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This starts off a little jammy with hints of raisin that develop into black currants. Full body with silky tannins and fresh acidity. It’s integrated yet ethereal.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 1983 Lafleur is the vintage that alerted me to the pedigree of this Pomerol growth back in 2004, so I have a sentimental attachment to it. A recent encounter served blind in Hong Kong confirms that the Lafleur ranks alongside the 1983 Cheval Blanc as the best Right Bank of the vintage. It is quite precocious and generous on the nose with sorbet-like red fruit tinged with peppermint and truffle oil. It has lost a little cohesion in recent years but offers more secondary scents of leather and sage. The palate has wondrous balance and poise: hints of iron infusing the supple red fruit with a complex and detailed finish. Well-stored bottles will continue giving immense pleasure. Tasted at a private dinner in Bordeaux.Vinous Media | 96 VMFull mature, yet still in far better condition than most 1983 Pomerols, Lafleur’s 1983 has a medium ruby color with considerable pink at the edge. A very exotic, almost kinky nose of Asian spice, licorice, truffle, and jammy kirsch is followed by a medium to full-bodied, plum, fleshy wine with sweet tannin, and low acidity in a very evolved style. Certainly among the very good vintages of Lafleur over the last 20 years, this is the most evolved and drinkable. Anticipated maturity: Now-2015. Last tasted, 8/02.Robert Parker | 92 RPPort-like. A monster. Extremely ripe, exaggerated style with loads of berry and earth character. Full-bodied and tannic. Still needs time; try after 1998.--The Bordeaux 50.Wine Spectator | 91 WSI used to adore the 1983 Château Lafleur, which is a wine that I owned quite a bit of at one time, but I drank my cache of the wine up in earlier days and I had not crossed paths with a bottle of this wine in more than a decade. Much like the 1982, the 1983 has gotten quite a bit more marked by notes of sur maturité on both the nose and palate as time has gone by, with the bouquet now defined by notes of prunes, fruitcake, chocolate, dried eucalyptus, cigarette ash and soil. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, powerful and very soil-driven in personality, with a firm core, still plenty of tannin and now a bit of uncovered alcohol starting to poke out on the long and chewy finish. This is not a great time to be drinking the 1983 Lafleur, which seems to have gone into a bit of a closed period, but the combination of overripe aromatics and flavors, as well as some backend heat, makes one seriously wonder about its long-term prospects. This wine has to be well over fourteen percent alcohol, and it has not aged with anywhere near the grace I would have imagined, given how superb it was in its relative youth. I have never seen wines in this style come back from the brink, but perhaps the ’83 Lafleur can prove the exception. (Drink between 2017 - 2040)John Gilman | 86-91+ JG

Medium garnet-brick colored, the 1985 Cheval Blanc sashays out of the glass with provocative notes of sandalwood, cinnamon stick, cardamom, dried lavender and wilted roses over a core of new leather, cigar box, prunes, raisin cake and dusty soil. Medium-bodied, soft and silken textured, it has tons of mature, melt-in-your-mouth flavors and a very long exotic spice-laced finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPThe 1985 Cheval Blanc has always been one of the picks of the vintage for what was a fecund decade for the Saint-Émilion. This example shows similarly to previous bottles. It has a fragrant bouquet with sandalwood, clove and chestnut, maybe here even a touch of brettanomyces? It is only slight. The palate is beautifully balanced with melted tannin. The Cabernet Franc in full flight – hints of bell pepper and cedar, a surfeit of fruit. Maybe it lacks the precision of more recent vintages but how can you resist its charm. Impossible! It is a wonderful wine, but I wonder...was its heyday around the turn of the millennium? Tasted blind at Chez Brunce lunch.Vinous Media | 95 VM(Château Cheval Blanc) The 1985 Cheval Blanc is a beautiful bottle of young wine that still needs several years of cellaring to fully reach its apogee and start to show all of its multi-layered complexity. The bouquet is deep and clearly destined for profundity, but still a tad primary in its mélange of dark berries, menthol, tobacco leaf, gravelly soil tones, smoke and a touch of new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and still quite tight, with a great core of pure fruit, impeccable focus and balance, ripe tannins and great length and grip on the superbly elegant finish. This is an utterly refined vintage of Cheval Blanc that may in the long run outpace the more highly touted Chevals from the1982 and 1983 vintages. A great wine in the making. (Drink between 2015-2065).John Gilman | 95+ JGBeginning to show maturity. Spice and cedar aromas give way to a silky texture and flavors of tobacco and roasted fruits. Drink or hold.--Cheval-Blanc vertical.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

A superstar of the vintage, the last time I tasted this was next to a rather pathetic performance of a very herbal, green, emaciated Petrus (one of the great deceptions of the vintage). This wine still has a very saturated opaque ruby/purple color that is far less evolved than almost any other 1985. The wine has sweet cranberry, black cherry, and blackberry fruit notes intermixed with mineral, cold steel, and a hint of cedar. Rich, full-bodied, with fabulous purity, a very well-delineated feel in the mouth, enormous richness, and a long finish that goes on for nearly 45 seconds, the wine seems to grow incrementally in the glass with increasing amounts of air, and is certainly a 1985 that has evolved at a snail’s pace compared to most wines of this vintage. Anticipated maturity: Now-2023. Last tasted, 5/02.Robert M. Parker, Jr. | 95 RPFabulous aromas of exotic fruits, chocolate, tobacco and earth. Full-bodied, with very velvety tannins and a long, rich fruit aftertaste. Could still use time to mellow, but it's a gorgeous glass of Pomerol.--L'Eglise Clinet vertical. Best from 2000 through 2008.Wine Spectator | 94 WSThe 1985 l’Eglise-Clinet is a significant wine in terms of representing my first great Pomerol and my introduction to Denis Durantou’s wine. I have amassed many tasting notes over the years; all attesting a great wine that is beginning to enter its dotage. The last bottle has a rustic, almost animally bouquet that is completely charming with scents of roasted chestnut and clove emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with loose-knit tannin. It is a bit unkempt compared to more recent vintages but there is so much depth and roundness here, that it seduces you into submission. Cedar and tobacco notes towards one of Durantou’s first great wine after taking over in 1983. Tasting note taken from the Pomerol book by Neal Martin.Vinous Media | 92 VM

Berry, cherry and chocolate on the nose, with hints of spices. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a spicy, cedary, dark chocolate aftertaste. Very silky and caressing. Grabs your attention. Muscular for Cheval. Overlooked by many Cheval fans.—’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Drink now. 12,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS(40 h/h; 12.5% alcohol): Bright red. Very pure floral nose with enticing aromas of redcurrant, violet, minerals, licorice, lead pencil and coffee: very cabernet franc! Then linear, pure and juicy, with pristine flavors of red berries, dark plum, minerals and coffee. This midweight finishes clean and smoothly tannic, offering amazing balance and an impression of seamlessness on the long, very floral finish. As much as I like its pure aromas and flavors, I find this Cheval Blanc lacks a little density for an even higher score. This was an overall dry and cool year, with some rain present only in the first part of the year, which caused some mildew pressure. The dry conditions started at the end of July and never really let up; from July to September, there was less than two inches of rain. Flowering was late, taking place on June 10, and veraison on August 20. Harvested during the first ten days of October.Vinous Media | 92 VM

This is an upper-ninety point La Conseillante that is very much in the style of the 1990. In comparing the two vintages, the 1989 has slightly more noticeable tannin and structure, but it is a perfumed, exotic, sweet, expansive, yummy wine that is hard to resist. These two wines represent La Conseillante’s quintessential smooth as silk style, which often leads consumers to believe the wines will not last. One of the unexplainable facts of Bordeaux wine drinking is that even the softer, delicious, up-front wines can age impeccably when well-stored. Owners of the 1989 La Conseillantes should not hesitate to enjoy them now, as well as over the next 20 years. Last tasted 11/96Robert Parker | 97 RPThe 1989 La Conseillante is one of the top performers in Pomerol and arguably now one of the best values. This bottle confirms that exuberance and joie-de-vivre on the nose, displaying the telltale crushed violets in bloom, with precious but controlled red and black fruit underneath. The palate is sumptuous from the start, presenting cashmere tannin and perhaps a little more glycerine in this bottle. The bravura finish leaves you grinning from ear to ear. Stunning, and it will remain on its plateau for many years. Tasted at the 1989 Bordeaux dinner at Hatched in London.Vinous Media | 97 VMOffers sweet, dried fruits on the nose, with plum jam and Turkish delight candies. Full-bodied, with big velvety tannins and loads of fruit. Chewy and Porty. Has turned so decadent and yummy over the years.—’89/’99 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2009). Drink now.Wine Spectator | 94 WS(Château la Conseillante) Early on in this wine’s evolution, I was not such a big fan of the 1989 La Conseillante, as I felt it was a bit over-sized for this supremely elegant property. My points of reference when this wine was released were the utterly svelte 1985, the very good 1983, the beautiful 1982, the equally superb 1981 and the classic 1970 vintage of La Conseillante, and in comparison to those wines, the 1989 seemed a departure for a more muscular style. Nearly thirty years down the road, I have a bit more experience and can see that the 1989 La Conseillante is simply a reflection of the personality of this vintage, rather than an overt effort to change the style at the property, and the elegance that this estate is so well known for is starting to emerge very nicely in this wine. The bouquet is beautiful and still fairly youthful, with more layers to unfold with further bottle age, but offering up notes of plum, black cherries, menthol, chocolate, a fine base of gravel and a generous, but balanced serving of toasty oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and velvety, with a good core, lovey length and grip, really lovely acids for the vintage and fine focus and balance on the long, refined and complex finish. Fine, fine juice that is now into its apogee, but has decades of life still ahead of it. (Drink between 2019-2060)John Gilman | 94+ JG

One of the great modern-day Bordeaux, the 1989 Clinet still has a saturated purple color and a sweet nose of creme de cassis intermixed with incense, licorice, smoke, and mineral. As the wine sits in the glass, more blueberry and blackberry notes emerge, intermixed with some toasty oak, earth, and spice. This spectacularly concentrated, full-bodied, multi-dimensional wine is the stuff of dreams. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2025. Last tasted, 10/02.Robert Parker | 100 RPThis wine has such balance and harmony. I remember when it was young and how the new wood and intense fruit came out, but they have finally come together in such a beautiful way. It shows subtle and complex character of plums, cedar, dried flowers, and earth. The texture or mouthfeel is beautiful as you taste it.James Suckling | 100 JSThe 1989 Clinet is the vintage that put this Pomerol estate on the map thanks to a perfect score from you-know-who. While I have never encountered a perfect bottle myself, a magnum hinted that it was not beyond the realm of possibility, though I have found bottles to be a bit hit-or-miss. This bottle is one of the better examples. It features kirsch, cassis and crushed violets on the nose, like a Margaux with the dial turned up to eleven (and I mean that in a positive way.) There is some VA here, but it merely gives kick to the aromatics. The palate is medium-bodied with a rich, precocious entry and generous sloe and brown sugar notes, very deep and rounded. A slightly volatile finish offers marvelous length. I suspect that to really experience the 1989 Clinet at its peak, you need to find perfectly cellared larger formats, although clearly bottles can be a thrill. Tasted blind at lunch in London.Vinous Media | 95 VM

(Château Trotanoy) It had been many, many years since I last tasted the 1989 Château Trotanoy, and the wine has evolved beautifully from those youthful days and the last two bottles that I have drunk have been really quite lovely. The bouquet is deep, complex and just beginning to blossom at age twenty-four, as it offers up a lovely blend of red plums, a touch of blood orange, tobacco smoke, incipient notes of Pomerol nuttiness, mocha, and a stylish base of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, deep and still fairly primary, with a velvety core of fruit, lovely focus, a fair bit of ripe tannin still to resolve, tangy acids and excellent length and grip on the complex finish. I would still give this vintage of Trotanoy at least another five or six years in the cellar to really open up (though it is certainly quite approachable already), and in reality, this wine is going to be decidedly better to drink ten or twelve years further down the road. A lovely vintage of Trotanoy that still deserves a bit of extended cellaring- it is not quite as big and plush as some ’89 Pomerols, but it is a superb wine that is still climbing in quality. (Drink between 2016-2060).John Gilman | 93 JG All in elegance and finesse. Medium-ruby color at the center; a brick-red edge. Aromas of berries, raisins and sliced mushrooms. Full-bodied and chewy, with lots of round tannins and a tobacco, berry aftertaste.--1989 Bordeaux horizontal. Best after 2001.Wine Spectator | 92 WSA very delicate, elegant wine that has reached full maturity, again the notes of baked herbs, even tapenade are intermixed with sweet and sour cherries. Medium-bodied, soft, and easy to drink, this rather lightweight Trotanoy need to be consumed over the next decade. Last tasted, 2/02.Robert Parker | 90 RPThe 1989 Trotanoy can be variable from bottle to bottle. This one is similar to the one I tasted a couple of years ago. It has a slightly diffuse, quintessential nose of black truffle and hot gravel on a summer day. (The 1990 has a little more oomph.) The palate is mellow and well balanced but lacks the grip of succeeding vintages. It does build with that trait of black pepper toward the finish, although in this vintage it is dwarfed by its peers in Pomerol. Ready to drink now, but I suspect it will last another decade. Tasted at a private dinner in Bordeaux.Vinous Media | 90 VMA bubbling vat of cream here, with complexity coming from the notes of dried wild mushroom and wild flowers, too. The central palate is long, sweet, rich and graceful, drying just a little towards the finish. Drinking Window 2015 - 2029.Decanter | 90 DEC

A great Angelus and one of the two or three best vintages made under the talented young Hubert de Bouard, this wine still has a youthful, saturated ruby/purple color and a sweet nose of melted licorice intermixed with creme de cassis, tapenade, cedar, spice box, and vanilla. Very full-bodied, opulent, and rich, it is one of the 1989s that justifies the lofty reputation of this vintage. Extremely full-bodied, this wine can be drunk now or cellared for at least another 10-15 years. Anticipated maturity: Now-2015. Last tasted, 4/02.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 1989 Angélus is a vintage that I have tasted multiple times from various formats. It remains one of my favorite of that era. Still quite deep in color, it has a glorious, almost hubristic bouquet of layers of lush black cherries, cedar, sage and meat juice aromas as it moves assuredly into its secondary phase. The palate has always been very harmonious and smooth, the tannins finer than preceding vintages. There is lovely grip here, and black truffle and smoky notes appear on the finish. A quite marvelous Château Angélus. Tasted at the château.Vinous Media | 96 VMWow. What a reserved, yet seductive nose of milk chocolate, raspberry and mineral aromas that go on and on. Full-bodied, with ultrafine tannins and a mineral, berry, blackberry and violet flavor. This is polished and racy on the palate. So young still. Why wait? But serious and classic.--’89/’99 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2009). Drink now.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

I tasted this at a separate 67 Pall Mall event a few months ago, and it has delivered just as well this time around - impressive for a 30-year-old wine, as bottle variation is inevitably a concern at this age. Yet again it sings out with its concentration and opulent, silky blackberry and cassis fruits. The finish is lifted, with a white pepper note giving an extra kick to the juice, although there are plenty of tertiary hints in the toasted walnut notes. July, August and September of 1989 were stunning, with 13% more sunshine than average across all three months. Cheval always gets an early start to harvest, but this was the earliest of the 20th century to this point, running from 7 to 27 September, with a yield of 50hl/ha. It was owned by the Hébrard family at the time, with Gilles Pauquet as consultant. Drinking Window 2019 - 2032Decanter | 98 DECThe 1989 Cheval Blanc is a vintage that I have not encountered since 2010. One bottle opened was rustic and fatigued, and Pierre-Olivier Clouet opened a second that was much better. It has a gorgeous bouquet of ample red fruit, morels, black truffle, cigar box and hints of brown sugar, all very well defined and charming. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin and approaching full maturity; brown spices, bay leaf and clove infuse the red berry fruit. At 30 years of age, I suspect this 1989 will not improve further, but its robustness suggests that any decline will be graceful. Tasted from an ex-cellar bottle at the château.Vinous Media | 95 VM(Château Cheval Blanc) The 1989 Cheval Blanc is a beautiful example of the vintage, offering a deep, complex and utterly classic nose of dark berries, black cherries, menthol, cigar ash, gravelly soil tones, woodsmoke and a base of toasty new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very pure on the attack, with a rock solid core of sappy fruit, outstanding soil inflection, superb complexity and a very, very long, youthful and ripely tannic finish. While this wine is not particularly far away from fully blossoming and will be quite drinkable with another four or five years of cellaring, I would be very strongly inclined to not touch a bottle for at least another decade, as I would love to see this wine in the same magical spot as the 1983 Cheval is today. (Drink between 2016-2050)John Gilman | 94+ JGRipe, almost cooked fruit, with nuts, raisin and spices. Full-bodied, with a dense palate of ripe fruit and a leathery, spicy, dried berry character. So long and powerful. Chewy. This is big and very juicy, with loads of powerful fruit. A little alcoholic, even rustic, but I like it.—’89/’99 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2009). Drink now.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

This is dreamy and fully mature, with incense, black tea and a very fine chalky thread weaving through the silky core of raspberry and damson plum coulis. Long and beguiling through the finish. This drinks almost like a Rayas.—Non-blind Canon vertical (December 2016). Drink now through 2025. 7,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS(Château Canon (St. Émilion)) When I wrote my feature on Château Canon a few years back, I had not tasted the 1990 vintage here for many, many years and the wine did not feature in that report. Consequently, I was very curious to see how the wine was evolving when I heard it would be part of our tasting lineup at the end of December. The wine is very good, but shows some of the roasted character of the vintage in its bouquet of black cherries, a touch of menthol, chalky soil, roasted game elements and a topnote of cigar smoke. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and wide open structurally, with a good core, melted tannins and good length and grip, but without some of the customary Canon elegance that one enjoys here in most top vintages. This is a very good wine, but not a great Canon. (Drink between 2018-2030)John Gilman | 90 JG

A fabulous example, the 1990 Troplong Mondot is only equaled by such recent vintages as 2000, 2005, and 2008. The inky/garnet/plum/purple-colored 1990 exhibits notes of coffee, blackberries, licorice, camphor, and espresso. Rich and full-bodied with lavish fruit, high glycerin, low acidity, and stunning purity, it is still several years away from full maturity, and should last for another 10-15 years. Release price: ($425.00/case)Robert Parker | 98 RPA blockbuster. Amazing. I love Port, and this is close. Dark color. Very, very ripe on the nose. Full-bodied and very chewy, with loads of fruit and concentration in tannins. Mouthpuckering. Needs time.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2006. 10,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

One of the most singular Bordeaux I have ever tasted, it verges on being port-like, but it pulls back because of the extraordinary minerality and laser-like focus. The wine is massively concentrated, still black/purple-hued to the rim, and offers a nose of incense, blackberries, blueberry liqueur, acacia flowers, and forest floor. It reveals low acidity and high tannins, which are largely concealed by the sheer concentration and lavish glycerin the wine possesses. Aging at a glacial pace, it is approachable, but it will not hit its peak until 2020; it should last for twenty years thereafter. Release price: ($1200.00/case)Robert Parker | 100 RPLiquid cashmere. Stupendous St.-Emilion. Dark ruby color. Wonderful aromas of blackberries, preserved cherries, Indian spices and violets. Full-bodied, with fabulously polished tannins and a long, long finish.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2006. 3,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 98 WSParker made this wine a legend when he gave it 100 points on release. And I have had perfect bottles in my life of it. BTW, the 1989 is almost as good. This bottle that I had this week in Hong Kong was very, very closed and not giving the opulent character that I have encountered in this wine. It had been decanted three hours in advance and I still triple decanted it after tasting it because it was so shy on the palate. The 1990 Beausejour Duffau-Lagarosse seems to be going through a dumb period right now but it shows some fascinating dried fruit, mushroom and earth character. It’s full and chewy. I would leave it for a year or so and come back. A living, sort of bitchy wine at the moment.James Suckling | 96 JSDeep ruby to the rim. Extravagant aromas of black fruits, violets, and toffee. Voluptuous and sweet; this has outstanding concentration but with so much baby fat there’s little delineation on the palate. Finishes with a kick of alcohol and substantial ripe tannins. Very dense, but while a flight of other top right-bank wines were sending off fireworks in the glass, this chunky wine sat like a lump of coal.Vinous Media | 91 VM

A sensational effort, and one of the two finest Clinets made before the 2008, this prodigious wine made by the late Jean-Michel Arcaute has always been a sprinter out of the gate. Even at age 19, it continues to strut its stuff. A dense blue/garnet/purple hue exhibits slight lightening at the edge, and the gorgeous nose offers up aromas of sweet blueberries, licorice, smoke, acacia flowers, and camphor. Full-bodied with silky tannins, low acidity, and terrific purity, this 1990 has hit its plateau of full maturity where it should remain for another decade.Robert Parker | 97 RPMy previous encounter with the 1990 Clinet was out of magnum, circa the release of my Pomerol tome around a decade ago. It was impressive. However, this bottle suggests that this lauded Pomerol is beginning to stumble after 30 years. Rather volatile on the nose, the 1990 offers smudged black cherries, kirsch, green olives and dates, heady and ostentatious, though missing a bit of refinement. The palate is quite hedonistic, loaded with glycerine, a core of sweet black fruit with touches of fresh date and camphor, some VA just evident on the finish. Highly enjoyable for sure, though I would not leave bottles too long to drink. It is a Pomerol rather emblematic of the time.Vinous Media | 92 VMBeautifully crafted red. Brilliant ruby color. Aromas of fresh berries, blackberries and chocolate jump from the glass. Full-bodied and chewy, but velvety and caressing. Lots of ripe fruit.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2002.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

A blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, this is clearly the greatest Angelus until the 2000, 2003 and then the perfect 2005. Beautiful, sweet plum, blackberry and blueberry fruit soar from the glass of this opaque, purple wine that still hasn’t lost much in color. Deep, opulent, voluptuously textured, full-bodied and multidimensional, this is a stunner and just now approaching its plateau of full maturity, where it should stay for at least another 20 years.Robert Parker | 99 RPThe 1990 Angelus is fully mature today, yet will keep for another two decades or more. Black currants, spice-box, cured meats, cedarwood and roasted herb aromas all soar from the glass of this ripe, full-bodied, powerful Saint-Emilion. With full-bodied richness, an opulent, broad, expansive texture, and thrilling mid-palate depth, drink it anytime over the coming two decades or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDOpaque black ruby to the rim. Tangy, subdued nose hints at great richness and ripeness; notes of herbs and tobacco. Thick, sweet and harmonious on the palate, with an exciting vibrancy for a wine this rich and concentrated; great extract. The fabulous fruit explodes on the aftertaste, burying the wine's substantial ripe tannins. Goes beyond the superb '89, and will require longer to express itself. One of three or four '90s we seriously underrated from barrel.Vinous Media | 94 VMAromatic beauty. Dark ruby-red color. Enticing aromas of cinnamon, raspberry, plum, and cherry. Full-bodied, with wonderfully polished tannins and a long, fruity finish.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now. 12,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

A very strong effort form Petit-Village, and made before a very noticeable decline in the quality of wines over the subsequent seven years, the fully mature 1990 has plenty of amber at the edge, a dark garnet color, a sweet nose of melted licorice, espresso, dried herbs, and black cherries and currants. The wine is fleshy, silky-textured, and very easy to drink and understand. Anticipated maturity: Now-2010. Last tasted, 3/01.Robert Parker | 90 RP

One-third each of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, 100% new oak, with a harvest that lasted from 17 September to 6 October. Still deep in colour, and is given a huge boost by the Cabernets. The high sugar and low acidity comes through to give some ripe, almost overripe character with figs and rich berry jam notes. Gentle cold ash and menthol freshness work wonders at the close of play, giving a real boost to the length of the wine on the finish.Decanter | 96 DECOne of Bordeaux’s most schizophrenic properties, as disappointing as Figeac’s 1989 has turned out, the 1990 is fabulous. This property has not made a wine as rich as the 1990 since 1982. In contrast to the 1989, the 1990 is a great Figeac, potentially a richer, more complete and complex wine than the 1982. The 1990 exhibits a saturated dark purple color (somewhat atypical for Figeac), and a gorgeous nose of olives, fruitcake, jammy black fruits, minerals, and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, with gobs of glycerin-imbued, sweet, jammy fruit, this wine is nicely buttressed by moderate tannin and adequate acidity. Fleshy and rich, as well as elegant and complex, it is approachable because of the wine’s sweet fruit, but it promises even more pleasure with 2-4 more years of bottle age; it will last for 20 years. I predict the 1990 Figeac will have one of the most exotic and compelling aromatic profiles of the 1990s. It is a terrific wine!Robert Parker | 94 RPThe 1990 Figeac has been variable over the years, perhaps some bottles showing some brettanomyces? My last bottle was definitely one of the best. Deep in colour, it has a very expressive Cabernet component. Black truffle, Earl grey and cigar humidor scents gain momentum in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied, a little leathery on the entry with loose-knit, maybe even slightly rustic red fruit. This is not a finely-tuned Figeac, yet it is full of charm. There is just a mote of dryness on the finish, suggesting that it might well be reaching the end of its drinking plateau. Tasted at a private dinner in Bordeaux.Vinous Media | 93 VMRuby color. Interesting aromas of plums, leaves and berries. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a ripe fruit and chocolate aftertaste. Rich and chunky Figeac.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now. 12,500 cases made. Wine Spectator | 90 WS