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Château Lynch-Bages Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1989
The 1989 has taken forever to shed its formidable tannins, but what a great vintage of Lynch Bages! I would rank it at the top of the pyramid...extraordinary concentration and undeniable aging potential. Its dense purple color reveals a slight lightening at the edge and the stunning bouquet offers classic notes of creme de cassis, subtle smoke, oak and graphite. Powerful and rich...It should prove to be a 50 year wine. Robert Parker
Ratings on Delectable
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The 1989 Lynch-Bages is arguably the pinnacle of a fecund era for the Pauillac estate. The aromatics bowl you over with their intensity and precision, complex and brimming with personality: black fruit laced with graphite and blood orange. It would shade many a First Growth. The palate is medium-bodied with gorgeous, multi-layered black fruit on top of graphite and tobacco with just a faint touch of meat juices towards the entrancing finish. Frankly, there is nothing more that you could wish from a Pauillac that is audacious and utterly charming. Tasted at the château both in bottle and double-magnum formats. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2023)
The 1989 Lynch-Bages is arguably the pinnacle of a fecund era for the Pauillac estate. The aromatics bowl you over with their intensity and precision, complex and brimming with personality: black fruit laced with graphite and blood orange. It would shade many a First Growth. The palate is medium-bodied with gorgeous, multi-layered black fruit on top of graphite and tobacco with just a faint touch of meat juices towards the entrancing finish. Frankly, there is nothing more that you could wish from a Pauillac that is audacious and utterly charming. Tasted at the château both in bottle and double-magnum formats. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2023)
9.8Greg Koslosky
Out of 375ml a brooding monster of a wine dense and alcoholic some overripe notes on the nose prune and dried plums . Four square a little soil signature. Lots of power coats the taste buds not refined in the least but the shear density and material is impressive . Reminds me of the 1990 beausejour Duffau the way it’s built . Going to have it with a steak and give it more air maybe some magic will happen !
Out of 375ml a brooding monster of a wine dense and alcoholic some overripe notes on the nose prune and dried plums . Four square a little soil signature. Lots of power coats the taste buds not refined in the least but the shear density and material is impressive . Reminds me of the 1990 beausejour Duffau the way it’s built . Going to have it with a steak and give it more air maybe some magic will happen !
9.3
Shay A
This is an example of a wine that surpasses all expectations and is an absolute knockout in every way. I acquired this a few years back in anticipation of my wife’s 30th, and what an experience we were treated to when finally opening it to celebrate her! The cork on this wine was so impeccable it had me wondering if this was fake. Hardly any seepage, and pristine at the top. Great lower neck fill. I expected this to have funk to blow off, but it didn’t need it, that’s how youthful it was! In the glass, it was dark in color with a slightly fading ruby rim. Explosive aromatics with ripe black cherries, bay leaf, new leather, herbal spices and black currant. Mind blowing profile and structure on the palate...graphite, blackberries, smoked plum, sweet cherry tobacco, and cedar shavings evolve and show layers upon layers of complexity. Seamless and clean, but...I can’t believe I’m saying this...probably still has another 10-15yrs of enjoyment. Aging marvelously and glacially!
This is an example of a wine that surpasses all expectations and is an absolute knockout in every way. I acquired this a few years back in anticipation of my wife’s 30th, and what an experience we were treated to when finally opening it to celebrate her! The cork on this wine was so impeccable it had me wondering if this was fake. Hardly any seepage, and pristine at the top. Great lower neck fill. I expected this to have funk to blow off, but it didn’t need it, that’s how youthful it was! In the glass, it was dark in color with a slightly fading ruby rim. Explosive aromatics with ripe black cherries, bay leaf, new leather, herbal spices and black currant. Mind blowing profile and structure on the palate...graphite, blackberries, smoked plum, sweet cherry tobacco, and cedar shavings evolve and show layers upon layers of complexity. Seamless and clean, but...I can’t believe I’m saying this...probably still has another 10-15yrs of enjoyment. Aging marvelously and glacially!
9.7Greg Koslosky
Big and rich and so primary tasted blind you would think maybe 10 years old. A serious bottle but the only complaint a little hot on the finish and one dimensional .
Big and rich and so primary tasted blind you would think maybe 10 years old. A serious bottle but the only complaint a little hot on the finish and one dimensional .
9.2Cathy Corison
Owner/Winemaker Corison Winery
1989 Bordeaux PNV Retrospective at Larkmead. One of my favorites. Looked more youthful than many of the other wines. Dried leaves, peppermint. Leather. Full mouth. Nuanced. Not much fruit left. Classic old claret.
1989 Bordeaux PNV Retrospective at Larkmead. One of my favorites. Looked more youthful than many of the other wines. Dried leaves, peppermint. Leather. Full mouth. Nuanced. Not much fruit left. Classic old claret.
9.5
Mike Smith
Owner/Winemaker Myriad Cellars
1989
1989
9.7
Bill Bender
Holy F!! Consistently the best Lunch Bags ever made and competes punch for lunch with the ‘90 we had in San Antonio.
Holy F!! Consistently the best Lunch Bags ever made and competes punch for lunch with the ‘90 we had in San Antonio.
9.6
Eric
My last bottle. Savored on an awful day; being and feeling alone. It’s funny how saving something for a “special” occasion can offer a different idea of the meaning of the word. October 19, 1987 was both my birthday and the stock market crash. Such a juxtaposition as like today with 89 Lynch Bages. Tomorrow might be 2000 Chateau Palmer. Happiness = Reality - Expectation. I’m in negative territory.
My last bottle. Savored on an awful day; being and feeling alone. It’s funny how saving something for a “special” occasion can offer a different idea of the meaning of the word. October 19, 1987 was both my birthday and the stock market crash. Such a juxtaposition as like today with 89 Lynch Bages. Tomorrow might be 2000 Chateau Palmer. Happiness = Reality - Expectation. I’m in negative territory.
9.4
Nick Apone
1989
1989
9.2
Mike Saviage
Amber ruby. Almost opaque. Great musty nose with notes of cigar box, warm pie fruit, gravel, plum, currant and a little barnyard. Silky and rich in the mouth. Tannins nicely integrated. Still young.
Amber ruby. Almost opaque. Great musty nose with notes of cigar box, warm pie fruit, gravel, plum, currant and a little barnyard. Silky and rich in the mouth. Tannins nicely integrated. Still young.
9.4
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