TN 89 Montrose; 89 Lalande

[Jamie Manley]

89 Montrose - I recently rated this 100 pts, and the second bottle did not disappoint. Rather than bore you with similar notes, let me just say that this is "one of those wines." Incredible fruit, flavor intensity, and balance. Not inexpensive, but a relative bargain compared to others in its league. 99+ Pts.

89 Pichon Lalande - Another stunner from 1989! On the next tier compared to Montrose, this is still absolutely worth seeking out if you are a fan of Lalande or aged claret (I am a slave to Lalande.) The nose is actually more expressive than the Montrose - beautiful notes of tobacco, earth, cassis, plum, crushed stones, Cuban cigar, floral tones, and pencil. Not even a hint of green. Palate mimicks the nose, and the Pauillac pencil on the finish is glorious. Medium bodied and suave, this has a good 40 second finish. The Montrose would probably clobber it in a blind tasting, but make no mistake, 1989 Pichon Lalande has earned its right as one of the top ten of the vintage. Masterful. 95 Pts.

[Alex Stone]

Jamie,

Thank you for posting. Your notes on the 1989 Montrose along with Jeff's comments have me salivating to try a bottle.

[M Albert Bouffard]

Jamie, how much of a decant did you give the '89 Montrose? Jeff - your thoughts?

[Jeff Leve]

Marc... With wines over 20 years old, the provenance, if you know it, will dictate the decanting needed. An hour should be fine for well stored bottles of 1989 Montrose, which will allow it to show well and develop in the glass. I might not give 1989 Pichon Lalande more than 20 minutes. The wine is fully mature.

[M Albert Bouffard]

Thanks Jeff. I'm looking forward to trying both of them at that '89/'90 Hart Davis Hart retrospective next week!

[Jamie Manley]

Marc... With wines over 20 years old, the provenance, if you know it, will dictate the decanting needed. An hour should be fine for well stored bottles of 1989 Montrose, which will allow it to show well and develop in the glass. I might not give 1989 Pichon Lalande more than 20 minutes. The wine is fully mature.

Marc, Jeff is spot on, especially with the Lalande. With the Lalande it was a pop and pour; Montrose got 3 hours of air but no decant.

[M Albert Bouffard]

I just want to reiterate how nice it is to have this forum so that I can benefit from the experience of everyone else! Thanks guys.

[Jeff Leve]

I just want to reiterate how nice it is to have this forum so that I can benefit from the experience of everyone else! Thanks guys.

Thank you Marc. We are a little bit sleepy still, but in time, things should pick up. We also benefit from your experience as well. That's what makes it work. Everyone here appreciates your posting and enthusiasm!

[Jamie Manley]

I just want to reiterate how nice it is to have this forum so that I can benefit from the experience of everyone else! Thanks guys.

You're welcome Marc. We all appreciate your posts too. The more we all post, the more information for all of us. Plus the information on and from Bordeaux here is priceless. Cheers Marc, and thank you Jeff!