Nose of saddle leather, mocha, cigar box, black berry, black currants, floral notes, and forest floor, same on the palate, big body, at peak so drink up, mouth filling and complex flavors, with a long, long, lovely flavor and terrific aftertaste, note the cork and sediment on the bottle in the photo.
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In its prime. Perfume currant and hints of blackberry and leather. Mushroom wife when first opened but burned off quickly to reveal round bouquet of flower and fruit. Not as much depth as expected and even after 90 minute decant mid level complexity.
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Bordeaux 1990 horizontal tasting (Fribourg): 1990 Bordeaux horizontal hosted by a private collector. 30 years down the road, the vintage comes across as bold and muscular, youthful and in general not yet open for business or at times closed. Highlighs included Figeac, Haut-Brion, Mouton, Calon Ségur – and to my surprise – Marquis de Terme. See tasting story for more take-aways and the complete line-up.
Tasting note Ripe, rather dark cherry type of fruit. There is a broader aromatic profile surrounding this but hard to disentangle given limited expressive power. Fresh and fruity palate, but with plenty of tannin that is in no way integrated. Another one for the needs-much-more-time basket.
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This showed nicely from start to finish. There’s a lot of coffee notes with cinnamon and red fruits. A little leather, it’s really classic, with some 5 spice, espresso, and red currant on the palate. Clearly right bank, and just a touch roasted, thanks to the vintage. Soft in texture, flattened out but expressive. I’m rather enthralled with it. 95
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How fun to taste this blind - the nose is soft and supple, full of smoke, caramel, old wood, and mellow dark fruit. Similar on the palate, with a hint of stem and cab franc-ish mineral pushing me toward St Emilion and away from Pomerol. The tannins have almost melted away. My guess was St. Emilion from somewhere on the edge of the village (Canon, Clos Fourtet, etc - but not Ausone) from 1989 or 1990.
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Colour, browning. Now in tertiary stage. Mocha/coffee/forest/tobacco. cocoa. right bank sweet merlot fruit holding. very fine soft tannins. Maybe at best 3-5 years ago
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Opened and left to rest. No need and frankly risky to decant as the wine is on the fragile side and definitely a drink sooner than later one. Well evolved, tertiary wine, forest floor, leathery. Healthy and with good fruit still in the back ground but lacks an energetic side ( as expected) and is a bit short on the finish. Solid 90 and a great experience for lovers of well evolved/mature wines but one should definitely attack this now. 90
Medium/full bodied, bright, fresh and juicy, with accents of smoke, truffle, flowers and forest notes that ride along with the red fruits. Soft in texture and volume, the wine is subtle and focuses on its bright red berry filled finish. This is probably at peak. So if you are sitting on a few bottles, break out the corkscrew.
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Very impressive showing from a period when the property apparently wasn't in the best shape. You wouldn't know it from tasting this. Pure red fruit with supremely refined silky tannins that outclassed some of the fancy Pomerols on the table in sheer refinement albeit not in complexity.
Right-Bank Classicals (Dobbs Ferry, Dale's House): I didn't like this initially as the bouquet was roasted and even a touch stewed, but it freshened up with some air time, and the nose took on an exotic vanilla and floral quality. The palate lacked the verve of the Magdelaine, and was also a bit chunky. Not bad, but not sure where this is going. B
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Popped an hour before serving and enjoyed with dinner over 1.5 hours. For a 1990 , this wine was more classically styled than expected tending toward earthy, herbaceous, cedar, and gravel notes. The wine is quite open and right in the plateau of its peek. Overall, this was quite enjoyable.
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My last; and drunk at the very end of its life. The truffly element recorded earlier is threatening to dominate and the acid balance is just turning into leanness. Clinging on to its excellent status by a thread and definitely for drinking up ASAP.
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Flickinger Warehouse Tasting (Chicago, IL): Although that lovely green herbaceousness that I love from St. Emilion isn't in full display here, there's no denying the awesomeness of this wine. It's certainly got lots of ripe fruit, but at the same time, it's not flabby or misshapen. Restrained and quite elegant, with some gravelly minerality on the finish too.
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From memory. Nice old lady. Took two hours to be at its best. Medium nose, nice palate and finish. Not over the hill, but not a blockbuster of traditional Bordeaux flavors.
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My previous bottle was opened nearly 7 years ago but the TN which I wrote then can be reproduced almost word for word. Once I had adjusted to the shock of its slightly rusty red colour which suggested marked evolution, I found it roundly, maturely and quite sweetly fruity, medium/full bodied, velvety and beautifully harmonious with smooth acidity and just enough resolved ripe tannins to support the finish which showed very faint metallic notes. Very good.
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Double decanted and stood in bottle for 2hrs. A feminine and elegant wine. Very fine tannins and somewhat burgundian in style. Soft and sweet red fruit. Acidity on the higher side which gives the wine some lift. Medium finish. Probably on the tail end of its maturity plateau and starting to slowly head downhill. Drink up.
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Early Apr 2015: not decanted; old appearing rubin color; weak nose with damp moss, chocolate and some red berries; in the mouth strongly aromatic with lots of red fruits and a caramel sweetness; medium/full body with a linear texture.
By the way: the cork smelled horrible after removal. So I feared this bottle was flawed, but we got lucky.
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2hr decant. Deep brickish red. Last drunk at my 50th from magnums at the Waterside in April 2004. Was just entering its plateau then and has developed exactly as I would have hoped and expected. Brûlée cherry and plum with smoke and hint of truffle. Great similar fruit concentration in the mouth with tarry background, smooth dusty tannins and long dry finish. Excellent, now fully mature and for drinking over the next couple of years. 2 to go!
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Medium cherry red colour with brick edge. Nicely aged bouquet of dried cherries, cedar wood and vanilla. Lovely balance of red fruit, gentle acidity and soft tannins. Great length, style and balance. Probably at a peak but will last 5 years plus.
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Nose of confit blackberry, truffle, hints of tobacco, truffle and autumn forest. In the mouth, nice balance of confit fruit, coffee and autumn forest wrapped by silky and luscious tanins. The wine is not exhuberant, but you feel the quality behind a somehow stict attitude.
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Served blind. Nose with telling green pepper and fragrant feminine rose-perfume in a Margaux-style. Very pretty and delicate, with this intriguing and intense perfume. The aftertaste is marked by dry tannins, which leaves you with a refreshing, but perhaps too bitter for some, mouthfeel. Lovely, classic east-side Bordeaux.
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Smelled a bit advanced when opened, by dinner time showing old. Cassis, espresso, and a more pronounced bandaid aroma. Consensus was this had seen some heat at some point. This bottle, C+ (I've had better)
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Three days later from memory so no detailed description. From magnum purchased for $50 through felicitous circumstances. Lovely through and through with a seductive currant perfume, soft leather and tobacco flavors, perhaps a hint or two of chocolate. Not destined for eternal life but certainly still in peak form. Seemed more Margaux-like in its feminine profile than a '98 Palmer I also had recently.
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Opened tonight with a foie gras turrine and cheese. Crimson red to the rim with no bricking. Initally nose of smoke and blackberry. After an hour in the glass, kirsch, tea leaves and black cherry nose. Midpalate showed good acid and a 30 second finish. Tongiht a 91
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The 1990 St. Emilions have not failed us this time. The Canon had great structure and flavor, but not much finish. It was paired with crispy quail and kobe beef short ribs, which enhanced the flavor. After a couple hours, the wine did open up more - next time we will have them open the bottle before the amuse.
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Robe légèrement tuilée, peu opaque, rouge écarlate. Quelques particules en suspension. Nez très complexe mais sans être très agréable. Tannins très présents encore, assez puissant. Particulier en bouche, pas certain.
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11/4/2022 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nose of saddle leather, mocha, cigar box, black berry, black currants, floral notes, and forest floor, same on the palate, big body, at peak so drink up, mouth filling and complex flavors, with a long, long, lovely flavor and terrific aftertaste, note the cork and sediment on the bottle in the photo.
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7/18/2022 - VAGentleman wrote: 91 Points
In its prime. Perfume currant and hints of blackberry and leather. Mushroom wife when first opened but burned off quickly to reveal round bouquet of flower and fruit. Not as much depth as expected and even after 90 minute decant mid level complexity.
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8/24/2020 - sirpat00 wrote: 92 Points
Bordeaux 1990 horizontal tasting (Fribourg): 1990 Bordeaux horizontal hosted by a private collector. 30 years down the road, the vintage comes across as bold and muscular, youthful and in general not yet open for business or at times closed. Highlighs included Figeac, Haut-Brion, Mouton, Calon Ségur – and to my surprise – Marquis de Terme. See tasting story for more take-aways and the complete line-up.
Tasting note
Ripe, rather dark cherry type of fruit. There is a broader aromatic profile surrounding this but hard to disentangle given limited expressive power. Fresh and fruity palate, but with plenty of tannin that is in no way integrated. Another one for the needs-much-more-time basket.
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6/27/2020 - jviz wrote: 95 Points
This showed nicely from start to finish. There’s a lot of coffee notes with cinnamon and red fruits. A little leather, it’s really classic, with some 5 spice, espresso, and red currant on the palate. Clearly right bank, and just a touch roasted, thanks to the vintage. Soft in texture, flattened out but expressive. I’m rather enthralled with it. 95
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3/16/2020 - englishman's claret wrote: 90 Points
How fun to taste this blind - the nose is soft and supple, full of smoke, caramel, old wood, and mellow dark fruit. Similar on the palate, with a hint of stem and cab franc-ish mineral pushing me toward St Emilion and away from Pomerol. The tannins have almost melted away. My guess was St. Emilion from somewhere on the edge of the village (Canon, Clos Fourtet, etc - but not Ausone) from 1989 or 1990.
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1/19/2020 - ryanchau Likes this wine: 95 Points
Astonishingly young for 1990. Full of vibrant and juicy red fruits. Med+ finish
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10/4/2019 - wineguru57@yahoo.com.au wrote: 90 Points
Colour, browning. Now in tertiary stage. Mocha/coffee/forest/tobacco. cocoa. right bank sweet merlot fruit holding. very fine soft tannins.
Maybe at best 3-5 years ago
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9/3/2019 - Papies wrote: 90 Points
Opened and left to rest. No need and frankly risky to decant as the wine is on the fragile side and definitely a drink sooner than later one.
Well evolved, tertiary wine, forest floor, leathery. Healthy and with good fruit still in the back ground but lacks an energetic side ( as expected) and is a bit short on the finish. Solid 90 and a great experience for lovers of well evolved/mature wines but one should definitely attack this now. 90
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11/13/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 90 Points
Medium/full bodied, bright, fresh and juicy, with accents of smoke, truffle, flowers and forest notes that ride along with the red fruits. Soft in texture and volume, the wine is subtle and focuses on its bright red berry filled finish. This is probably at peak. So if you are sitting on a few bottles, break out the corkscrew.
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9/23/2018 - Wine Buergler Likes this wine: 92 Points
Solid right bank showing - a little past prime but still plenty of fruit and very enjoyable.
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1/17/2018 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 93 Points
Very impressive showing from a period when the property apparently wasn't in the best shape. You wouldn't know it from tasting this. Pure red fruit with supremely refined silky tannins that outclassed some of the fancy Pomerols on the table in sheer refinement albeit not in complexity.
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12/9/2017 - blanquito wrote:
Right-Bank Classicals (Dobbs Ferry, Dale's House): I didn't like this initially as the bouquet was roasted and even a touch stewed, but it freshened up with some air time, and the nose took on an exotic vanilla and floral quality. The palate lacked the verve of the Magdelaine, and was also a bit chunky. Not bad, but not sure where this is going. B
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8/25/2017 - mjdixon Likes this wine: 91 Points
Classic but basic bordeaux
Past its best now
Might. E interesting in a good year?
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6/4/2017 - EhrlichDY wrote:
Popped an hour before serving and enjoyed with dinner over 1.5 hours. For a 1990 , this wine was more classically styled than expected tending toward earthy, herbaceous, cedar, and gravel notes. The wine is quite open and right in the plateau of its peek. Overall, this was quite enjoyable.
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12/22/2016 - NickBurwood Likes this wine: 90 Points
My last; and drunk at the very end of its life.
The truffly element recorded earlier is threatening to dominate and the acid balance is just turning into leanness.
Clinging on to its excellent status by a thread and definitely for drinking up ASAP.
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9/10/2016 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
Flickinger Warehouse Tasting (Chicago, IL): Although that lovely green herbaceousness that I love from St. Emilion isn't in full display here, there's no denying the awesomeness of this wine. It's certainly got lots of ripe fruit, but at the same time, it's not flabby or misshapen. Restrained and quite elegant, with some gravelly minerality on the finish too.
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5/8/2016 - Chiantihound wrote:
From memory. Nice old lady. Took two hours to be at its best. Medium nose, nice palate and finish. Not over the hill, but not a blockbuster of traditional Bordeaux flavors.
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2/10/2016 - eboracum Likes this wine: 92 Points
My previous bottle was opened nearly 7 years ago but the TN which I wrote then can be reproduced almost word for word. Once I had adjusted to the shock of its slightly rusty red colour which suggested marked evolution, I found it roundly, maturely and quite sweetly fruity, medium/full bodied, velvety and beautifully harmonious with smooth acidity and just enough resolved ripe tannins to support the finish which showed very faint metallic notes. Very good.
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12/29/2015 - dchoo077 wrote: 91 Points
Double decanted and stood in bottle for 2hrs. A feminine and elegant wine. Very fine tannins and somewhat burgundian in style. Soft and sweet red fruit. Acidity on the higher side which gives the wine some lift. Medium finish. Probably on the tail end of its maturity plateau and starting to slowly head downhill. Drink up.
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9/5/2015 - NickBurwood wrote: flawed
Sadly corked - substituted with Duhart-Milon '82 (hard life!).
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4/7/2015 - Fatty Cat wrote: 91 Points
Early Apr 2015: not decanted; old appearing rubin color; weak nose with damp moss, chocolate and some red berries; in the mouth strongly aromatic with lots of red fruits and a caramel sweetness; medium/full body with a linear texture.
By the way: the cork smelled horrible after removal. So I feared this bottle was flawed, but we got lucky.
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2/8/2015 - NickBurwood Likes this wine: 92 Points
2hr decant. Deep brickish red.
Last drunk at my 50th from magnums at the Waterside in April 2004. Was just entering its plateau then and has developed exactly as I would have hoped and expected.
Brûlée cherry and plum with smoke and hint of truffle. Great similar fruit concentration in the mouth with tarry background, smooth dusty tannins and long dry finish.
Excellent, now fully mature and for drinking over the next couple of years. 2 to go!
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12/10/2013 - Fausto_Coppi Likes this wine: 93 Points
Medium cherry red colour with brick edge. Nicely aged bouquet of dried cherries, cedar wood and vanilla. Lovely balance of red fruit, gentle acidity and soft tannins. Great length, style and balance. Probably at a peak but will last 5 years plus.
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9/19/2012 - ginfizz wrote: 92 Points
Similar note, same lot.
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9/10/2012 - ginfizz wrote: 92 Points
Beautiful, limpid red color with a touch of bricking, nose of leather and forest floor around red cherry fruit. Delicious. Medium finish.
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2/5/2011 - jpijg wrote: 92 Points
Nose of confit blackberry, truffle, hints of tobacco, truffle and autumn forest. In the mouth, nice balance of confit fruit, coffee and autumn forest wrapped by silky and luscious tanins. The wine is not exhuberant, but you feel the quality behind a somehow stict attitude.
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11/4/2010 - Atreyu wrote: 91 Points
Same bottle as JesperR and I wholeheartedly agree!
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11/2/2010 - JesperR wrote:
Served blind. Nose with telling green pepper and fragrant feminine rose-perfume in a Margaux-style. Very pretty and delicate, with this intriguing and intense perfume. The aftertaste is marked by dry tannins, which leaves you with a refreshing, but perhaps too bitter for some, mouthfeel. Lovely, classic east-side Bordeaux.
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5/3/2010 - DaleW wrote:
Smelled a bit advanced when opened, by dinner time showing old. Cassis, espresso, and a more pronounced bandaid aroma. Consensus was this had seen some heat at some point. This bottle, C+ (I've had better)
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5/2/2010 - salil wrote: flawed
Canon dinner (Dobbs Ferry): Starts out smelling like iodine with a bit of mustiness, gets vinegary with time, consensus at table is cooked.
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3/19/2010 - astroman wrote:
Good smooth palate but lacks acid. Good elegant and rounded palate. Enjoyable.
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2/8/2010 - bevetroppo wrote: 91 Points
Three days later from memory so no detailed description. From magnum purchased for $50 through felicitous circumstances. Lovely through and through with a seductive currant perfume, soft leather and tobacco flavors, perhaps a hint or two of chocolate. Not destined for eternal life but certainly still in peak form. Seemed more Margaux-like in its feminine profile than a '98 Palmer I also had recently.
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8/4/2009 - bobbubbabs wrote: 91 Points
Not as enjoyable as '90 Caymus SS tonight, but color deep and flavors still very fresh. Nose surprisingly subdued. Sill time to evolve further.
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1/29/2008 - Rupert wrote:
Chateau Canon vertical (Institute of Directors, London): Browning, oxidised nose, better on the palate where there is sweet ripe fruit, but this has gone over the hill
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4/21/2007 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 90 Points
Académie des Cinquante Saint-Emilion Tasting (De Echoput, Hoog Soeren, Netherlands): Fully mature colour; herbs, beefstock, lovage, light but lovely smooth and round, low acidity, little tannin. Very pleasing.
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7/13/2005 - gasman wrote: 91 Points
Opened tonight with a foie gras turrine and cheese. Crimson red to the rim with no bricking. Initally nose of smoke and blackberry. After an hour in the glass, kirsch, tea leaves and black cherry nose. Midpalate showed good acid and a 30 second finish. Tongiht a 91
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3/29/2005 - nongrata wrote: 91 Points
The 1990 St. Emilions have not failed us this time. The Canon had great structure and flavor, but not much finish. It was paired with crispy quail and kobe beef short ribs, which enhanced the flavor. After a couple hours, the wine did open up more - next time we will have them open the bottle before the amuse.
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2/11/2005 - KeyMaster wrote: 85 Points
Robe légèrement tuilée, peu opaque, rouge écarlate. Quelques particules en suspension. Nez très complexe mais sans être très agréable. Tannins très présents encore, assez puissant. Particulier en bouche, pas certain.
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