was fully mature. Quick pour from the top of the bottle. Tobacco leaf, blackcurrant and some green pepper not often seen in this vintage. Not the finest 89 but ready to drink and quite good.
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Fully mature and probably on the backside of the drinking window. Gave a few minutes of air to blow off initial funk and it showed ok. Not great, probably not good - just ok. Nose was resolved I to the deep earth and layers of mineral and tabacco. I was more impressed by the nose than on the palate. It felt weak at times. Acid was there. It certainly was fresh but the core of resolved silky tannin and fruit was underwhelming.
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From half bottle. Perfectly stored. Took a few minutes to open up. Could be nothing but Bordeaux. Light bret on the nose with deep red forest fruits, fresh cigar, iron and freshly turned soil.
Slightly tannic (it is an 89 after all) but very resolved. I imagine this will be in the same place for the next 10-15 years. Excellent stuff.
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Decanted off the sediment at 4, and the nose was so lovely and open that I put it back in the bottle until 7, an hour before drinking. The wine is a perfectly lovely mature Bdx and it’s a pleasure to drink but it’s an average wine, at best. It shows a fundamental lack of balance in the spirity nose - alcohol listed at 12.7 but it shows higher. The nose shows some soil and leather and fruit, but without definition and pungency. Same on the palate, where although the wine is pleasant and mature, it is without pungency and articulation, and a bit weak on the finish.
Dinner at Aria, Sydney. Appearance: dark ruby, some garnet and modest bricking. Some development showing but not as much as I expected.
Nose: restrained blackcurrant, pencil shavings and mossy earth showed first. With time came some redcurrant, cedar, chocolate and spice.
Palate: medium bodied. Redcurrant and raspberry. Noticeable but velvety tannins. Acidity hasn't faded too much. Good complexity and balance and a persistent finish. Based on this bottle it is still drinking well.
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Drank over 2 days. Decanted for 2 hours. Garnet color with a fair amount of bricking. When first decanted, a really strong poopy nose that blew off mostly. Still surprised to continue to get a bit of bretty nose even on the second day. Nice dark black raspberry flavors on the palate with some acidity left. It was a bit thin on the mid-palate leaving me wanting more from the wine. It went OK with rack of lamb but I would have preferred a more robust wine. Finish was quite nice and lingering showing more lead and cedar. Overall, the wine was a bit past prime maybe by five years and I've had better examples of '89 Saint Juliens.
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During a St.Julien dinner. Expressive nose also here with forest floor notes, game, dark fruit. Full bodied palate, nicely dissolved tannins. Very good but not as polished as the best wines of the night.
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Fully mature nose medium expressive nose displaying subtle red fruit, plum, a hint of cherry, cedar, sous bois and earth. Medium concentration, nicely layered subtle red fruit, silky and polished, good acidity, earthy mineral, and a medium long subtle red fruit driven finish. Nothing remarkable but drinking nicely.
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This is very elegant and correct, with nothing not to like, but it probably doesn't have as much character as it did 10 years ago. Beautiful hints of mint and black currant in the nose as well as wood spice. Medium-full bodied and still somewhat powerful. Better on it's on for the nuance than with braised oxtail (though, truly excellent acidity was a beautiful foil to the oxtail). 90
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Medium ruby with some bricking. Nice balance between tertiary (cedar, tobacco) and primary (red fruit) aromas. Wine is still pretty tannic but well integrated. Complex wine with a nice finish that seems like it could age for many more years.
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From an owc. It took a good 2 hour decant to get this going. Dark fruit, tobacco, and iron on the nose. Palate was powerful and fresh with depth. Perhaps its just missing nuance and complexity but still a very enjoyable claret.
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The fill was into the neck and the cork was sound; opened an hour before thanksgiving dinner and enjoyed over the course of the evening. A medium garnet with some bricking. An alluring bouquet, with tertiary notes of cigar box, Forrest floor, dried plums, and hints of black truffle. Medium bodied, with impressive depth, pleasing texture, and a long and savory finish. This bottle was fully mature, and was drinking perfectly!
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Rubinrød med oransje kant. Moden vin med Tørket frukt, tobakk, moreller, litt vanilje, og ørlite lakris. Tydelig struktur, men godt moden. Jeg tenker 1990-95 evt 1989. 89 er riktig. Branaire Dicru. Frisk og veldig saftig og balansert. Lang. Ørlite over topp, men veldig flott vin. 92 Drikk opp!
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Cork wet 3/4th way up but intact. tonight this seemed more primary than my notes indicate last time. dark fruit and pencil shavings dominate the nose. on the palate there is stil considerable tannin, but integrating and nt nearly as fierce as on release. i am thinking another 5-10 yrs will be good for this one.
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God fill. åpnet 1 time før konsum. Klassisk og flott moden aroma med preg av espresso, tobakk, blyant, sur-søte bær og ett fint krydret preg. Intens og krydret aroma som tilfredsstiller alle forventninger til en moden Bdx av god kvalitet. I munn er den medium+ fyldig med godt integrerte tanniner og sammen med god lengde gjør at denne vinen møter forventningene. Må ha vært en perfekt flaske. Fungerte utmerket til en saftig grillet entrecote. 93-94 poeng. Poengene må sees i sammenheng med at dette er ett av mine favoritt slott med tanke på kvalitet og value.
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The fill was base neck and the cork was pristine; popped, poured and consumed over the course of 4 hours. A dark ruby core with some bricking at the rim; notes of dried plums, roasted fennel and cigar box. Medium-bodied, soft and round texture, good depth, nice delineation and focus. This is fully mature, and is a perfect claret with dinner!
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1989 Bordeaux @ Piccolino (Piccolino, Liverpool Street Stn, London): Lovely, red fruited and cedar cigar box St J nose. Very smooth and silky. Lovely red fruit, cigar box and a touch of sandlewood too. Long and harmonious. Very attractive without quite the depth and extra plushness of Palmer. Better than a bottle in 2011. ****
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2h decant. Cork 1/2 wet. Fully mature bottle, though distinctly St Julien. Some figs, leather, tobacco, earthy spices on top of the smooth red and ark berries. Detailed and very well integrated tannins. Fine, medium body. Still showing the elegance we detected 3-4 years back. I guess drink by 2020.
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A beautiful bottle at full maturity, the wine is soft, medium bodied, elegant and fresh. The ripe, red fruit notes are front and center. The lively finish is soft, polished, refined and complete, with its earthy, tobacco leaf and cocoa touches. There is nothing to be gained by holding this any longer.
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Hommage a DryCab - Washington Wines release; 5/3/2018-5/5/2018 (Various spots in Walla Walla): It seems I am growing up in my Bordeaux drinking. Last time I had this wine I felt like the new world ones def outshone it. This time I appreciated the difference in style. More library and cigar and wet forest floor here. Maybe right on the edge of being on the downturn (perhaps even over that edge), but still drinking nicely.
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Aromas of chocolate, dark tobacco, smoke and some iodine. Soft and velvety with sweet fruit on the palate. Reminded such of an east bank wine more than a west bank. The tobacco and smoke aromas, however, is something that I associate with a 1989 west bank. Feminin and elegant, like a Saint-Julien should be. The wine kept well in the glass for several hours. Lacks the concentration and class of the best from the commune, but all together a lovely mature wine.
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Slightly past fully mature, the wine is medium bodied, with more interesting things going on in the nose, than on the palate, as the fruit is starting to fade, and the finish is short. Drink up if you have any bottles you've been waiting on.
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Still with a very good colour. The wine has kept up very well, with soft tannins and fruitness. A complex Bordeaux with the characteristic earthy after taste. Had it decanted for appr 2 hours. Very limited solid material. Drank for dinner together with PR and family. Food was reindeer and mixed root vegetables. Very good fit
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Total surprise. I thought it would be rather mute but it was very fresh and lively. Dark purple red color. Cedar, blackberry, silky texture. Really lovely and showing well. Needed 1 hour to decant to emerge as it was a touch sharp and closed on opening.
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Color is deep maroon with orange at the edge. Has no browning that you'd expect with a wine of this age. I decanted the bottle and took notes at three ranges. Bottle developed gorgeously.
30 minutes in: If you have ever eaten at a David Chang restaurant you will be familiar with his signature Saam sauce. That spicy umami bomb is pure and identical on the nose. Pallet is somewhat dead as expected for this wine at this age. Alcohol has rounded out nicely. Fruit is almost all gone but you get plenty of its natural sweetness behind the oak. You can taste the oak and the "age" before anything else. The finish is medium with a nice touch of acidity. It's the only acidity left in the wine. 87-89pts
After the first hour of decanting the nose has settled and the fruit on the pallet came out balancing out the oak perfectly. There is some spice on the finish now that accompanies the even stronger (and pleasant) acidity. 90-91pts
At 90 minutes of decanting the umami has settled down and that great Bordeaux fruit is now shining brightly on the nose. Fresh blackberry takes over in a wine that now looks 20 years younger. On the pallet the balance of fruit, oak and acid are in perfect harmony. This wine is singing and where the bottle will be finished. 93-94pts.
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No formal note taken but a little disappointing. Not bad but for the producer and vintage I was expecting more. Decanted for 2 hours. Initially strong bell pepper on the nose but quickly blew off. Some cigar and earthy notes on the palate. Rather thin and has not really developed much complexity.
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Pn'p. Corck intact but getting moldy. Instant nose of forest bed, cellar and dried fruit. Some mature cheese, perhaps. Inredible aromatics, but the wine is too old to deliver. Short finish. Fruity moutful (still recognise the style), but dies quickly. Served with deer, mushroom sauce and root vegetables - winning combo.
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22nd of 24, decanted an hour, perfect level, travel beginning on cork, previous notes from 02 initially VG, latterly VGI to F - this bottle browning, decent bouquet, attractive cassis, earth with some tobacco, not particularly nuanced v HB 02; medium bodied, decent length and balance, just starting to show its age on strength of this bottle (bottle last October much more youthful). Just F (17.5).
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Purchased some more bottles following my Sept 2015 encounter with this wine. Again cork 1/2 wet. This time the wine was slower to open up, but when I did I felt was prehaps sooner to fade. Same notes though, just less detailed and interesting. The prior bottle stood out much better. Less cool and less elegant. Still clearly a nice claret and awlays an experience to drik 25+ years wine. Paired quite well with the tenderloine of moose, although I think some more flesh had complemented the meat even better. So 1/3 bottles great so far.
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I found this to be a bit better than my previous bottle. A bit more weight and power, and if although not outright elegant, at least there's some charm.
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2h decant. Cork 1/2 wet. Some figs, leather, earthiness and some berries. Detailed and very well integrated tannins. A bit cool and good finish. One of the more elegant bdx I have had. A lovely Branaire that paired very well with Parmigiano Reggiano (30 mos) and, then, lamb rack.
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PNP. Cork wet halfway. Color garnet with bricking edges. Nose unmistakably mature Bordeaux with leather cedar tobacco and plummy fruit. Swishing shows a tea and tannin tart all secondary palate, but the tannin is totally integrated and soft. Sipping shows more palate weight and hides the astringency. Med long super polished finish. Doubt that there is an upside to waiting. This is in a perfect spot. Grab that corkscrew and find one 😋
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Slightly austere and at its best with food. A bit thin on the mid-palate, but at the same time good intensity. Mature, but still solid cassis fruit. Pretty high acidity. Drank well also on day two.
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Advancing color. The nose shows dried flowers, cedar, herbs and sweet red fruits. This is medium full bodied on the palate, with good concentration and lovely finesse. The long finish shows elegant tannins and good breadth.
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John comes to town! (Amali (115 E 60th Street, NY, NY)): More glycerin flavor than some of the other bordeaux we're drinking. It's interesting - with the line-up we have (quite a few of the older ones) I find it's tough to differentiate very much. This was very similar to the Pichon and Clos d'Estournel and Mission Haut Brion. Perhaps because I'm less sophisticated in my Bordeaux drinking. Fine wine, but not quite my style. Enjoyed the new world ones we had at the end a bit more.
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Dry cork. No ullage. Moderate sediment. Slightly brown but bags of fruit on nose. More tannin than I expected at first but in retreat from about halfway. Plenty of fruit throughout. Should have decanted earlier
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Similar in color to the Bahans Haut-Brion, and also a day 2 glass from a bottle opened for dinner last night.
"Cleaner" nose than the Bahans, and also less interesting unless you can't abide some funkiness with your wine. Mostly blackberry fruit on the nose.
Really smooth on the palate, not a sharp edge to be found in this fully mature wine. Sweet-ripe black fruits; interestingly enough, this was the least interesting of the three reds we had last night, but it has really blossomed overnight.
Although there's bricking on the rim, it still appears younger than it's actual age with ruby red core, and the bouquet still has notes of cassis, red fruits and flowers, intertwined with pencil lead, spice box, cigar wrapper and herbs. Medium month feel, leather, burnt wood, cigar ashes, dried cherry meat, tasty and round. Tannins have been gracefully integrated, and lead to short/medium finish filled with tobacco smoke, spice and bitter dark cocoa. This is my last bottle, and grateful this '89 gem left a long lasting impression.
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Very seductive wine - still drinking very well. Best nose after about 2 hours of decant, but flavors were enticing right after the pop. Lead pencil and leather on the nose, earthy with a surprisingly bright pepper spice on the mid-palate. This wine kept drawing me in for something new. We drank the dregs (chocolate notes appeared - perhaps from the bitterness?)...and that's saying something. Well two things: the wine was good and there was very little sediment for its age. Still in very good shape - drink up!
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I'm still liking this wine, very smooth, almost no alcohol. Light in color, a bit golden around the edges. The wine is showing its age and should probably be drank soon.
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Perhaps due to PnP, not enough aeration time affected the tasting and the score a bit this time. Matured light ruby in color, with bonquet of cigar, spice, red fruits. With about an hour of air time, much fuller on the nose, added in earth and truffle scents. On the palate, secondary naunces come into play nicely, old leather, tobacco, more truffle. Tannins are still holding up but appearance is soft and round, giving it just a touch of grippy sense. Though the finish is shorter than expected. One more bottle left, will save it for a bit of time before popping. Cheers
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Incredibly smooth classic claret. The forest floor soon blew off leaving a rich aroma of earth, spice, tobacco, red berries and vanilla. Rich smooth lovely palate.
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If it was served blind, wouldn't have guessed this is a 24-year-old gem. Dark ruby red, with no bricking on the rim, fantastic nose of cassis, green pepper, earth, pencil lead, asian spice and vanilla on the nose. Entry to the palate is gentle and smooth, with notes of plum, tobacco leaf and burnt cherry. You can still feel the tannins coasting the palate, but its soft and gracefully tasty. The finish of this medium/full bodied gem is filled with tobacco and a light touch of marmalade. This treat is simply brilliant, and the bottle condition was impeccable, certainly an important factor.
The wine keeps evolving thru the evening, adding some secondary nuances, chocolate, cigar box, burnt leather, with a hint of bitterness.
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Nice color, came together after being open an hour, did not improve really with decanting and faded by the next day. Good wine, ready to drink in my book.
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Lovely aged Bordeaux with all the right notes, just not particularly concentrated or mouth-filling - gives the impression of a very nice but slightly dilute drink. Second of two, glad I had them and reinforces my preference for Bordeaux over 15 or even 20 years.
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Finally ready for prime time. Never give up on BDX - eventually it all matures. Took 23 years for this one, where 18 clearly wasn't enough. Loads of tobacco tending towards green pepper for those disposed to finding greenness, but with balanced tannins and solid red fruit.
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Resolved, silky, suave, pretty. Still got some good color. The nose is lovely with rose petals, sweet black tea, some baking spices, sweet-n-sour black cherry. The palate puts on some weight with air, there's some serious tongue-coating glyercine to go along with terrific zesty acidity. Mouthfilling weight, and a long tangy finish with some drying tannins. Very nice and enjoyable, if a bit one dimensional. This is drinking well, but will easily go another 5 years, maybe even more, though I doubt it will get more profound than it is today. 92-93 pts. UPDATE: the fruit started to fade even in the closed bottle after it had been open 3 hours or so, so it may need drinking sooner than I thought.
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Cconsumed in company of H and MB (J). Tiny sediment but decanted about 15 minutes before drinking. Great fruit on nose and palate from the start. Depth and evolving complexity of soft fruit and vanilla flavours with no aggressive tannins. I had feared it might be over the hill but not at all. Decant the next bottle earlier.
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Yellowing and slight browning at the rim. Dark garnet, with some bricking. Excellent aromas of blackberry, cherry, mint, cigar box, cedar - complex. Same fruit flavors, along with tobacco and a touch of dark chocolate. Elegant and a good concentration of fruit in the mouth. Wine has been well stored at 56 degrees from the time of its futures delivery. I do not see it as being over the hill. It seems to be at its apogee now. A medium to long soft and composed finish. It's nice to drink a 12.7% alcohol Bordeaux from time to time. Pairs quite nice with roasted rack of lamb. LATER: I did a vacu-vin and 48 hours later the wine still had vibrancy and strength left; indicating there is some time left for this wine.
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Bordeaux night at Matt's (with wives) (Matt's house): This showed well considering that it was up against the 1982 Pichon Lalande. Beautiful, complex nose of muenster cheese, blackberries, and menthol. In the mouth I got espresso, ground coffee, some black fruit, and some bitter steminess. Once it hits the mid palette the flavors and fruit fade quickly and, if this is any indication of other bottles, should be consumed in the near-term. For me the nose was a 92-93 and the palette an 87-88.
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I drank this blind at a friend's house. It was already decanted. I started with the normal sniff... I stated France - check. I stated - Bordeaux (check). I stated 1989 or 1990 ( check). I guessed St Julien (check). Then, I went blank. Least I got that far with my lucky streak. The wine was still very youthful, with vibrant mature cherry, some tobacco and a lovely finish with smooth sweet tannins. It still has plenty of life left but was in my sweet spot for yumminess.
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Size: Magnum Brick red color. The nose was closed with a little mustiness. The taste was closed with a bit of sweaty sock - it had been open about 4 hours in the bottle not decanted. A couple of hours later, the spicy soft tannins and cedar became apparent. Another hour and dark fruit emerged. I wish i could give more impressions but it was quite a night of tasting!!
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Christmas WIMPS (Bordeaux Table) (The Ledbury, London.): Classic St Julien cigar box and cedar nose. Sweet fruited. Quite lush and sexy upfront but doesn't quite deliver this promise on the mid-palate and finish. Very nice though but shaded in the company. ***1/2
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Dinner at MB at The Omphoy (Palm Beach, FL): This tied WOTN for me. Nose of cedar, some cut grass and mature cherry. Great roasted cherry on the palate with bright acidity, some fresh kirsch and some young plum flavors. So well balanced. It was like drinking old and new fruit in a blend. Fascinating. The wine was rich and young overall. Some picked up some blue cheese on the nose and mid-palate but I didn't get that earthiness at all. I was focused on the laser-like fruit expression. This wine was close to Nirvana.
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Decanted about 1 hour. Lovely, clear, mature garnet-red color. Complex and effusive nose of cedar, tobacco, cassis, tea and herbs with some spicy hints. A tad light and drying on the palate with the fruit beginning to fade - but only slightly - and the residual tannin beginning to take over. Where was that tell-tale Branaire chocolate? A very nice wine that seems to be starting to fade. This bottle had been in my cellar since 1995 and the cork was perfect. Served with roast beef, sauteed zucchini and roasted potatoes.
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Ready to drink. Opened and shared at this year’s Open the Bottle Night with some other fantastic wines – 4 couples. This wine was soft and approachable but definitely on the downward slide. Drink up if you have any left. That being said, great fruit with the classic Bordeaux cedar and Lead. Tannins are gone or very soft.
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30-40-50 Dinner (Music and Wines of the 1960s, 70s and 80s) (Bounce, Iluma): Excellent. The youngest claret on show, but this was drinking as well as any of the other wines - at quite a perfect place now I would think. The warmth of the 1989 vintage was certainly reflected in the wine. It had a lovely nose, with rich, warm notes of stewed meat and ripe cassis. Same thing on the palate. Nice fleshiness, with ripe juicy cassis notes, warmly delicious spiciness and pincpricks of roasted capsicum. Finish was succulent and juicy, with some coffee notes at its tail. Three St Juliens by chance, and they all showed some family characteristic in the friendly yumminess of the wines. This was perhaps the most mordern of the three, it was surprisingly velvety and resolved for such a young wine, but it had no lack of breed for all its forwardness. Delicious.
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First in a broken vertical tasting of Branaire Ducru, the 89 was my favorite of the night - likely not because of the inherent quality of the wine but because of my preference for aged Bordeaux - even the 00 was strapping and felt like it would require at least another 5 years, more likely 10 to come together for my palate.
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Really delicious - the fruit's still quite fresh and youthful; black cherries, plums and red fruits accented by herbal/leafy notes, graphite and some faint bretty/leathery notes that add complexity rather than detracting from the original flavours here. Very elegant with a sense of restrained power, drinking beautifully with tannins mostly resolved and a medium weight, silken mouthfeel.
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Bill's Monthly Lunch - June 2010 (Vancouver, BC): Tasted blind - medium to deep ruby in colour with an ever so slight tinge of bricking. As Coop said, there was a good blast of rubber tires on the nose with some spice and Bordeaux funk. Black liquorice on the palate with dark red fruits. There's some structure left but I don't see this getting any better. Drink now. Excellent.
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Served and scored blind: Beautiful ruby and appearing more advanced than the other wines tonight. Violets, herbal notes, with some cassis, a bit thinner on the palate than others. At late peak. 89 pts
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Is light in color. Tobacco, cassis, spice, and coffee aromatics are a pleasure to sniff. Light and elegant in style. The silky mouth feel ends with a blackberry filled finish. This wine is fully mature and gives no reason for owners to wait any longer. Branaire Ducru is another property that is producing markedly better wines today than previously
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This is a lovely wine. It has a pleasant red color, some bouquet. The fruit is subdued, the tanins are a bit pronounced, but not harsh or bitter. This appears to be a classic bourdeaux. A wine I would buy again
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Very dry, medium-bodied, tight black cherry fruit with loads of leather, gamey, and spice flavors, very ready to drink, hoped for more expansive fruit but had great Bordeaux characteristics
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Time to drink up. Black cherry color with subtle bricking. Lovely nose of mature wine - dark berries, mineral, sous bois -- a touch of barnyard and wet leather. Slow-o'd for 3-4 hours before decanting. Bottle was stood up for a week or so before opening. Very slight sediment collected.
Overall impression is of a wine that is just past peak. Fruit notes are a bit blurred, lacking in the mid-palate. It has a pleasant sweetness to it, and enough of the character of an aged Bordeaux to make it interesting, but . . . it lacks precision, lacks finish, lacks weight. If I were a numbers guy, I'd rate this one an 87 I guess. Something in that range.
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Doesn't look like a 19 year old bottle of wine. Aging very well. Earth and tar on the nose. Subtle fruit flavors with significant cedar, leather and earth. Finish lasts forever.
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This bottle probably starting its way down. All the typical charateristics of a fully mature claret. Lacks power, concentration and complexity but yet so charming.
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Lovely. Initially a little closed, this wine opened up to reveal a complex nose and palate of sweet tobacco, leather, earth, gentle cedar and soft fruit. Tannins still in play with a really elegant balance. A 40 second finish. A very pleasant surprise.
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Don't think this wine has peaked yet, but it is an excellent drink now. A big wine, both on nose and palet, tobacco, tar and black fruits in abundence.
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Lovely wine, big gamey, tarry nose and a similar flavour with plenty of brambly fruit concentration and a lingering finish. This is just coming into maturity but probably needs a couple of years till it peaks and should last quite a long time after that. The tar makes it a little rustic overall but it is still a delicious wine.
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Drunk at Runny's birthday dinner at Chez Patrick, Sun Street in Hong Kong. Still a very deep colour. Superb nose of mushroom, damp earth, forest floor, cedar cones, blackberries, raspberries.....lots of layers and multi-dimensional. A good nose indeed. Good fruit and lots of balance and poise in the mouth, lots of depth and harmonious complexity. It has silence creating qualities. Excellent length. An absolutely classic top notch St. Julien. Went very well with the cheese. All the more impressive for having to follow a Grange 1971 which was one of the finest bottles of wine I have ever drunk.
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Plummy, brick red color. On the nose, smoke, leather, lead pencil with some red cherries and cedar. Palate follows the nose, with red cherries, cedar and nicely integrated tannins on the finish. A little tart and thin on the mid palate. Solid wine with some headroom yet.
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Tasting Dinner at Sweets and Savouries (Chicago, IL): A nice and classic Medoc nose of red fruit, minerals, and spice. Palate follows the nose and adds some graphite. Nicely textured. A good wine, but overshadowed by the Lynch and Clerc tonight.
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Just the slightest fading around the rim, but a deep youthful crimson core. The nose was showing cedar, cassis, pencil shavings, a touch of florality and dusty notes. Palate has good structure and balance. A fine wine.
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Lovely color and nose of lead pencil right off the bat. very mature and rounded in the mouth. not full bodied but pleasant. for me it lacked a little bit of sweetness. maybe the fruit is fading a little bit.
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Opened for an unconventional Thanksgiving meal: steaks on the grill, mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts. To my palate, this is perfectly mature. Well integrated, with soft tanins, fruit that seems to have lost a step since my last bottle, and more noticable acid that actually helped with the food. Came across as lighter bodied than I recall.
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St. Julien Fest (NYC): Smooth, silky. Very nice fruit. Some darkness. Well integrated. Firing on all cylinders - drinking great. Open. some olive, tobacco. A--
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Dinner with friends (including 82 Pichon, 99 Pride Reserve, and NV Calliope Tokay): Served blind after 30min of air. Light crimson in color with fading at the rim. The wine showed a bit of barnyard at first but it blew off in 15 min. Pencil lead and herbs and draped in cassis. On the palete, the fruit jumped forward with black cherry and cassis. The mid palete was a bit light but paired well with the steak. Finish is a bit short, but that is being picky.
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Light ruby to the rim, I decanted this about an hour before the meal. It needed an additional hour to come into its own. Sfot, integratged tanins, ripe fruit, modest nose of black fruits and cherries. A lovely, satisfying wine.
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Retailer tasting; just short notes. (@ vdV): Beautiful and concentrated bouquet with dark and red berries and good oak. Some bitterness. Ok acidity and tannin. On the palate not as great as the bouquet promises.
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2/6/2024 - Jake Barnes wrote: 87 Points
From a bottle purchased at auction, with a base-neck fill. Reportedly stored in a passive subterranean cellar. Excellent cork that was a bit spongy and crumbly but only soaked three-quarters of the way up and came out fully intact with the Durand. Decanted for sediment and served.
Very dark in the glass, showing garnet at the edge and while pouring. Initially, it had a nice nose of decaying leaves and indistinct aged fruit. It was not heavily concentrated but not at all dried out. Sweet on the attack, showing thinning, aged black fruits, bitters, and orange zest on the palate with a bright vein of acidity and dusty tannins. It had a very nice mouthfeel. An hour of air made the most of this bottle allowing the bitters notes to give way to some fresher red fruit.
Nice on the whole, but in the final analysis, this was just a very well-kept old wine with fairly generic old wine characteristics. 12.5% ABV (good/**/15/87)
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11/25/2023 - englishman's claret wrote: 87 Points
Followed for a few hours, this shows some pleasant raspberry and smoky cedar, but much of the rest of the notes are simply brett-derived. There’s not much wine underneath and the palate’s wooly tannins and modest depth corroborate that.
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7/15/2023 - Ruach Likes this wine: 91 Points
This is drinking remarkably smoothly for me. Opened the bottle about an hour before drinking and decanted to glasses 15 minutes before drinking. It still had some farm funkiest at the start but that went away really quickly. Aromas of dark red fruits, plums and cherries. A beautiful ruby color. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I plan to do a vertical tasting with the 2015 vintage in the next hour.
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5/22/2023 - jviz wrote: 92 Points
Agree that this was fully mature. Quick pour from the top of the bottle. Tobacco leaf, blackcurrant and some green pepper not often seen in this vintage. Not the finest 89 but ready to drink and quite good.
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1/25/2023 - Vinumming & Ahhing Likes this wine: 90 Points
Branaire Ducru Vertical (The Market Brasserie at the Intercontinental at the O2, London): This takes a little time to get going but charms when it does, this is fully evolved and has a slight liquorice character that I found in none of the other wines, fruit on the palate is plummy and warming. Good job.
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1/21/2023 - novie1234 wrote: 90 Points
Fully mature and probably on the backside of the drinking window. Gave a few minutes of air to blow off initial funk and it showed ok. Not great, probably not good - just ok. Nose was resolved I to the deep earth and layers of mineral and tabacco. I was more impressed by the nose than on the palate. It felt weak at times. Acid was there. It certainly was fresh but the core of resolved silky tannin and fruit was underwhelming.
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11/16/2022 - Coastalnative Likes this wine: 93 Points
From half bottle. Perfectly stored. Took a few minutes to open up. Could be nothing but Bordeaux. Light bret on the nose with deep red forest fruits, fresh cigar, iron and freshly turned soil.
Slightly tannic (it is an 89 after all) but very resolved. I imagine this will be in the same place for the next 10-15 years. Excellent stuff.
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11/28/2021 - brooklynguy wrote:
Decanted off the sediment at 4, and the nose was so lovely and open that I put it back in the bottle until 7, an hour before drinking. The wine is a perfectly lovely mature Bdx and it’s a pleasure to drink but it’s an average wine, at best. It shows a fundamental lack of balance in the spirity nose - alcohol listed at 12.7 but it shows higher. The nose shows some soil and leather and fruit, but without definition and pungency. Same on the palate, where although the wine is pleasant and mature, it is without pungency and articulation, and a bit weak on the finish.
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11/13/2021 - BAJRiley Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dinner at Aria, Sydney. Appearance: dark ruby, some garnet and modest bricking. Some development showing but not as much as I expected.
Nose: restrained blackcurrant, pencil shavings and mossy earth showed first. With time came some redcurrant, cedar, chocolate and spice.
Palate: medium bodied. Redcurrant and raspberry. Noticeable but velvety tannins. Acidity hasn't faded too much. Good complexity and balance and a persistent finish. Based on this bottle it is still drinking well.
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4/20/2021 - Barsacpinci Likes this wine:
Drank over 2 days. Decanted for 2 hours. Garnet color with a fair amount of bricking. When first decanted, a really strong poopy nose that blew off mostly. Still surprised to continue to get a bit of bretty nose even on the second day. Nice dark black raspberry flavors on the palate with some acidity left. It was a bit thin on the mid-palate leaving me wanting more from the wine. It went OK with rack of lamb but I would have preferred a more robust wine. Finish was quite nice and lingering showing more lead and cedar. Overall, the wine was a bit past prime maybe by five years and I've had better examples of '89 Saint Juliens.
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4/19/2021 - Collector1855 wrote: 95 Points
During a St.Julien dinner. Expressive nose also here with forest floor notes, game, dark fruit. Full bodied palate, nicely dissolved tannins. Very good but not as polished as the best wines of the night.
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11/21/2020 - dcwino wrote: 92 Points
Fully mature nose medium expressive nose displaying subtle red fruit, plum, a hint of cherry, cedar, sous bois and earth. Medium concentration, nicely layered subtle red fruit, silky and polished, good acidity, earthy mineral, and a medium long subtle red fruit driven finish. Nothing remarkable but drinking nicely.
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10/23/2020 - fontaine wrote: 92 Points
Vraiment une belle bouteille. Textbook vieux bordeaux. Sur des notes de terres, de sous-bois, champignons, mine de crayon. Comme je les aimes.
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5/5/2020 - WineGuyX Likes this wine: 90 Points
This is very elegant and correct, with nothing not to like, but it probably doesn't have as much character as it did 10 years ago. Beautiful hints of mint and black currant in the nose as well as wood spice. Medium-full bodied and still somewhat powerful. Better on it's on for the nuance than with braised oxtail (though, truly excellent acidity was a beautiful foil to the oxtail). 90
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4/19/2020 - AdamHitchcock Likes this wine: 92 Points
Medium ruby with some bricking. Nice balance between tertiary (cedar, tobacco) and primary (red fruit) aromas. Wine is still pretty tannic but well integrated. Complex wine with a nice finish that seems like it could age for many more years.
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1/23/2020 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 91 Points
From an owc. It took a good 2 hour decant to get this going. Dark fruit, tobacco, and iron on the nose. Palate was powerful and fresh with depth. Perhaps its just missing nuance and complexity but still a very enjoyable claret.
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11/28/2019 - tbabes wrote: 94 Points
The fill was into the neck and the cork was sound; opened an hour before thanksgiving dinner and enjoyed over the course of the evening. A medium garnet with some bricking. An alluring bouquet, with tertiary notes of cigar box, Forrest floor, dried plums, and hints of black truffle. Medium bodied, with impressive depth, pleasing texture, and a long and savory finish. This bottle was fully mature, and was drinking perfectly!
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8/23/2019 - "Rhône Rider" wrote: 92 Points
Rubinrød med oransje kant. Moden vin med Tørket frukt, tobakk, moreller, litt vanilje, og ørlite lakris. Tydelig struktur, men godt moden. Jeg tenker 1990-95 evt 1989. 89 er riktig. Branaire Dicru. Frisk og veldig saftig og balansert. Lang. Ørlite over topp, men veldig flott vin. 92
Drikk opp!
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8/14/2019 - chcook Likes this wine:
Cork wet 3/4th way up but intact. tonight this seemed more primary than my notes indicate last time. dark fruit and pencil shavings dominate the nose. on the palate there is stil considerable tannin, but integrating and nt nearly as fierce as on release. i am thinking another 5-10 yrs will be good for this one.
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4/13/2019 - Bernt Olav wrote: 93 Points
God fill. åpnet 1 time før konsum. Klassisk og flott moden aroma med preg av espresso, tobakk, blyant, sur-søte bær og ett fint krydret preg. Intens og krydret aroma som tilfredsstiller alle forventninger til en moden Bdx av god kvalitet. I munn er den medium+ fyldig med godt integrerte tanniner og sammen med god lengde gjør at denne vinen møter forventningene. Må ha vært en perfekt flaske. Fungerte utmerket til en saftig grillet entrecote. 93-94 poeng. Poengene må sees i sammenheng med at dette er ett av mine favoritt slott med tanke på kvalitet og value.
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1/14/2019 - tbabes wrote: 90 Points
The fill was base neck and the cork was pristine; popped, poured and consumed over the course of 4 hours. A dark ruby core with some bricking at the rim; notes of dried plums, roasted fennel and cigar box. Medium-bodied, soft and round texture, good depth, nice delineation and focus. This is fully mature, and is a perfect claret with dinner!
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9/6/2018 - Paul D wrote: 92 Points
1989 Bordeaux at Piccolino (Piccolino, Exchange Square, London): Red fruit, cedar, tobacco, some nice development, medium/full bodied, savoury red fruit, quite rich, touch of fruit cake, lovely vibrant acidity, good length finish
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9/6/2018 - SimonG wrote: 93 Points
1989 Bordeaux @ Piccolino (Piccolino, Liverpool Street Stn, London): Lovely, red fruited and cedar cigar box St J nose. Very smooth and silky. Lovely red fruit, cigar box and a touch of sandlewood too. Long and harmonious. Very attractive without quite the depth and extra plushness of Palmer. Better than a bottle in 2011. ****
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6/16/2018 - BSA Likes this wine: 93 Points
2h decant. Cork 1/2 wet. Fully mature bottle, though distinctly St Julien. Some figs, leather, tobacco, earthy spices on top of the smooth red and ark berries. Detailed and very well integrated tannins. Fine, medium body. Still showing the elegance we detected 3-4 years back. I guess drink by 2020.
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5/31/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 91 Points
A beautiful bottle at full maturity, the wine is soft, medium bodied, elegant and fresh. The ripe, red fruit notes are front and center. The lively finish is soft, polished, refined and complete, with its earthy, tobacco leaf and cocoa touches. There is nothing to be gained by holding this any longer.
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5/5/2018 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Hommage a DryCab - Washington Wines release; 5/3/2018-5/5/2018 (Various spots in Walla Walla): It seems I am growing up in my Bordeaux drinking. Last time I had this wine I felt like the new world ones def outshone it. This time I appreciated the difference in style. More library and cigar and wet forest floor here. Maybe right on the edge of being on the downturn (perhaps even over that edge), but still drinking nicely.
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1/12/2018 - AudunG wrote: 91 Points
Aromas of chocolate, dark tobacco, smoke and some iodine. Soft and velvety with sweet fruit on the palate. Reminded such of an east bank wine more than a west bank. The tobacco and smoke aromas, however, is something that I associate with a 1989 west bank. Feminin and elegant, like a Saint-Julien should be. The wine kept well in the glass for several hours. Lacks the concentration and class of the best from the commune, but all together a lovely mature wine.
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3/21/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 87 Points
Slightly past fully mature, the wine is medium bodied, with more interesting things going on in the nose, than on the palate, as the fruit is starting to fade, and the finish is short. Drink up if you have any bottles you've been waiting on.
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1/23/2017 - Paaj wrote:
Still with a very good colour. The wine has kept up very well, with soft tannins and fruitness. A complex Bordeaux with the characteristic earthy after taste.
Had it decanted for appr 2 hours. Very limited solid material.
Drank for dinner together with PR and family. Food was reindeer and mixed root vegetables. Very good fit
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1/20/2017 - Seltzer wrote:
Decant for 90 min
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11/4/2016 - LW31 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Total surprise. I thought it would be rather mute but it was very fresh and lively. Dark purple red color. Cedar, blackberry, silky texture. Really lovely and showing well. Needed 1 hour to decant to emerge as it was a touch sharp and closed on opening.
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10/9/2016 - jmtierney3rd wrote: 93 Points
Color is deep maroon with orange at the edge. Has no browning that you'd expect with a wine of this age. I decanted the bottle and took notes at three ranges. Bottle developed gorgeously.
30 minutes in: If you have ever eaten at a David Chang restaurant you will be familiar with his signature Saam sauce. That spicy umami bomb is pure and identical on the nose. Pallet is somewhat dead as expected for this wine at this age. Alcohol has rounded out nicely. Fruit is almost all gone but you get plenty of its natural sweetness behind the oak. You can taste the oak and the "age" before anything else. The finish is medium with a nice touch of acidity. It's the only acidity left in the wine. 87-89pts
After the first hour of decanting the nose has settled and the fruit on the pallet came out balancing out the oak perfectly. There is some spice on the finish now that accompanies the even stronger (and pleasant) acidity. 90-91pts
At 90 minutes of decanting the umami has settled down and that great Bordeaux fruit is now shining brightly on the nose. Fresh blackberry takes over in a wine that now looks 20 years younger. On the pallet the balance of fruit, oak and acid are in perfect harmony. This wine is singing and where the bottle will be finished. 93-94pts.
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9/18/2016 - AudunG wrote: 90 Points
Real barnyard and leather aromas here. Fruity and elegant in the mouth, so not very tpical for 89.
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9/11/2016 - g-man wrote: 87 Points
No formal note taken but a little disappointing. Not bad but for the producer and vintage I was expecting more. Decanted for 2 hours. Initially strong bell pepper on the nose but quickly blew off. Some cigar and earthy notes on the palate. Rather thin and has not really developed much complexity.
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9/3/2016 - HaavardR wrote: 85 Points
Pn'p. Corck intact but getting moldy. Instant nose of forest bed, cellar and dried fruit. Some mature cheese, perhaps. Inredible aromatics, but the wine is too old to deliver. Short finish. Fruity moutful (still recognise the style), but dies quickly. Served with deer, mushroom sauce and root vegetables - winning combo.
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7/2/2016 - liber Likes this wine: 91 Points
22nd of 24, decanted an hour, perfect level, travel beginning on cork, previous notes from 02 initially VG, latterly VGI to F - this bottle browning, decent bouquet, attractive cassis, earth with some tobacco, not particularly nuanced v HB 02; medium bodied, decent length and balance, just starting to show its age on strength of this bottle (bottle last October much more youthful). Just F (17.5).
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4/29/2016 - WineGuyX wrote: 88 Points
Nose of mint and charred wood. A little singed. Medium-full bodied. This is hanging in there but clearly in decline. Drink now. 88
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1/23/2016 - BSA wrote: 91 Points
Purchased some more bottles following my Sept 2015 encounter with this wine. Again cork 1/2 wet. This time the wine was slower to open up, but when I did I felt was prehaps sooner to fade. Same notes though, just less detailed and interesting. The prior bottle stood out much better. Less cool and less elegant. Still clearly a nice claret and awlays an experience to drik 25+ years wine. Paired quite well with the tenderloine of moose, although I think some more flesh had complemented the meat even better. So 1/3 bottles great so far.
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12/28/2015 - EirikM wrote: 90 Points
pretty consistent with previous notes, perhaps a bit more rustic than I remembered it to be.
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12/20/2015 - HPaulus Likes this wine: 91 Points
Should be decanted at least 8h before drinking.
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10/31/2015 - EirikM wrote: 91 Points
I found this to be a bit better than my previous bottle. A bit more weight and power, and if although not outright elegant, at least there's some charm.
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9/11/2015 - BSA Likes this wine: 93 Points
2h decant. Cork 1/2 wet. Some figs, leather, earthiness and some berries. Detailed and very well integrated tannins. A bit cool and good finish. One of the more elegant bdx I have had. A lovely Branaire that paired very well with Parmigiano Reggiano (30 mos) and, then, lamb rack.
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8/13/2015 - chcook Likes this wine:
PNP. Cork wet halfway. Color garnet with bricking edges. Nose unmistakably mature Bordeaux with leather cedar tobacco and plummy fruit. Swishing shows a tea and tannin tart all secondary palate, but the tannin is totally integrated and soft. Sipping shows more palate weight and hides the astringency. Med long super polished finish. Doubt that there is an upside to waiting. This is in a perfect spot. Grab that corkscrew and find one 😋
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7/12/2015 - EirikM wrote: 90 Points
Slightly austere and at its best with food. A bit thin on the mid-palate, but at the same time good intensity. Mature, but still solid cassis fruit. Pretty high acidity. Drank well also on day two.
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7/1/2015 - paulst Likes this wine: 90 Points
Austere with some light cedary blackberry.
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6/8/2015 - aajder wrote: 90 Points
Advancing color. The nose shows dried flowers, cedar, herbs and sweet red fruits. This is medium full bodied on the palate, with good concentration and lovely finesse. The long finish shows elegant tannins and good breadth.
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5/7/2015 - MC2 Wines wrote:
John comes to town! (Amali (115 E 60th Street, NY, NY)): More glycerin flavor than some of the other bordeaux we're drinking. It's interesting - with the line-up we have (quite a few of the older ones) I find it's tough to differentiate very much. This was very similar to the Pichon and Clos d'Estournel and Mission Haut Brion. Perhaps because I'm less sophisticated in my Bordeaux drinking. Fine wine, but not quite my style. Enjoyed the new world ones we had at the end a bit more.
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3/21/2015 - austincarty Likes this wine: 90 Points
Dry cork. No ullage. Moderate sediment. Slightly brown but bags of fruit on nose. More tannin than I expected at first but in retreat from about halfway. Plenty of fruit throughout. Should have decanted earlier
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12/20/2014 - Marlène wrote: 93 Points
Great, love dit with lamb, evolved in a most elegant way. All in finesse.
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10/8/2014 - paulst Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nicely matured; sour-sweet blackberry; nice finish.
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9/17/2014 - paulst Likes this wine: 92 Points
Structured; light nose; good texture; cedar, earth and light blackberry, some tobacco and light licorice; moderate finish; tannins are there.
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8/10/2014 - Amerique wrote: 93 Points
Previous notes apply except black cherry fruit was more expansive and showed more depth and richness. Great wine.
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8/9/2014 - davidspieker wrote: 88 Points
Aroma of leather and earth. Soft raspberry and earth flavors with pencil lead. Fine tannin on a lengthy finish.
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7/26/2014 - Bob H wrote:
Similar in color to the Bahans Haut-Brion, and also a day 2 glass from a bottle opened for dinner last night.
"Cleaner" nose than the Bahans, and also less interesting unless you can't abide some funkiness with your wine. Mostly blackberry fruit on the nose.
Really smooth on the palate, not a sharp edge to be found in this fully mature wine. Sweet-ripe black fruits; interestingly enough, this was the least interesting of the three reds we had last night, but it has really blossomed overnight.
Like the Bahans, my last bottle.
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5/29/2014 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank at Davy's
Classic claret with a wonderful complex nose and palate. A joy to drink.
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4/25/2014 - davidspieker wrote: 88 Points
Aroma of leather and earth. Some raspberry and earth flavors with pencil lead. Lots of acidity with soft, drying tannins on a lengthy finish.
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4/13/2014 - davidspieker wrote: 90 Points
Aroma of leather and earth. Consistent flavors with decent red fruit and pencil lead. Firm, drying tannins on a lengthy finish.
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3/5/2014 - steinbrl12 wrote: 89 Points
still drinking well but somewhat past peak. Medium body, ggod, fruit/nose, little tannin.
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3/3/2014 - davidspieker wrote: 89 Points
No decant. Leather, earth and pencil lead flavors. Tannins were a little firm possibily indicating a longer life. Very little sediment.
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1/12/2014 - Cheungtp Likes this wine: 94 Points
Although there's bricking on the rim, it still appears younger than it's actual age with ruby red core, and the bouquet still has notes of cassis, red fruits and flowers, intertwined with pencil lead, spice box, cigar wrapper and herbs. Medium month feel, leather, burnt wood, cigar ashes, dried cherry meat, tasty and round. Tannins have been gracefully integrated, and lead to short/medium finish filled with tobacco smoke, spice and bitter dark cocoa. This is my last bottle, and grateful this '89 gem left a long lasting impression.
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12/25/2013 - Old Course 72 wrote: 91 Points
Drinking well after 2 hours, medium body, fragrant nose, smoky raspberry, cedar and floral notes, long excellent finish
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9/28/2013 - hautbrion Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very seductive wine - still drinking very well. Best nose after about 2 hours of decant, but flavors were enticing right after the pop. Lead pencil and leather on the nose, earthy with a surprisingly bright pepper spice on the mid-palate. This wine kept drawing me in for something new. We drank the dregs (chocolate notes appeared - perhaps from the bitterness?)...and that's saying something. Well two things: the wine was good and there was very little sediment for its age. Still in very good shape - drink up!
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8/8/2013 - laetulos wrote: 88 Points
Once again this was outshone by a cheaper and younger Bordeaux, Chasse-Spleen in this case. The wine has faded noticeably from last year, drink up!
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7/16/2013 - laetulos wrote: 91 Points
I'm still liking this wine, very smooth, almost no alcohol. Light in color, a bit golden around the edges. The wine is showing its age and should probably be drank soon.
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7/6/2013 - Cheungtp Likes this wine: 91 Points
Perhaps due to PnP, not enough aeration time affected the tasting and the score a bit this time. Matured light ruby in color, with bonquet of cigar, spice, red fruits. With about an hour of air time, much fuller on the nose, added in earth and truffle scents. On the palate, secondary naunces come into play nicely, old leather, tobacco, more truffle. Tannins are still holding up but appearance is soft and round, giving it just a touch of grippy sense. Though the finish is shorter than expected. One more bottle left, will save it for a bit of time before popping. Cheers
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4/9/2013 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank at Davy's
Incredibly smooth classic claret. The forest floor soon blew off leaving a rich aroma of earth, spice, tobacco, red berries and vanilla. Rich smooth lovely palate.
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3/2/2013 - Cheungtp Likes this wine: 94 Points
If it was served blind, wouldn't have guessed this is a 24-year-old gem. Dark ruby red, with no bricking on the rim, fantastic nose of cassis, green pepper, earth, pencil lead, asian spice and vanilla on the nose. Entry to the palate is gentle and smooth, with notes of plum, tobacco leaf and burnt cherry. You can still feel the tannins coasting the palate, but its soft and gracefully tasty. The finish of this medium/full bodied gem is filled with tobacco and a light touch of marmalade. This treat is simply brilliant, and the bottle condition was impeccable, certainly an important factor.
The wine keeps evolving thru the evening, adding some secondary nuances, chocolate, cigar box, burnt leather, with a hint of bitterness.
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2/3/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 90 Points
Dark fruit on the nose. Red fruit on the palate with floral notes. Dense and full.
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12/26/2012 - davidspieker wrote: 89 Points
Minimal aroma. Tobacco, leather, and cedar flavors with some dark fruit. Nice acidity with fine, silky tannin.
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12/10/2012 - laetulos Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice color, came together after being open an hour, did not improve really with decanting and faded by the next day. Good wine, ready to drink in my book.
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12/8/2012 - Saint Stephen wrote: 91 Points
Lovely aged Bordeaux with all the right notes, just not particularly concentrated or mouth-filling - gives the impression of a very nice but slightly dilute drink. Second of two, glad I had them and reinforces my preference for Bordeaux over 15 or even 20 years.
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11/17/2012 - Tree512 wrote: 91 Points
Finally ready for prime time. Never give up on BDX - eventually it all matures. Took 23 years for this one, where 18 clearly wasn't enough. Loads of tobacco tending towards green pepper for those disposed to finding greenness, but with balanced tannins and solid red fruit.
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11/9/2012 - blanquito wrote: 92 Points
Resolved, silky, suave, pretty. Still got some good color. The nose is lovely with rose petals, sweet black tea, some baking spices, sweet-n-sour black cherry. The palate puts on some weight with air, there's some serious tongue-coating glyercine to go along with terrific zesty acidity. Mouthfilling weight, and a long tangy finish with some drying tannins. Very nice and enjoyable, if a bit one dimensional. This is drinking well, but will easily go another 5 years, maybe even more, though I doubt it will get more profound than it is today. 92-93 pts. UPDATE: the fruit started to fade even in the closed bottle after it had been open 3 hours or so, so it may need drinking sooner than I thought.
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10/24/2012 - austincarty wrote: 91 Points
Cconsumed in company of H and MB (J). Tiny sediment but decanted about 15 minutes before drinking. Great fruit on nose and palate from the start. Depth and evolving complexity of soft fruit and vanilla flavours with no aggressive tannins. I had feared it might be over the hill but not at all. Decant the next bottle earlier.
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7/27/2012 - misteralex wrote: 87 Points
Expected more - may have lost a little life over the years.
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5/13/2012 - Chainthroer wrote: 92 Points
Yellowing and slight browning at the rim. Dark garnet, with some bricking. Excellent aromas of blackberry, cherry, mint, cigar box, cedar - complex. Same fruit flavors, along with tobacco and a touch of dark chocolate. Elegant and a good concentration of fruit in the mouth. Wine has been well stored at 56 degrees from the time of its futures delivery. I do not see it as being over the hill. It seems to be at its apogee now. A medium to long soft and composed finish. It's nice to drink a 12.7% alcohol Bordeaux from time to time. Pairs quite nice with roasted rack of lamb. LATER: I did a vacu-vin and 48 hours later the wine still had vibrancy and strength left; indicating there is some time left for this wine.
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5/4/2012 - overhill wrote: 90 Points
Bordeaux night at Matt's (with wives) (Matt's house): This showed well considering that it was up against the 1982 Pichon Lalande. Beautiful, complex nose of muenster cheese, blackberries, and menthol. In the mouth I got espresso, ground coffee, some black fruit, and some bitter steminess. Once it hits the mid palette the flavors and fruit fade quickly and, if this is any indication of other bottles, should be consumed in the near-term. For me the nose was a 92-93 and the palette an 87-88.
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5/1/2012 - Easter Everywhere wrote: 92 Points
Very good, tobacco, earth, minerals, funk, some fruit
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5/1/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 86 Points
Light in style, tobacco and strawberry notes lead to a light wine which seems to be dropping its fruit. Drink up.
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4/11/2012 - rdsboca wrote: 94 Points
I drank this blind at a friend's house. It was already decanted. I started with the normal sniff... I stated France - check. I stated - Bordeaux (check). I stated 1989 or 1990 ( check). I guessed St Julien (check). Then, I went blank. Least I got that far with my lucky streak. The wine was still very youthful, with vibrant mature cherry, some tobacco and a lovely finish with smooth sweet tannins. It still has plenty of life left but was in my sweet spot for yumminess.
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12/31/2011 - burgundybrooks wrote: 93 Points
Size: Magnum Brick red color. The nose was closed with a little mustiness. The taste was closed with a bit of sweaty sock - it had been open about 4 hours in the bottle not decanted. A couple of hours later, the spicy soft tannins and cedar became apparent. Another hour and dark fruit emerged. I wish i could give more impressions but it was quite a night of tasting!!
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12/13/2011 - SimonG wrote:
Christmas WIMPS (Bordeaux Table) (The Ledbury, London.): Classic St Julien cigar box and cedar nose. Sweet fruited. Quite lush and sexy upfront but doesn't quite deliver this promise on the mid-palate and finish. Very nice though but shaded in the company. ***1/2
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9/18/2011 - rdsboca wrote: 97 Points
Dinner at MB at The Omphoy (Palm Beach, FL): This tied WOTN for me. Nose of cedar, some cut grass and mature cherry. Great roasted cherry on the palate with bright acidity, some fresh kirsch and some young plum flavors. So well balanced. It was like drinking old and new fruit in a blend. Fascinating. The wine was rich and young overall. Some picked up some blue cheese on the nose and mid-palate but I didn't get that earthiness at all. I was focused on the laser-like fruit expression. This wine was close to Nirvana.
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7/31/2011 - tomandlu wrote: 89 Points
Decanted about 1 hour. Lovely, clear, mature garnet-red color. Complex and effusive nose of cedar, tobacco, cassis, tea and herbs with some spicy hints. A tad light and drying on the palate with the fruit beginning to fade - but only slightly - and the residual tannin beginning to take over. Where was that tell-tale Branaire chocolate? A very nice wine that seems to be starting to fade. This bottle had been in my cellar since 1995 and the cork was perfect. Served with roast beef, sauteed zucchini and roasted potatoes.
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3/6/2011 - Bootjack Likes this wine: 89 Points
Ready to drink. Opened and shared at this year’s Open the Bottle Night with some other fantastic wines – 4 couples. This wine was soft and approachable but definitely on the downward slide. Drink up if you have any left. That being said, great fruit with the classic Bordeaux cedar and Lead. Tannins are gone or very soft.
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12/19/2010 - Alex H wrote: 88 Points
Combined bday dinner; 12/19/2010-12/20/2010 (Tornado): sweet cassis and black berry fruits. Very forward and enjoyable but still very balanced. Some brambles and black spice.
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12/18/2010 - Paul S wrote: 93 Points
30-40-50 Dinner (Music and Wines of the 1960s, 70s and 80s) (Bounce, Iluma): Excellent. The youngest claret on show, but this was drinking as well as any of the other wines - at quite a perfect place now I would think. The warmth of the 1989 vintage was certainly reflected in the wine. It had a lovely nose, with rich, warm notes of stewed meat and ripe cassis. Same thing on the palate. Nice fleshiness, with ripe juicy cassis notes, warmly delicious spiciness and pincpricks of roasted capsicum. Finish was succulent and juicy, with some coffee notes at its tail. Three St Juliens by chance, and they all showed some family characteristic in the friendly yumminess of the wines. This was perhaps the most mordern of the three, it was surprisingly velvety and resolved for such a young wine, but it had no lack of breed for all its forwardness. Delicious.
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11/22/2010 - dssmith wrote: 90 Points
The wine continues to drink well. There is a nice balance of fruit and tanin. This is an enjoyable wine.
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10/15/2010 - Saint Stephen wrote: 92 Points
First in a broken vertical tasting of Branaire Ducru, the 89 was my favorite of the night - likely not because of the inherent quality of the wine but because of my preference for aged Bordeaux - even the 00 was strapping and felt like it would require at least another 5 years, more likely 10 to come together for my palate.
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10/14/2010 - salil wrote: 92 Points
Really delicious - the fruit's still quite fresh and youthful; black cherries, plums and red fruits accented by herbal/leafy notes, graphite and some faint bretty/leathery notes that add complexity rather than detracting from the original flavours here. Very elegant with a sense of restrained power, drinking beautifully with tannins mostly resolved and a medium weight, silken mouthfeel.
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6/4/2010 - godx wrote: 90 Points
Bill's Monthly Lunch - June 2010 (Vancouver, BC): Tasted blind - medium to deep ruby in colour with an ever so slight tinge of bricking. As Coop said, there was a good blast of rubber tires on the nose with some spice and Bordeaux funk. Black liquorice on the palate with dark red fruits. There's some structure left but I don't see this getting any better. Drink now. Excellent.
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5/2/2010 - nbenoit wrote: 80 Points
Nez : boisé, fruit confis; bouche : tanins discret, poivre...ce vin m'a déçu. Je crois qu'il est bien passé sa meilleure période.
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2/7/2010 - glg wrote: 88 Points
Needed some time to open - but definitely fading. More red fruits than dark ones. Fully resolvled tanins (no surprise) - decent length to the finish.
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2/4/2010 - cct wrote: 89 Points
Served and scored blind:
Beautiful ruby and appearing more advanced than the other wines tonight. Violets, herbal notes, with some cassis, a bit thinner on the palate than others. At late peak. 89 pts
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11/8/2009 - MRichman wrote:
Drinking very well. Mature, broad with sweet full fruit, iron, herb. Good complexity. A very nice and smooth wine.
B+
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6/19/2009 - Jeff Leve wrote: 90 Points
Is light in color. Tobacco, cassis, spice, and coffee aromatics are a pleasure to sniff. Light and elegant in style. The silky mouth feel ends with a blackberry filled finish. This wine is fully mature and gives no reason for owners to wait any longer. Branaire Ducru is another property that is producing markedly better wines today than previously
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3/16/2009 - dssmith wrote: 90 Points
This is a lovely wine. It has a pleasant red color, some bouquet. The fruit is subdued, the tanins are a bit pronounced, but not harsh or bitter. This appears to be a classic bourdeaux. A wine I would buy again
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3/3/2009 - davidspieker wrote: 88 Points
Decanted with minimal sediment collected. Tobacco, leather, and cedar aromas/flavors. Minimal dark fruit, but nice acidity and fullness.
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2/25/2009 - Amerique wrote: 92 Points
Very dry, medium-bodied, tight black cherry fruit with loads of leather, gamey, and spice flavors, very ready to drink, hoped for more expansive fruit but had great Bordeaux characteristics
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11/22/2008 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Regular dinner group (@ JvT Mature Bordeaux.): Barnyard bouquet in a pleasant way. Mature, but full bodied and complex. Good acidity. Do not store it for much longer. Great NOW!
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10/25/2008 - SteveHyde wrote:
Time to drink up. Black cherry color with subtle bricking. Lovely nose of mature wine - dark berries, mineral, sous bois -- a touch of barnyard and wet leather. Slow-o'd for 3-4 hours before decanting. Bottle was stood up for a week or so before opening. Very slight sediment collected.
Overall impression is of a wine that is just past peak. Fruit notes are a bit blurred, lacking in the mid-palate. It has a pleasant sweetness to it, and enough of the character of an aged Bordeaux to make it interesting, but . . . it lacks precision, lacks finish, lacks weight. If I were a numbers guy, I'd rate this one an 87 I guess. Something in that range.
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10/5/2008 - davidspieker wrote: 89 Points
Doesn't look like a 19 year old bottle of wine. Aging very well. Earth and tar on the nose. Subtle fruit flavors with significant cedar, leather and earth. Finish lasts forever.
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6/28/2008 - the godfather wrote: 94 Points
drinking perfect, no decant, just wonderful
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5/25/2008 - cortoncharlie wrote: 91 Points
This bottle probably starting its way down. All the typical charateristics of a fully mature claret. Lacks power, concentration and complexity but yet so charming.
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3/8/2008 - espia wrote:
Drank w/ Pedro A at Zaytinya. Delicious classic bdx aromas of cedar and cassis. Very nice, elegant wine.
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9/28/2007 - PurpleHaze wrote: 90 Points
Lovely. Initially a little closed, this wine opened up to reveal a complex nose and palate of sweet tobacco, leather, earth, gentle cedar and soft fruit. Tannins still in play with a really elegant balance. A 40 second finish. A very pleasant surprise.
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9/3/2007 - PatrikO wrote: 92 Points
Don't think this wine has peaked yet, but it is an excellent drink now. A big wine, both on nose and palet, tobacco, tar and black fruits in abundence.
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9/1/2007 - kevin h wrote: 92 Points
Lovely wine, big gamey, tarry nose and a similar flavour with plenty of brambly fruit concentration and a lingering finish. This is just coming into maturity but probably needs a couple of years till it peaks and should last quite a long time after that. The tar makes it a little rustic overall but it is still a delicious wine.
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7/27/2007 - cortoncharlie wrote: 91 Points
Very nice and ready for business. Drink up
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7/25/2007 - MRichman wrote:
Branaire Ducru in NYC (Il Corso): Sweet tannins. Strong with a little weak center, friendly with dark flesh. Good maturity with powerful fruit.
B+
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5/19/2007 - Goldstone wrote: 93 Points
Drunk at Runny's birthday dinner at Chez Patrick, Sun Street in Hong Kong. Still a very deep colour. Superb nose of mushroom, damp earth, forest floor, cedar cones, blackberries, raspberries.....lots of layers and multi-dimensional. A good nose indeed. Good fruit and lots of balance and poise in the mouth, lots of depth and harmonious complexity. It has silence creating qualities. Excellent length. An absolutely classic top notch St. Julien. Went very well with the cheese. All the more impressive for having to follow a Grange 1971 which was one of the finest bottles of wine I have ever drunk.
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3/16/2007 - DLT wrote: 87 Points
Plummy, brick red color. On the nose, smoke, leather, lead pencil with some red cherries and cedar. Palate follows the nose, with red cherries, cedar and nicely integrated tannins on the finish. A little tart and thin on the mid palate. Solid wine with some headroom yet.
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1/9/2007 - Wine Bill wrote: 87 Points
Good concentration, ripe blackberries, earthy tones, a lot of juice, some chocolate, soft.
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1/7/2007 - Tree512 wrote: 88 Points
Good, typical Bordeaux but little complexity. Still needs more time to develop secondaries.
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1/6/2007 - jkoenen wrote: 85 Points
Bordeaux 1989 (and the rest...) @ Peter V. (Netherlands): Spicy, good fruit and concentration, but drying in the aftertaste, not convincing. Slightly disjointed. 15/20
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9/1/2006 - DelYap wrote: 89 Points
Disappointing as this is one of my favorite Chateau. Fully open nose, but acidic and uninteresting palate. Not a good showing.
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4/17/2006 - Nanda wrote: 90 Points
Tasting Dinner at Sweets and Savouries (Chicago, IL): A nice and classic Medoc nose of red fruit, minerals, and spice. Palate follows the nose and adds some graphite. Nicely textured. A good wine, but overshadowed by the Lynch and Clerc tonight.
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4/15/2006 - CamWheeler wrote: 90 Points
Just the slightest fading around the rim, but a deep youthful crimson core. The nose was showing cedar, cassis, pencil shavings, a touch of florality and dusty notes. Palate has good structure and balance. A fine wine.
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2/17/2006 - cortoncharlie wrote: 89 Points
Lovely color and nose of lead pencil right off the bat. very mature and rounded in the mouth. not full bodied but pleasant. for me it lacked a little bit of sweetness. maybe the fruit is fading a little bit.
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11/25/2005 - SteveHyde wrote:
Opened for an unconventional Thanksgiving meal: steaks on the grill, mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts. To my palate, this is perfectly mature. Well integrated, with soft tanins, fruit that seems to have lost a step since my last bottle, and more noticable acid that actually helped with the food. Came across as lighter bodied than I recall.
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11/19/2005 - MRichman wrote:
St. Julien Fest (NYC): Smooth, silky. Very nice fruit. Some darkness. Well integrated. Firing on all cylinders - drinking great. Open. some olive, tobacco.
A--
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1/17/2005 - ErikK wrote: 88 Points
Dinner with friends (including 82 Pichon, 99 Pride Reserve, and NV Calliope Tokay): Served blind after 30min of air. Light crimson in color with fading at the rim. The wine showed a bit of barnyard at first but it blew off in 15 min. Pencil lead and herbs and draped in cassis. On the palete, the fruit jumped forward with black cherry and cassis. The mid palete was a bit light but paired well with the steak. Finish is a bit short, but that is being picky.
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3/6/2004 - SteveHyde wrote: 89 Points
Light ruby to the rim, I decanted this about an hour before the meal. It needed an additional hour to come into its own. Sfot, integratged tanins, ripe fruit, modest nose of black fruits and cherries. A lovely, satisfying wine.
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12/17/1995 - Zweder wrote: 90 Points
Retailer tasting; just short notes. (@ vdV): Beautiful and concentrated bouquet with dark and red berries and good oak. Some bitterness. Ok acidity and tannin. On the palate not as great as the bouquet promises.
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