Chateau Musar red 2004

Lobenberg: Der Mythos lebt weiter. Rostrot mit ziegelrotem Rand, welcher sich schon durchsichtig gibt. Im Bouquet ausgerägte Fruchtigkeit in Form von Walderdbeeren, satte frische Kirsche, etwas Minze und Hagebutte. Am Gaumen eine knackige Frucht aber weiche Tanninstruktur. Dazu die umhüllende, sehr feine Säure und ein Korsett aus Eisen und Brombeere mit etwas lang gezogenem schwarzen Tee. Warum sollte man dreißig und mehr Jahre auf eine Grand Cru Classé aus Pauillac warten, wenn Gaston Hochar in der Lage ist, einen so grandiosen Wein in gereifter Stilistik zu liefern? Der Libanon, dieses geschundene Land, macht es möglich. Zwar schon trinkreif aber doch auch mit großer Energie für noch sehr viele Jahre versehen. In 2004 beeindruckt die Klarheit und die geradezu sich anbietende Zugänglichkeit dieses noblen Rotweintraums. Einfach ein aromatisch feiner Traum. 94-95+/100

-- Parker: The 2004 Chateau Musar is an equal blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan and Cinsault. This is a rather civilized, laid back Musar. The complicated aging process is best described by the winery: “The wines spent nine months in cement vats and then a year in French Nevers oak barrels and the final blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan rested for another nine months in vats before being bottled?“ The winery describes this as a once-in-a-decade vintage where a heat wave caused notable increases in sugar content in a short time. I sometimes find that is a dangerous description of vineyard conditions with many risks for a winery, but it seems to have turned out well. If you’re comparing, it adds two layers of depth to the 2007 Hochar, although it is quite elegant and graceful in its own right. Most importantly, it has more of an obvious backbone even though it is late-released. Its balance, combining the nice fruit, elegant mid-palate, persistent finish and backbone, gives it a tightly wound, precise and focused demeanor. The tannins are not completely integrated, but not overly hard. They provided some welcome grip and vibrancy and never overwhelmed the wine. In the long run, they should serve this wine in good stead. Overall, it is an exceptionally graceful, somewhat modern and restrained Musar, bright, with that silky texture I saw in the Hochar reviewed this issue, while adding those layers of concentration. The cherry on top is the intensity of fruit flavor – bursts of delicious and juicy fruit on the finish, admittedly nuanced by some of the gamey notes I see here so often. Call it raspberry flavored, though, because the fruit is delicious. The gamey notes were in fact moderate and, at least for my taste, not an issue. As this rather subtle Musar aired out, I liked it more and more. I’ve had Musars that were bigger, burlier, more rustic and more astringent. Here, the subtle start was unremarkable, but it gathered steam, showed remarkable finesse and then won me over. This will certainly do better with food. 91/100