Wine Advisor
Chateau Margaux 1991
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Margaux's 1991 is a candidate for "wine of the vintage." It reveals a deep ruby color, and a tight but promising nose of rich cassis, licorice, and toasty new oak. Dense, medium to full-bodied, with plenty of depth, it possesses moderate tannin and a long, rich finish. Anticipated maturity: 1996-2007. A bigger, more powerful wine than Margaux's 1987, it is close in quality to the estate's 1988.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind as a vintage comparison at the Valandraud vertical, the 1991 Chateau Margaux was actually much better than I expected and certainly surpassed my solitary previous encounter. It is quite deep and clear in color with a surprisingly generous bouquet that is not complex, but attractive with scents of mulberry, mint and star anise. It opens nicely in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly rustic, irony tannin, though the fruit profile is charming: blackberry, chestnut, spice box, cumin and a touch of undergrowth. Of course, after 25 years it is firmly into its secondary phase and yet it has retained admirable cohesion and freshness. Nobody is going to bat an eyelid if you drink this now and might wonder why you never did in the 1990s. But given the substance and unexpected lack of greenness, a bottle of sound provenance will continue to hold in there. Tasted December 2016.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the “First Growth” lunch in London. The ’91 Margaux has an exceedingly green nose, very leather, fresh green peppers and not much in the weight of fruit intensity. The has a ‘burnt’ element coming through with further aeration. The palate is medium-bodied and perhaps better than the bouquet would suggest, but what fruit it has fades quickly in the glass leaving the husk of a First Growth. For completists only. Past its best. Tasted October 2008.
About the Producer
Chateau Margaux is located in the village of Margaux, in the Medoc appellation on the left bank of Bordeaux, and was awarded a First Growth in the 1855 Bordeaux Medoc classification, alongside Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Chateau Latour and Château Haut-Brion. It is also known as Chateau Haut-Brion. Château Margaux currently covers a total of 262 hectares, including 99 hectares of vineyards. The red vineyard has an appellation of 87 hectares, of which 82 hectares are planted, while the white vineyard is planted with 12 hectares. The red varieties are mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc; the white varieties are Sauvignon Blanc and the vines are on average 45 years old. Since the end of the 1990s, the estate has refused to use pesticides in the vineyards. In addition, only organic fertilisers are used in the vineyard, and deep fertilisation is carried out at regular intervals to improve the soil structure and rejuvenate the soil. During the harvest season, the winery team selects the right time to harvest the grapes by testing and analysing all the indicators and by tasting the grapes themselves. Once the grapes have reached their ideal state of ripeness, they are harvested by a team of over 200 trained harvesters. Once in the winery, the grapes undergo a rigorous selection process before being de-stemmed. Both oak barrels and stainless steel tanks are used to ferment the red grapes, while the white grapes are fermented entirely in oak barrels. After the alcoholic fermentation, the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation. The red wines are then left to mature in oak barrels for 18-24 months and the whites for 6-8 months. The main wine of the estate, Château Margaux's red wine, is rich and complex, with an elegant and powerful ballet on the tongue, rich and smooth tannins, good balance and a long, fresh finish with excellent ageing potential. It successfully conquered Napoleon Bonaparte, the founder of the First French Empire, and won the hearts of Thomas Jefferson, the founding father of the United States, and Margaret Thatcher, the "Iron Lady" of England. In the world of wine criticism, Château Margaux's red wines have also been recognised, with four perfect scores from Robert Parker and many more from other critics with 95 points or more. In recent years, the quality of Château Margaux's red wines has been steady and has maintained a high level of interest in the market.
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