Chateau Musar
Chateau Musar Red 2016

Seven years in the making, this illustrious cuvée is a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan and Cinsault made from 40-year-old low yielding bush vines. The separate grapes undergo lengthy fermentations for 6 months in cement vats, and then age individually in French oak barrels for 12 months. After this the blend is made and the juice is transferred back to cement tanks for 12 months before undergoing a further 4 years of bottle aging in Musar cellars, prior to release. An incredible deep ruby in the glass with an almost mahogany tint, this wine is already showing excellent maturity and approachability for its size. Red cherries, plums, vanilla, carob, figs and exotic eastern spices dominate the rich and fragrant nose. The dense, smooth and refined palate then sings with notes of kirsch, sweet and ripe plums, blackcurrant and distinctive notes of dark chocolate and cocoa beans. The tannins are fine, soft and velvety, perfectly rounding out the picture. This wine has incredible depth and concentration of fruit and a long lingering finish.

This is a serious wine that will continue to age and evolve for decades to come but that is drinking delightfully now. Neither fined or filtered, sediment is to be expected, so allowing the bottle time upright to allow the sediment to settle and decanting before drinking is recommended.