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Rating

86?

Release Price

NA

Drink Date

NA

Reviewed by

Neal Martin

Issue Date

31st Mar 2017

Source

Interim End of March, The Wine Advocate

Tasted at the Château Canon vertical, the 2001 Canon is a good if not great contribution to the vintage, though within the context of great Right Bank wines, I am convinced that it should be better. It has a nicely defined nose that rather lacks some elegance and complexity: red pastilles, a touch of cherry liqueur and balsamic. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin, quite mature for a 2001, leathery and a little loose knit with an attenuated, soy-tinged finish. This is just so-so. A second bottle is poured and granted, it is better. But it still does not match the bar set by what was a great Right Bank vintage. It just seems rather conservative, unwilling to make the effort to create a great Canon à la 2005, 2009 or 2010. Tasted October 2015.

Rating

92

Release Price

NA

Drink Date

2017 - 2030

Reviewed by

Neal Martin

Issue Date

28th Feb 2017

Source

229, The Wine Advocate

Tasted blind as a vintage comparison at the Valandraud vertical, the 1999 Mouton-Rothschild is a "useful," perhaps over-looked vintage from the First Growth estate. It has a clean and precise bouquet - you could almost describe this as dainty, which I mean in a positive sense. The fruit is beautifully delineated, almost pastille-like with subtle floral scents emerging with time. The palate is fresh on the entry with supple red berries pierced by a fine line of acidity. No, it is not complex and it has lost a little substance in recent years, yet it is well balanced with sufficient depth and body on the tobacco and cedar-tinged finish. If you can put its status aside, it boils down to nothing more than a well-made, easygoing and refined Pauillac to drink now and over the next decade. Tasted December 2016.

Readers looking for a modern day version of Latour's magnificent 1962 or 1971 should check out the sensational 1999 Latour. It is a big, concentrated offering, exhibiting a dense ruby/purple color, and a classic nose of minerals, black currants, leather, and vanilla. The wine is long, ripe, and medium-bodied, with high levels of sweet tannin. This surprisingly full, concentrated 1999 should be drinkable in 5-6 years; it will last for three decades.

Score: 94 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (140), April 2002

A terrific effort, this sexy, open-knit, opulent effort possesses plenty of tannin, but it is largely concealed by the wine's wealth of fruit, high extraction level, and noticeable glycerin as well as unctuosity. Dense ruby/purple-colored, with a sweet, evolved nose of black fruits (cassis, leather, and blackberries), cedar, spice box, and liquid minerals, this powerful yet seamless Latour will be surprisingly accessible at an unusually young age. Long and full-bodied, with the acidity, tannin, alcohol, and wood all beautifully integrated, it will be at its finest between 2007-2030. A classic!

Score: 93/95 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (134), April 2001

The opulent, rich, concentrated 1999 is atypically forward and luscious. The dense purple color is followed by precocious, sweet black cherry/cassis aromas backed up by noteworthy liquid mineral and subtle smoky new oak notes. Dense and fat, with low acidity, an opulent, chewy texture, medium to full body, superb power, and a seductive character, it will be drinkable at an unusually early age, but, given its stuffing, will last for two decades or more.

Score: 92/94 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (128), April 2000

big yet racy 99. Shows blackberry aromas, with a hint of spice, and is full bodied, with a solid core of fruit, firm tannins and a dark chocolate and coffee aftertaste. Wonderful texture. Goes on and on. Best after 2006.

  James Suckling, Wine Spectator (31/3/2), March 2002

Score: 93 James Suckling, Wine Spectator (Mar 2002), March 2002

Score: 90/94 James Suckling, Wine Spectator

Score: 20/25 Andrew Jefford, Decanter Magazine (Jun 2000), June 2000

Medicinal and sinewy on the nose. Exciting and vibrant. Deep-flavoured. Long but the tannins are still very evident (though in this case there seems to be enough fruit to stand up to them). Ambitious - needs quite a bit of time yet. Drink 2012-2028. Date tasted 25th June 09.

Score: 18 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, September 2009

Wine Advocate

91

The 1998 Margaux's color is a dense ruby/purple. The wine is tannic and austere, but elegant, with notes of asphalt, blackberries, acacia flowers, and sweet, toasty oak. Subtle, rich, nicely-textured, and medium-bodied, it is built for the long haul. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2030.

Neal Martin

94

A deep garnet core with deep brick rim. The nose has moderate intensity, not the exuberance and exhilaration of the Haut-Brion, but expressive, with notes of blackberry, tar, a touch of leather and bilberry. What it does not have is Margaux's signature aroma of violets - this is more reserved and masculine. The palate is medium-bodied, quite peppery upon entry with good acidity and balance, yet missing the femininity and the finesse that marks out say the 1999 or the 2001. The finish is quite dry, perhaps a little dour compared to other Chateau Margaux. Tasted March 2008.

Rating

88

Release Price

NA

Drink Date

2015 - 2023

Reviewed by

Neal Martin

Issue Date

29th Jul 2016

Source

Interim End of July, The Wine Advocate

It is many years since I last tasted the 1994 Château Cheval Blanc. Here it has an intriguing nose with expressive Cabernet Franc aromas that develop more floral, wilted petal tones with aeration. There are touches of desiccated red cherry and bacon fat. The palate is medium-bodied and nicely structured, quite savory in the mouth and showing some austerity towards the harmonious finish. It is a little curmudgeonly perhaps and I would consume bottles in the next 5-8 years, as it is not going to go anywhere. Tasted March 2015.

ROBERT PARKER: 88

WINE SPECTATOR: 88

Delicious, supple and close to full maturity, the 2007 Lynch Bages exhibits a dark plum/purple color with some lightening at the edge along with tobacco leaf, bay leaf, black currant and earthy, loamy notes. Medium-bodied, supple and charming, it is best drunk over the next 7-8 years. Wine Advocate.August, 2011

Rating

89+

Release Price

$55 - 65

Drink Date

2012 - 2032

Reviewed by

Robert M. Parker, Jr.

Issue Date

27th Apr 2010

Source

188, The Wine Advocate

This muscular, highly-extracted, structured 2007 reveals a boatload of tannin (unusual for this vintage). The wine’s dark ruby/purple color is followed by aromas of cassis, new saddle leather, and forest floor offered in a structured, backward, almost unapproachable format. Give it 2-3 years of cellaring, and if the tannins resolve themselves, it will merit a higher score. It should last for 12-20 years.

Not surprisingly, this wine is closed, masculine, but super-rich, with a denser, more complete and full-bodied style than its sibling, Langoa Barton. Some toasty vanillin is apparent in the black currant aromas intermixed with tobacco leaf, cedar, and spice box. The wine is full-bodied and has a boatload of tannin, not unusual for this estate, as well as an impressively pure, long finish. Everything is here, but this wine, made with uncompromising vision, is meant to be cellared for an exceptionally long period of time. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2035.