| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pauillac |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
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 although the 1990, 2000, and down the road, some of the more recent vintages such as 2005, 2009 and 2010 should come close to matching the 1989's 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 with some tannins still to shed at age 22, it is still a young adolescent in terms of its evolution and will benefit from another 4-5 years of cellaring. It should prove to be a 50 year wine.
One of the all-time great vintages for this château is the 1989 Lynch-Bages, a striking wine that offers up pure and intense aromas of cassis, pencil shavings, spring flowers and hints of cigar wrapper. Full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, it's seamless and concentrated, with a rich core of fruit, ripe tannins and a beautifully defined finish. Still an infant at age 32, it surpasses all three of Pauillac's first growths in 1989.
The opaque purple-colored 1989 is less evolved and showy than the 1990. However, it looks to be a phenomenal example of Lynch-Bages, perhaps the finest vintage in the last 30 years. Oozing with extract, this backward, muscular, dense wine possesses great purity, huge body, and a bulldozer-like power that charges across the palate. It is an enormous wine with unbridled quantities of power and richness. The 1989 requires 5-8 years of cellaring; it should last for 3 decades. Last tasted, 11/96.
