1997 Chateau Musar - Lebanon, Bekaa Valley (5/17/2007)
Steve and Teddie (who are also garage winemakers, literally, they have 2 half barrels of Syrah for this year.. and their previous vintages have been outstanding) prepared dinner beginning with two pizza appetizers, one with tomatos and the other with shrimp and pesto, followed by a lovely mesclun salad and then perfectly prepared filet in a bordeaux and shallot reduction sauce with potatoes and green beans. Really first rate.
We had 10 wines on the table: a 2004 Linden Boisseau from Virginia, a Cab Franc, that Eric Anderson brought; really first rate;
1997 Sterling Cab that I brought almost as a lark, being one of the first wines I bought when I got into wine around 2000 or so...straight from the `expensive' wall at Cost + World Market; well this was actually very good; secondary flavors, drying fruit, earthiness, a very satisfying bottle;
1999 Barde-Haut;
2000 Petit Gravet Aine;
2000 Clos Margalaine, my third time with this wine... amazingly complex and complete and still relatively affordable;
2000 Grand Puy Lacoste, as beautiful as the last time I tried it, another relative QPR for a very complex wine;
2001 Grand Puy Lacoste, a lot tighter and more tannic than the 2000;
2001 Haut Bages Liberal, with a nice earthy stemmy flavor;
and 2003 Pavillion Rouge, my god, if this is this good, how is the Margaux?...this was beautiful to drink, probably my WOTN, with balanced red fruit, supple tannins and great finish... terrific wine...I need to get more
Now..on to the Musar. This bottle was a gift from self-described Musaroholoic Otto Nieminen sent from Finland via a mutual friend. I had no experience with these wines and was looking forward to trying this in a setting where it might be appreicated.
This intimate dinner--there were six of us--of true wine geeks seemed right. And while the Pavillon Rouge was my favorite of the night, the Musar was right there, a close second. My wife preferred the Musar to any of the others. Everyone enjoyed it, and I'm grateful to Otto and his passion for this wine for the opportunity to try this. Now, I have to source more, however,because this wine has plenty of life left. I would like 2 or 3 to see how it evolves over the next 5-7 years. So Otto has created yet another Musar fan, and I'm in the hunt.
What did this offer? It was bright, light, with a nice spiciness, maybe a hint of cumin. Lots of red fruit, a touch of tartness, and very lively. Balanced and with the flexibilty of Pinot in pairing with food. For me this was a 92..and for Lorena, a 4.5/5, a score she almost never gives. This wine created a lot of conversation about Lebanon and its tragedy.
If you have one of these in your collection, try it. If you don't and come across the 1997, I would not hesitate to recommend a buy.... thanx, Otto.. a terrific experience, made richer by the journey this wine made to get to our table last night.
Though considering how polarizing the wine usually is, I'm surprised that everyone liked it - I really would have expected a couple people at least not to.
Or did you mean that the nose was lifted? I've always thought the concentration of fruit is huge in Musar and it's big bodied so in my parlance the word "light" just does not fit the wine. I'm curious about your use of the word.