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(Quinta do Noval Nacional) I had never tasted the legendary 1963 Nacional previously, and this stunningly pure and still almost youthful wine was every bit as profound as its reputation suggests. The glorious nose erupts from the glass in a sappy mélange of red plums, cherries, heather, coffee, cigar smoke, clover honey, a brilliant base of soil, orange zest and incipient notes of celery seed and other savory delights. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and still rock solid at the core, with glorious transparency, melting tannins, laser-like focus and brilliant soil drive on the very, very long and tangy finish. Like several other of the very best 1963 Ports, the ’63 Nacional is still a fairly young wine and will continue to dazzle for another fifty or sixty years. It was an absolute privilege to taste this legendary wine! (Drink between 2012-2075)John Gilman | 100 JGAmazingly, the importer still has tiny stocks of such legendary ports as the 1970, 1963, and 1962 Nacionals. In most vintages the production of Quinta do Noval Nacional is no more than 250-275 cases. The 1970,1963,1962 and 1994 are candidates to achieve perfect scores. The 1963 Nacional’s opaque purple color is remarkable, looking more like a 1992 than a 33-year old port. The wine possessed a fabulously smoky, cassis, black-cherry, peppery nose. After thirty minutes in the glass, fruitcake notes and more evolved aromas emerged. This port is so concentrated it defies belief, with extraordinary balance, and, like its two siblings, well-integrated alcohol and tannin. The impression is one of a silky, succulent, voluptuously-textured mouthful of exceptionally extracted port. This is a legend in the making. In 30-40 years it may well be considered, along with the 1931, as one of the greatest ports ever produced. Those lucky few with a bottle or two should plan to hold onto them for another decade before pulling the cork. It, too, is a hundred-year port.Robert Parker | 99 RPToffee, incense, dried cherry, bergamot and green tea notes provide the aromas here, with mulled plum and licorice flavors forming the core. A light singed balsam wood accent lines the finish, which is viscous and sweet-edged but stays decidedly dry in feel overall. Harmonious and incredibly long.—Non-blind Quinta do Noval vertical (May 2018). Drink now through 2030. 251 cases made.Wine Spectator | 99 WSGood full, deep red. Knockout nose offers red and black cherry, strawberry, spices and mint. Unbelievably young for a wine that’s nearly a half-century old, offering incredible power and thrust to its red berry, spice and mineral flavors. Fills the mouth with perfume. Combines extraordinary mid-palate lift with a silky texture and buns of steel, conveying an impression of buzzing energy. The endless finish features great concentration and urgency, and utterly noble tannins. Can a 49-year-old port still be on an up curve? I hope to find out. This wine should go on for another 30 years without difficulty.Vinous Media | 98+ VM

This bottle of 1971 Petrus is perhaps the best that I have encountered, completely overawing the 1970 served alongside. It boasts a gorgeous bouquet with delineated red berry fruit, pressed rose petals, hints of kirsch and a touch of sandalwood, perhaps even a little exotic compared to previous bottles. The palate is medium-bodied with seductive fleshiness on the entry, a surfeit of black truffle infused red fruit and life-affirming purity. Unlike other bottles, this example seems to meliorate with aeration, gaining intensity and depth towards the precise and tender finish. I doubt that I will find another 1971 Petrus as good as this. Tasted at the Petrus dinner at Hide restaurant in London.Vinous Media | 97 VMThis wine has been seemingly fully mature since the mid- to late seventies. It is a seductive, opulent vintage for Petrus. The color now is a dark garnet with considerable amber at the rim. The incredible nose of Christmas fruitcake intermixed with mocha, jammy kirsch, and black currants is followed by a silky textured, full-bodied, very opulent wine that is still totally intact. The tannins have totally dissipated, and the wine is an unctuous, seductive Petrus that is certainly one of the vintages that is most delicious and compelling. A sensational wine and probably the wine of the vintage. Anticipated maturity: Now-2011. Last tasted, 11/02.Robert Parker | 95 RPThis wine is as comfortable as your favorite pair of slippers. Extremely caressing, with wonderfully enticing aromas and flavors of tobacco and violets and a rich, round palate.--Pétrus vertical. Drink now.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

The other wine of the vintage. Seriously powerful with fabulous color and mint, cassis and berry aromas and flavors. Has a full body and is tannic; still needs time to come around. Better after 1997.--The Bordeaux 50.Wine Spectator | 95 WSIn weight and texture, the 1981 Margaux is closest in style to the 1979. It is an outstanding wine, even in the company of the monumental wines of 1982, 1983, and 1986, although it does not have the power and weight of these vintages. It is still very dark ruby/purple-colored. The aromatics suggest ripe cassis fruit, spicy vanillin oakiness, and violets. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, concentrated, tannic, and extremely long. It is just beginning to open and evolve. Anticipated maturity: Now-2015. Last tasted, 12/96.Robert Parker | 91 RP

Still loaded up with firm tannins, this is a rich, gorgeous wine, with complex, smoky, pencil lead and graphite notes through the mid palate, before things soften to a cigar box and truffled finish. Cabernet Franc 4% rounds out blend. This stands out better than the 1983 today. Owner Corinne Menzelopoulos was at this point just two years in to her tenure at Margaux (and sharing ownership with the Agnelli family). She will not be surprised by this result - as the last time we discussed these wines, she said the 1983 was a standout for the first few decades but that, slowly but surely, the 1982 has stated to claim its spot. On this evidence, it’s fully on the podium.Drinking Window 2018 - 2045Decanter | 100 DECThe 1982 is Chateau Margaux at its most opulent and decadent. The opaque purple/garnet color is followed by a bouquet that soars from the glass, offering scents of roasted blackcurrants, herbs (thyme), licorice, and spring flowers. Magnificently concentrated and expansive on the palate, this voluptuously styled, huge, lavishly rich, overwhelming style of Chateau Margaux is almost too much of a good thing. Its low acidity and huge tannins in the finish make it approachable, so I would not quibble with anyone who wants to drink it. But do not forget that this wine should have at least 25-35 years of evolution. If indeed it turns out to be a clone of this estate’s legendary 1900, it may have 3-4 times the longevity I have suggested. Last tasted, 7/93.Robert Parker | 99 RPThe 1982 Chateau Margaux is glorious stuff and is Margaux in all its finesse and elegance paired to some serious richness, power, and depth. Awesome blackcurrants, smoked earth, lead pencil, truffles, and hints of dried flowers all emerge from this full-bodied, remarkable, seamless effort that is loaded with fruit and texture. With a thrilling sweetness of fruit, perfect balance, and a magical sense of opulence paired with classic Bordeaux elegance, this is Haute Couture at its finest. Its fully mature, but sound bottles should easily keep for another two decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDWhat a youthful ruby color. And it’s fresh and young on the nose with currants, plums, mints, and flowers. A full-bodied red, with slightly tight and firm tannins, it opens to a long and satisfying finish. What freshness. Leave it five years, or decant three or four hours in advance before serving.James Suckling | 97 JSThis bottle of 1982 Château Margaux was wonderful yet atypical. This has a heightened sense of brine on the nose that initially drew me towards an older vintage such as 1961. Yet the colour was clearly not as old as that, and it has more youthfulness than you would anticipate. Very complex, yet more reserved than expected, it just seems to “flow” on the palate. Very fine structure and perfect sapidity, yet this bottle seemed to hold something back. It is an occasion when I wonder if the 1983 Margaux had been juxtaposed, this would have come out second best, taking nothing away from its own virtues.Vinous Media | 96 VMThis relies on sheer muscle, with dark, plush layers of warmed fig, currant preserves and charcoal lined with extra notes of roasted vanilla, espresso and bittersweet cocoa. The tannins are ever-so-slightly drying on the finish, and this rumbles more than glides, lacking the full range of perfume and beguiling elegance the greatest Margauxs have.--Non-blind Château Margaux vertical (December 2013). Drink now through 2035.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

This pulls together all the glorious notes of a fully mature Margaux, with singed cedar, rooibos tea, rose water and sandalwood aromas, followed by a stunning mélange of both fresh and dried red and black fruits, including currant, cherry, raspberry and plum. The long finish lets everything drape together beautifully. Absolutely stunning, this seems in no hurry to go anywhere. Remarkably fresh and defined at this time.--Non-blind Château Margaux vertical (December 2013). Drink now through 2035.Wine Spectator | 98 WSGorgeous as ever, even if the 1982 is standing up a little more strongly today. This is still full of tannins, rich and textured fruit and lilting freshness, fragrant, concentrated and generous. And the yield, if you can believe it, was 67hl/h. The release price of this 1983 was 170 francs, as was the 1982. 4% Cabernet Franc rounds out the blend. Paul Pontallier’s first vintage - although he also oversaw the ageing and bottling of the 1982. His thesis, by the way, was on oak ageing, and this is 100% new oak. Drinking Window 2018 - 2040.Decanter | 98 DECThis has always been said to be the best wine of the 1983 vintage in Bordeaux because the appellation of Margaux performed slightly better in 1983 than in the legendary 1982 vintage. It certainly is more structured than the 1982 Margaux. It is incredibly fresh and clean still. It’s full-bodied and tannic, structured and powerful yet shows such balance and length. Decant three hours before serving.James Suckling | 98 JSAs I have noted consistently, this can be a breathtaking wine, but having tasted it close to a dozen times since the last edition of this book, over half the bottles were marred by tainted corks. In fact, one would almost wonder if there was TCA problem in part of the wine storage area. The percentage of corked half-bottles is even higher than in the regular format. However, when clean this 1983, which has seemingly reached full maturity far faster than I would have guessed a mere four years ago, has a dense, murky plum/purple color and a gorgeous nose of smoked herbs, damp earth, mushrooms, and sweet creme de cassis intermixed with vanilla and violets The wine is medium to full-bodied, deep, rich, and powerful, with sweet tannins and loads of fruit concentration. Anticipated maturity: Now-2020. Last tasted, 11/02.Robert Parker | 96 RPDeep ruby-red. Exotic aromas of cassis, meat and smoke, plus a whiff of funky wood. Then remarkably sweet, lush and suave, with a flavor of raw berries. Pure Margaux silkiness allied to firm structure. Finishes very long, with rich, sweet tannins. Remarkable wine, particularly considering that the bottle was not perfect. Pristine bottles of this wine are just now embarking on their period of peak drinkability, which should last another 20 years or more.Vinous Media | 95 VM(Château Margaux (Margaux)) I very well remember just how beautiful the 1983 Margaux was a couple of decades ago, when it really had few challengers for the mantle of the wine of the vintage (maybe Ausone, Cheval Blanc and Lafleur could also lay claim to that title back in the day), but the wine has lost a bit of mid-palate amplitude and perfume since those days and seems to have now peaked. The wine is still very lovely, wafting from the glass in a mix of cherries, summer truffles, cigar smoke, a lovely base of soil tones (with that touch of limestone unique to this property), nutskin and a suave framing of new oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, complex and elegant, with good, but no longer great depth at the core, lovely grip, fading tannins and a long, focused and well-balanced finish. This remains a very tasty bottle, but it was a bit deeper and more vibrant a decade ago. (Drink between 2019-2040).John Gilman | 92 JG

(Château Ausone) The 1985 vintage of Château Ausone was not particularly touted when it was released, but this is a great wine that should ultimately prove to be one of the greatest Ausones of the decade of the 1980s. The bouquet is deep, pure and youthfully exotic, as it soars from the glass in a very vibrant blend of baked cherries, blood orange, menthol, woodsmoke, glorious soil tones, a touch of dill and a potpourri of other more classic fresh herb tones. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and very intensely flavored, with a sappy core of fruit, great soil inflection, ripe, well-integrated tannins and superb length and grip on the tangy finish. A classic Ausone in the making, I would not touch the ’85 for another decade, despite the fact that it is already quite accessible. There are just too many layers of complexity still to unfold here to be opening bottles right now! (Drink between 2020-2070).John Gilman | 94 JGPure fruit aromas of raspberry and strawberry; full-bodied with fine tannins.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

(Château Lafite-Rothschild) This was my last bottle of ’85 Lafite out of the cellar, as I only bought three bottles when it was released and dearly wish I had bought more, as the wine is rather more expensive today than it was back in 1987! This is an utterly brilliant year for Lafite and one of my favorite wines of the vintage, as it offers up a deep and very complex nose of cassis, sweet dark berries, a touch of fresh coconut, beautifully complex, gravelly soil tones, cigar smoke, fresh herbs and cedar. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very refined, with a rock solid core of sappy fruit, stunning complexity, impeccable focus and balance, moderate tannins and a fairly powerful finish (particularly for Lafite from this era) that closes with great purity and grip. A brilliant synthesis of the vintage’s plush and suave personality and the inimitable elegance of Lafite. (Drink between 2012-2060)John Gilman | 96 JGThis is so beautiful now and exhibits real aged-Bordeaux character with currant-bush, tobacco and berry aromas that follow through to a medium body with firm tannins and a creamy finish. Still so together. The finish turns to cigar box, sandalwood and berry. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSLast tasted in 2018 at the Lafite 160th anniversary supper, and it is delivering just as much pleasure a few years later - this is classically true when a wine is on its plateau, particularly in good vintages, when it can hold the line for a stubbornly long time. This just contains so much of what makes Lafite Lafite - there is an effortless elegance, it is subtle but rewarding, building in layers and complexity over the palate. Now in the tertiary period where the fine tannins are fully integrated but still offering support to brambled fruits, cured leather, black spice, sage, mint and salted truffles. Baron Eric in charge, Gilbert Rokvam technical director and Yves le Canu director. The vineyard was 90ha at the time, so around 20ha smaller than today. 5% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Drinking Window 2021 - 2036.Decanter | 94 DECTasted at the château, the 1985 Lafite-Rothschild was the best example of this wine that I have tasted a dozen or so times. It has a beautiful nose that is just classic Lafite. It is still fresh yet understated, stately even, with tobacco and cedar-tinged red berry fruit. It is not a powerful bouquet, but there is something...magnetic about it. The palate is still youthful with fine tannin, like the nose, understated yet very well balanced. The acidity here is perfectly judged with an almost nonchalant finish. You almost miss its virtues - it is just so self-effacing and insouciant. Just a really lovely Lafite-Rothschild at the peak of its powers. Tasted March 2016.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 93 RP-NMThe 1985 Lafite-Rothschild is only a modest success in the context of the vintage. Here, it is totally outclassed by the 1985 Las Cases. Light, slightly loose-knit red berry fruit on the nose is complemented by warm gravel and smoky aromas, though it lacks a bit of energy. The palate is nicely balanced, not powerful but focused, with adequate freshness. As mentioned in my previous tasting note, this has dispensed with some density in recent years, and if your expectations are modest, it remains enjoyable. Tasted at Hameau de Barbaron in Burgundy.Vinous Media | 93 VMA graceful wine with cedar, berry and cherry aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and a succulent, sweet fruit finish. Delicious to drink now.--Cabernet Challenge.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Dark red, with an amber edge. Aromas of chocolate, stewed berries, Merlot and raisins. Full-bodied, velvety and rich. Lovely palate. Delicious now, but will hold on. An autumnal wine.--Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

(Château Mouton-Rothschild) This was the last vintage to be made by the Baron de Rothschild, and I have always had a sneaky suspicion that the 1987 may have been made a bit more memorable by the inclusion of some of the 1986 or 1988 bookends that may have been laying around, as the wine utterly transcends the vintage in terms of depth and power. Regardless of how the quality of the wine was ultimately arrived at, it is the finest 1987 Medoc that I have ever tasted, jumping from the glass in a blend of red berries, spices, coffee, eucalyptus, a touch of walnuts and the traditional Mouton nicely toasted new oak. On the palate the wine is medium-full, complex and à point, with excellent focus and fine length on the shapely finish. This is a lovely, commemorative bottling that still has plenty of life ahead of it. (Drink between 2003-2012)John Gilman | 91 JGOctober 2002 at a mad Swiss collector’s house at 10am. Light brick core. Tawny rim. Delicate leaf/minty nose. Quite earthy and mature on palate. Well-balanced, better than Lafite. Moderate concentration but quite austere and classic. Drink soon. Tasted amongst in a collectors gnome garden in Switzerland at 10am! Tasted again at the SuperBOWL and making perfect sense with a leg of lamb. A slightly diffuse, tobacco scented nose followed by a palate of moderate concentration with cedar and tobacco. Quite a soft texture but with vibrant acidity. A gentleman’s claret. Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 88-90 RP-NM

The wine of the vintage and one of the greatest Haut-Brions ever made. Superpowerful and ripe, with masses of spice, mint and berry character. Full-bodied, with full yet polished tannins, this wine is a joy to taste and will be for decades.--1988 Bordeaux horizontal.Wine Spectator | 98 WSA more firmly structured Haut-Brion, built somewhat along the lines of the 1996, this dark garnet-colored wine is showing notes of licorice, underbrush, compost, truffles, dried herbs, creosote, and sweet black cherries and currants. Medium-bodied, rich, but still structured, this wine unfolds incrementally on the palate, showing superb density and a lot of complex Graves elements. It is just beginning to hit its plateau of full maturity. Anticipated maturity: Now-2025. Last tasted, 11/02.Robert Parker | 92 RPThe 1988 Haut Brion is another vintage that I have not seen for a number of years. It has a light, maybe slight smudged nose that is quite leafy in style, autumnal, hints of bay leaf and a light marine influence developing but never quite delivering the vigor of its sibling, the 1988 La Mission Haut-Brion. The palate is medium-bodied with dry tannin on the entry, a fine thread of acidity, but I would argue this is too simple for a First Growth in a decent vintage like this, does not engage or charm like the 1985 or 1986. Of course, matter would be redressed by the legendary 1989 Haut-Brion. The 1988? It is more like a footnote to Jean-Bernard Delmas’s crowning glory that arrived 12 months later. Tasted at the château.Vinous Media | 90 VM

Subtle yet rich aromas of grilled meat, black olive and dark red fruits. Full-bodied, very soft and silky, with ultrarefined tannins. The finish lasts for minutes. The quality of the tannins is beautiful and the complexity of fruit, earth and spices is impressive. Drinking this is like listening to Mozart.--’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Drink now. 3,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThis wine has become increasingly herbaceous with the tannins pushing through the fruit and becoming more aggressive. The wine started off life impressively deep ruby/purple but is now showing some amber at the edge. It is a medium-bodied, rather elegant style of Petrus with a distinctive cedary, almost celery component intermixed with a hint of caramel and sweet mulberry and black cherry fruit. It has aged far less evenly than I would have thought and is probably best drunk over the next 8-10 years. Last tasted, 11/02.Robert Parker | 91 RPThe 1988 Petrus is a vintage that I have encountered in two occasions. It is a forerunner for the 1989 and 1990 and frankly, it cannot hold a torch to those twin titans. In retrospect, one can see it more as a small progression from the capable 1987. It has a youthful hue with less bricking on the rim than you would expect. The bouquet is well defined with autumn leaves and thyme aromas filtering through the red berry fruit, perhaps a little austere but attractive in its own modest way. The plate is medium-bodied with finely chiseled tannins, conservative and clearly not a flamboyant Petrus, though balanced with a discrete sense of breeding towards the finish. There is no need to cellar bottles for longer although it should remain at this level for another decade. Tasted at the Petrus dinner at Hide restaurant in London.Vinous Media | 90 VM

Bartolo Mascarello’s 1989 Barolo (magnum) is all freshly cut roses, plums, prunes and sweet spices. The aromas and flavors continue to emerge with notable vigor and intensity, framed exquisitely by firm, silky tannins. Grace and class come to mind as apt descriptors for a wine that balances exceptional depth yet also floats on the palate with ethereal qualities that are hard to do justice to on the printed page. The finish is long and wonderfully pure, with overtones of licorice and menthol that invite a second (and third!) taste. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2030.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RP(Barolo-Bartolo Mascarello) I have no doubt that the 1989 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo will prove to be one of the greatest vintages in the long and consistently excellent career of this maestro, but it is only just starting to show its secondary layers of complexity and desperately deserves more time in the cellar to really reach its apogee. The bouquet is deep, pure and very promising, offering up a blend of cherries, beef bouillon, roasted gamebirds, a touch of wild bay, complex, autumnal soil tones and a topnote of woodsmoke. On the palate the wine is very pure, full and sappy at the core, with great soil inflection, ripe, fine-grained tannins, outstanding focus and grip and a very, very long, pure and complex finish. It is not a crime to be drinking this wine today- if you have enough bottles remaining in the cellar that you are not going to miss one ten years down the road- but this is a wine that is still climbing and its best days are still several years further out. (Drink between 2016 - 2060)John Gilman | 95+ JGOne of the most anticipated wines of the night, the 1989 Barolo is not as exceptional as it can be. I have tasted the 1989 mostly from magnum recently, so perhaps my expectations are a bit colored. Even from the big bottle, though, the 1989 has always shown slight imperfections, especially in the bouquet. In this tasting, my impression is that in the standard bottle those imperfections are more evident. There is plenty of texture and depth to the fruit, but it is the aromatics that are penalizing here.Vinous Media | 91 VM

(Château Ausone) The 1990 vintage of Château Ausone is a stunning wine. There is a purity and soil signature front and center here that is not always evident in wines from this torrid vintage on the Gironde, and Ausone’s signature elegance is now very much this wine’s calling card. The beautiful bouquet wafts from the glass in a blend of red and black cherries, nutskin, cigar wrapper, chalky soil tones, a touch of blood orange and a lovely, floral topnote. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and deep at the core, with superb transparency and grip, modest tannins and a very long, complex and vibrant finish. At age twenty-nine, the 1990 Ausone is just starting to blossom and drink with generosity and refinement, but the more exotic topnotes here have not yet fully emerged and there is even more magic to come for those who can defer gratification for another ten years! (Drink between 2019-2060)John Gilman | 96 JGChewy, monolithic wine. Aromas of dried herbs and berries. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a tar, tobacco aftertaste. Puckers your mouth with tannins. Will improve with age.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2005. 2,150 cases made. —Wine Spectator | 92 WSAfter revealing some amber at the edge as well as copious aromas of fruitcake, crushed rocks, incense, and a weedy character, the 1990 Ausone offers up sweet, jammy fruit notes as well as a firm finish with the tell-tale crushed rock minerality that this estate often achieves. The aromatics suggest a fully mature wine, but in the mouth, the firm structure and density indicate this effort needs more time. This wine gives off mixed signals, and I suspect it will last much longer than it appears, but only time will tell. There is a lot to like here, but the 1990 is not one of the most profound Ausones, such as those made since 1998. Owners should try a bottle and make up their own minds, but I think it has another 10- to 15-year window of maximum pleasure.Robert Parker | 91 RPThe 1990 Ausone is a vintage that I have tasted half a dozen times, waxing lyrical when I first tasted it way back in 2000, but then my sentiments cooling off with each encounter. It has an exotic bouquet that articulates the growing season more than the terroir – camphor and eucalyptus, quite heady and showy (some might say vulgar but that would be too pejorative.) There is a smear of chocolate on the entry, moderate acidity, fleshy and ripe but missing the complexity of its peers, espresso and dried blood tincturing the fruit on the finish. It is a pleasurable Saint-Émilion rather than a great Ausone. Tasted at the Ausone vertical in London.Vinous Media | 90 VM

A time of serious changes at Mouton, with Baron Philippe de Rothschild passing away in 1988 after having overseen seven decades worth of harvests, and his longtime winemaker Raoul Blondin retiring in 1989. It was also three years before the introduction of Petit Mouton under Baroness Philippine (even Aile d’Argent the white wine didn’t arrive until 1991). Does all of this explain why the 1990 has suffered with its reputation from the beginning? Certainly it is far more mature at this 31-year-checkin than the others in the tasting, with strawberry and raspberry notes rather than the darker fruits that you more usually find in great Pauillac, with clear tertiary notes of tobacco, rust and woodsmoke. I had a better bottle of this in December 2020, and also in October 2018, so do expect bottle variation and you just might get lucky, but this was not the wine of the night. Label artist Francis Bacon, with one of his last works. Harvest 18 September to 3 October. Drinking Window 2021 - 2030.Decanter | 91 DECNotorious for not living up to the estate’s nor the vintage’s reputations, I have to say this 1990 Mouton Rothschild was not looking nearly as bad as I was expecting. This was a hot, dry vintage, which can be a challenge for vines on such free-draining soils as the deep gravel-mounds composing the backbone of Mouton’s vineyards. The effect of the struggling vines is apparent in the wine, yielding less density and chewier tannins. Nonetheless, the terroir’s pedigree clearly glimmers in the background.The wine displays a brick color with subtle, compellingly elegant redcurrant jelly, dried cranberries and powdered cinnamon notes plus wafts of potpourri, dried figs, unsmoked cigars and dusty soil. Medium-bodied, it is notably far more delicately fruited than one would expect of Mouton, structured with bold freshness and a light chew of tannins before finishing on a mineral note. Indeed, it is skinny compared to great vintages, but it is aging gracefully. For readers who love those soft-spoken, more delicately expressed styles, this one’s for you!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RPA less-than-extraordinary Mouton with licorice and sandalwood on the nose. But this is still lovely and easy to drink. Medium body, good fruit and soft tannins.James Suckling | 90 JS

Dark ruby color. Decadent aromas of meat, figs and ripe fruit. Full-bodied, with a very good, compacted, fruity structure and a long, long, ripe fruit and earth finish. This is a seriously good bottle. Great value. Love it.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

Outstanding quality from a weak year. Good darkruby color. Intense aromas of chocolate, berry andcedar. Full-bodied, with firm tannins and a longfinish. Starting to show some bottle bouquet, butgood backbone and firmness. Textbook Latour from adifficult vintage.--Latour vertical. Best after 2004.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Aromas of peat and fruits, with hints of cedar and berries. Full and velvety with good fruit and a medium finish. Goes mushroomy. A little light.James Suckling | 91 JS

A terrific wine for the vintage, Latour’s 1993 reveals an opaque purple color, a backward, cedar, black walnut, cassis, and earth-scented nose, medium to full body, gorgeously rich, concentrated fruit, moderately high tannin (but no astringency), and a sweet, long, powerful finish. The wine does not possess any of the vegetal, green pepper characteristics of the vintage, nor any hint of hollowness or harshness. This wine may prove to merit an even higher rating. Is this vintage the modern day clone of the 1967 and 1971? Anticipated maturity: 2007-2025. Last tasted 1/97Robert Parker | 90 RPSlightly oxidized with a coffee and spice character, as well as fruit. Medium body. Tea, tobacco and some fruit.James Suckling | 90 JS

A luscious Lafite that is silky and elegant with layers of wonderful violet, berry, cherry and chocolate flavors. It’s full-bodied, with racy, refined tannins and good length. Drinkable now, but best from 1999 and through another decade. 18,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WSBecause Lafite-Rothschild (1) tends to lack the weight of many wines of the northern Medoc, and (2) is never a flashy, ostentatious style of wine, it is often more difficult to evaluate when young than some of its neighbors. Made from nearly 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, this dark ruby/purple-colored wine is stubbornly backward, unappealing, and severe and astringent on the palate. There is plenty of weight, and the wine possesses admirable purity, with no suggestion of herbaceousness or underripe fruit, but the wine’s personality refuses to be coaxed from the glass. The 1994 Lafite may turn out to be austere and disappointing flavor-wise, but possesses a fabulous set of aromatics (does that sound reminiscent of the 1961, another Lafite that was primarily Cabernet Sauvignon?). I am not giving up on this wine, but purchasers should be willing to wait 15-20 years before pulling a cork. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2030.Robert Parker | 90 RPThe 1994 Lafite-Rothschild is a vintage that I have not tasted for some time. Poured blind, it has a healthy colour with modest signs of aging on the brick rim. Since this is 99.5% Cabernet Sauvignon (I always thought it was 100%!) it is dominated by classic aromas associated with that variety: undergrowth and tobacco, just a touch of graphite. Like the 1961, I actually miss the Merlot component because the wine does feel a little two-dimensional. The palate is well balanced with a fine bead of acidity. That tannins are coarser than recent vintages, and there is a little hardness on the finish that would have been mollified by the Merlot, but this stocky Lafite-Rothschild is still going strong. Just partner it with the right dish rather than drink on its own. Tasted at the Lafite-Rothschild 150th anniversary dinner at the estate.Vinous Media | 90 VM

This largely forgotten vintage seems to have turned the corner in the last year or two. Because of strict selections made at the top chateaux, the wines always had density, but the level of tannin was frequently too high, and the type of tannin was more green and astringent. Chateau Margaux’s 1994 has always been one of the candidates for the “wine of the vintage.” The wine still has a dense plum/purple color and a big, sweet nose of black fruits intermixed with licorice, camphor, vanilla, and a hint of flowers. The wine is dense and powerful, but the tannins have softened and do not seem as hard and intrusive as they did in the late nineties. This wine will last for decades and hopefully become even more seamless, although it is hard to believe all the tannin will gradually dissipate. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2025. Last tasted, 10/02.Robert Parker | 91+ RPVery good bright red-ruby color. Sappy, very floral nose hints at toasty oak. Sweet, supple. smooth and oaks in the mouth. A very consistent though fairly tannic wine without the grip or structure of the ’95. In fact, tasted after the ’95, this seemed much oakier and even a bit monolithic.Vinous Media | 90-91 VMNot a big Margaux, this is all in refinement. Pretty aromas of berries, raspberries and toasted oak and warm flavors that build on your palate. Medium-bodied, with fine, well-integrated tannins and a caressing finish. Better in 1999.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Saturated ruby-red. Brilliant nose features kirsch, dark berries, and iron scents, with an overlay of perfumed, spicy oak. Lush, sweet and fragrant in the mouth, with a sappy freshness; clearly made from low yields. Finishes with toothcoating but suave tannins and remarkable persistence; stains the palate with spicy bitter cherry and citric skin flavor. As with the ’94, clearly the best wine in the Moueix portfolio on this day.Vinous Media | 93-96 VMAfter several uninspiring efforts between 1978 and 1988, it is irrefutable that Christian Moueix and his flagship estate, Petrus, have rebounded with a vengeance, producing a bevy of extraordinary wines, even in rain-plagued vintages such as 1992 and 1993. Opaque purple/black in color, with a sweet vanilla, pain grillee, jammy cherry and cassis-scented nose, this full-bodied, densely packed wine reveals layers of flavor, and an inner-core of sweetness with huge quantities of glycerin and depth. A tannic, classic style of Petrus, with immense body, great purity, and a backward finish, this wine requires a decade of cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2035.Robert Parker | 93 RPWonderfully rich and concentrated, with milk chocolate, berry and floral aromas, loads of fruit flavors and soft, round tannins. Full-bodied and has good length. A great wine for the vintage, but then, what do you expect from Pétrus? Better from 1999 on, but inviting now. 3,200 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS