Delgado Zuleta Palo Cortado Monteagvdo
Last Thursday I met Wine for Spice's Warren Edwardes at the Persian restaurant Colbeh, in London, for a dinner of lamb shank and Palo Cortado - and a lovely pairing it was! A nice PC, oxidative yet complex and nutty and retaining much vigor of its Amontillado roots. Savoury, moderately intense but not razor-like, long. Very nice!
As nice a dinner companion as Warren is and as nice as the wine was, I want to draw more positive attention to the restaurant. Google searches seem to bring a great amount of negative publicity. I cannot understand why. The food is wonderful and absurdly cheap by Finnish standards (the main course of lamb shank was only c. £10!) and the service is good and polite (unlike what I read on the web) and their bread is to die for.
Colbeh doesn't serve wines but does allow BYOB. Since I like Persian food, this is a great reason to visit London again soon. Perhaps I'll try to get a Musarathon going in Colbeh!
Day two: Musar tasting:
NV Champagne Raymond Boulard Champagne Cuvée Rosé Brut
Dark rosé. Pure but ripe aromas of strawberry; very strong Pinot aromas. Quite rich but pure fruit; good structure. My glass disappeared very quickly!
1990 Chateau Musar Blanc
The last time I tried this vintage was about five years ago. Back then I thought this one of the most complete whites I have had from Musar (a potential rival to the awesomeness of the 1975!); my thoughts haven't changed. This was almost perfect: lovely, unique, oxidative aromas, peachy fruit. Rich and ripe but low in alcohol and despite its bite and refreshing character, also fairly low in acid. It still improved dramatically with air, so despite it being wonderful now I would try to hold onto any in the hopes they will turn to something like the 1975 or 1959.
1991 Chateau Musar Blanc
This was strikingly similar to the 1990 white in its aromas and general mouthfeel; the difference being that the 1990 was elegant while this 1991 is concentrated and powerful. It is as if the 1991 were the same wine as the 1990 but with a touch of botrytis. I preferred the 1990 for its elegance, but I did also love this 1991.
1999 Chateau Musar Blanc
Some three years have gone by since my last taste of this: back then it was a good wine but overshadowed by the more tense vintages 1998 and 1996. And once again, this suffered in comparison with the 1990, 1991 and 2001 but is still a nice wine. It is quite rich and fleshy, but has closed down aromatically compared to my previous tastes so ended up seeming quite neutral. Not one of the classic white Musars, but I still enjoyed it and I'm sure will love it once it opens up with a few more years age.
2001 Chateau Musar Blanc
Another warm year white but much more open aromatically than the 1999 (or perhaps I should say that it hasn't closed down yet). Oxidative apricot fruit aromas as is the norm for Musar; rich and fleshy and lowish in alcohol but still with good bite. Lovely.
1966 Chateau Musar
A really lovely mature wine that is still going strong. It smells of classic aged Musar: red, lifted fruit, some funk but not in such amounts that would bother me, lovely freshness and liveliness on the palate though at this age the fleshy, sunny sweetness isn't so noticeable, so I do understand why many like their Musar on the young side. I like it young and old. This bottle of the 1966 was outstanding and one of the best Musars I have ever had.
1977 Chateau Musar
Corked. I have had one bottle of this in 2007 that was sublime. That bottle was not only among the best Musars I have had but among the best wines generally that I have had. But talking with other participants at this off-line it seems that there really is a problem with this vintage and cork taint. Such a shame as that one bottle was so outstanding that it is still vivid in my memory after five years.
1982 Chateau Musar
From magnum. A nice example of what happens to "weak vintage" Musars with age. This was never a vintage much liked by anyone, but it seems to be filling out and in recent years it has shown a very classic Musar profile: lovely, lifted, bright red fruit aromas; rich but racy, sweet but savoury. When not compared to other "great vintage" Musars this is a heartbreakingly beautiful mature wine. But in such a tasting with so many truly great vintages it is left a bit in the shadows. The lesson of this TN: don't compare! Just enjoy!
1983 Chateau Musar
Corked. But gladly this was a one-off corked unlike the 1977.
1987 Chateau Musar
A good but not great Musar, drinking beautifully now IMO: it still has the sweet, sunny, vibrant, bright fruit of young Musar but has a nice leathery aged character to it, too. Not a flashy Musar, but is instead slightly toned down (which may be a good thing to some drinkers!
): un-wild, un-funky yet still cannot be mistaken for any other wine.1991 Chateau Musar
Perfection? Not quite yet. But I think in another 10 years or so it will be. This embodies everything that Musar is at its best: pure, deep, expressive fruit, some untamed wildness, richness but amazing vitality and liveliness, too. Its only fault is that the fruit still seems so primary whereas I like some aged aspects to my fruit. This seems to me one of the most promising young (and yes, it still is young) Musars.
1995 Chateau Musar
In 2008 I thought this was weird and lactic. That is still true. It smells of unsweetened yoghurt and super-ripe fruit. The palate is much better since it has much structure - both acid and tannin - to counter the great ripeness. Many Musarophiliacs love the '95 but I have always had trouble with it because of its lactic aromas. Since it has gone in a better direction since 2008 perhaps I too will love this wine in a decade or two: I have noticed that Musars I dislike in youth I might very well love with age.
1999 Chateau Musar
A classic, but still far too young. Lovely, typical Musar aromas of bright, slightly funky red fruit. Rich and sweet but with lovely acidity and animality.
2001 Chateau Musar
Still obviously a hot year style of Musar but the syrup sensations of my last taste have completely gone away. Now it is just ripe and rich and sweet; but since it has the raciness and vivacity of the house style, I can't complain. A good Musar; but not IMO a great one.
2004 Chateau Musar
Unlike many others at the off-line, I felt this '04 was pretty classic, young Musar. It was sweet and sunny yet red toned in fruit with refreshing lift from VA. It was moreish despite its sweetness. I didn't sense any "modernization" about it: it seemed just like other recent vintages in their infancy. Interesting enough that I will make room in my cellar if it becomes available here.
2004 Chateau Musar Rosé
Very pale salmon. More a white than rosé (it is Merwah and Obaideh except for c.5% Cinsault). There is a distinct aroma of fresh fish (i.e. very clean and pure, not stinky) mixed with mostly red-wine-like aromas of strawberry and earth. Rich and concentrated - even tannic. A rosé that needs age. Good stuff, but one shouldn't think of it as a crisp, thirst quenching rosé but as a red wine of a curiously pale colour or a grand white of a curiously deep colour (one shouldn't care about colour with Musar).