| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pauillac |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
Approaching full maturity, Pichon-Lalande's 1989 has a deep ruby/plum color with some lightening at the edge. The nose offers sweet plums and creme de cassis intermixed with vanilla and graphite. The wine is lush, medium to full-bodied, and layered with texture, low acidity, sweet tannin, and the hallmark purity and elegance this estate routinely produces. Some tannins remain, but this wine has reached its plateau of maturity, where it should remain for another 10-15 years. Anticipated maturity: Now-2017. Last tasted, 5/02.
The 1989 Pichon-Lalande is a lovely wine, and this might well be the best bottle that I have encountered. Served blind incidentally, it has a pixelated bouquet with layers of black fruit, iodine and black truffle, minty aromas signifying a Pauillac emerging with time. The palate is supremely well balanced with fine tannins, fresh and quite minty with a touch of graphite. This is outstanding and probably at its apex right now. Tasted at the château. Drink 2022-2045.
Speaking of superior vintages, Pichon-Lalande's 1989, although not as profound as the 1995, 1994, 1986, 1983, or 1982, is a beautifully made wine. It exhibits a deep ruby/purple color, and a sweet, roasted nose of rich cassis fruit, herbs, and vanilla. Lush and round, this medium to full-bodied, nicely-textured, layered Pichon-Lalande possesses low acidity, outstanding ripeness, and beautiful purity and balance. It is already drinking surprisingly well, so owners should not hesitate to pull a cork. It should continue to offer rich, seductive drinking for another 15+ years.
Tasted at the Chapon Fin restaurant in Bordeaux. This is a far better bottle than the one encountered last year and bore semblances to my more positive encounters several years ago. Here, the 1989 has that lovely bouquet of black fruits, black tea and loam, that blossoms from the glass with continued aeration. The palate has very well balanced, the tannins having mellowed in recent years with tobacco and mushroom towards the finish. This just has much more vigour than I anticipated, much more cohesion. Very fine indeed. A point. Tasted September 2011.
