Open Mike: Musar 2000 NOW OPEN & EXTENDED

As per Matt's Hochar 2001 thread, here's a call to glasses for an open mike on Chateau Musar.

As I ramble on a bit below, here's the broad plan for this Open Mike
Weekend 29th / 30th March: 1999 Chateau Musar (red)
Weekend 5th / 6th April: 2000 Chateau Musar (red)

Background: I'm somewhat reticent about this, as resident Musarite Otto could probably write a book about this winery and their wines. However by way of (not so) brief summary...

Not the oldest winery in Lebanon (Ch. Ksara in 1857 holds that honour), but very much the most famous. In some respects the fame is for the 'wrong' reason of their persistence in making wine throughout the civil war (and indeed the more recent troubles), just missing two vintages in the process (1976 and 1984). IIRC one of these vintages (1984?) still sits in barrel or bottle, waiting to see if it emerges into a wine that is appropriate to release.

Musar was founded in the 1930's by Gaston Hochar, who having trained in Bordeaux, aspired to producing great wine in the Bekaa Valley. The cepage of the wine varies by vintage and whilst Cabernet Sauvignon is a key part of the mix, also included are the 'lesser' grapes Cinsault and Carignan, plus Syrah/Shiraz, Merlot and Mourvedre. There may be other grape varieties. Vines are (so I'm told) dry grown at 3,000 ft altitude.

So is this a Bordeaux look-alike? Not really. In some vintages it's closer to the Rhone; in others more Burgundian, in others maybe Bordeaux is a closer fit. There is always IMO a streak of 'Musar' running through it's core, that sets it out on it's own as a very unique wine, despite what are often relatively significant vintage variations. What makes it unique is rather difficult for me to attempt an explanation, but I will give at least my own take on it.

Musar is a wine that is a little 'on the edge'. It's commonly accepted amongst it's fans, that it regularly displays high levels of Volatile Acidity (VA), giving a lifted, verging on vinegary aroma. Suggestions of other winemaking faults have often been levelled at it, though frequently it's a wine quoted as an argument against spotlessly clean wines. It has character in Spades.

Consequently Musar is a bit of a love it or hate it wine. In recent times I've seen it twice in tastings with wine newbies attending. In both instances it's been a wine that's drawn more than a few 'wow's from these people. I went through the same experience years ago and it has the ability to both be memorable, but also to highlight that there's a bit more to wine than initially meets the eye.

Musar is typically released with significant age - the UK is currently on 2000 vintage, though 2001 must be approaching soon. For an insight into what it tastes like pre-release, Broadbent's Vintage wine book includes brief notes on the unblended constituents of the wine. Tasting it young & blind, you might doubt it would age that well, but it's not built like most other wines and age well it does. Old vintages sell at a significant premium to the current release and appear to be drip-fed into the market by an established distribution network.

ServingThere is a firm body of opinion that Musar needs extensive time in a decanter (c. 4 hours) to shine at it's best. I'm undecided, but may take this chance to test the theory (by tasting on opening, then decanting a few hours ahead of drinking the remainder). I've no great view on food matches, but would probably choose game if I had to - anything from Guinea-Fowl, through Duck, to Pigeon or Pheasant. Lamb should also be a good match and it holds up well to mildly spicy dishes.

Extracts of Harvest reports from Musar's own website
1999 was an exceptional year. Starting with a mild winter with very little rainfall, it was followed by our normal spring weather, which allowed a good flowering. However the yield seemed lower than usual due to the lack of water. The summer was mild and although July and August were cloudy, September was hot and sunny. This enabled the grapes to reach maximum maturity with great all round concentration – good acidity and a high sugar level.

2000 A very natural winter and spring. There was average rainfall in winter with some cold days, followed by nice weather which allowed flowering to develop quite well in the spring. However things started to deviate from the norm with the arrival of summer. July was unusually hot with some very dry days - the temperature even above 35 degrees centigrade. This was followed by an August which was hotter than average but it wasn't as hot as it was in July. Happily enough September was back to normal!

We started harvesting on the 6th September, one week earlier than usual. The crop was healthy and very good but the quantity was down by 15%. The grapes of this year were sweet but tannic with good acidity. Fermentation progressed well - slowly with very little heat as it was naturally under control. Interestingly the level of alcohol was higher than usual - almost the same as 1999. All in all, it was an easy harvest and an easy fermentation with hardly any problems and malolactic fermentation followed its normal course.

Other sources
Many. However as well as Musar's own site http://www.chateaumusar.com.lb/english/cave1.aspx?id=1 (where you'll see a picture of the label), Jamie Goode's Wine Anorak site has a good write up of Musar and also his notes from 'Musarathon', an extensive vertical tasting of the wines organised through a UK wine forum.

For anything else (and corrections to any errors/omissions above) I'll point you towards Otto, who will I'm sure have better answers than me.

For newcomers to Open Mike (and those, who are still awake after my ramblings), it's an opportunity to taste the same (or at least very similar) wines and compare notes and discuss not just the wine, but our own different perceptions of the wine. It's ideal for a specific weekend, but feel free to drift into the following week, or even later. This Open Mike is a variant, in that we'll attempt to cover two vintages (1999 and 2000) over consecutive weekends. Don't worry if you can't make the specific weekend, we all have lives outside the board (we do don't we? ) and few days either side isn't an obstacle to taking part. Post comments, tasting notes, discussion within this thread so it's easy to keep track of.

So to confirm
Weekend 29th / 30th March: 1999 Chateau Musar (red)
Weekend 5th / 6th April: 2000 Chateau Musar (red)

Looking forward to hearing all your views

regards

Ian

Great stuff, Ian. This should be an interesting debate eh. The Grill has 11 bottles stashed away, I have one reserved in the west end so will pick up!!

In some respects the fame is for the 'wrong' reason of their persistence in making wine throughout the civil war (and indeed the more recent troubles), just missing two vintages in the process (1976 and 1984). IIRC one of these vintages (1984?) still sits in barrel or bottle, waiting to see if it emerges into a wine that is appropriate to release.

An excellent introduction, Ian, thank you! I find it a bit annoying that so many people think that the interest of the wine lies in the story behind the troubles, rather than because some of us genuinely like the wine in the bottle. The 1984 was bottled, but because the vineyards lie in the Biqa'-valley, while the winery is in Ghazír, a bit north of Beyrut, they had a bit of trouble getting the grapes through the war zone into the winery - IIRC they stood in trucks for about a week (and I guess in that time they must have started fermenting already?). They still made the grapes into wine, but didn't release it. I don't know if he was joking or not, but when Gaston Hochar visited Finland last winter, he said that the '84 is starting to taste like wine and that they might release it if it continues becoming better!

It is worth noting that Musar didn't make a 1992 red, because of bad weather. But the white 1992 was made, and reports say that it is an attractive wine.

ServingThere is a firm body of opinion that Musar needs extensive time in a decanter (c. 4 hours) to shine at it's best. I'm undecided, but may take this chance to test the theory (by tasting on opening, then decanting a few hours ahead of drinking the remainder). I've no great view on food matches, but would probably choose game if I had to - anything from Guinea-Fowl, through Duck, to Pigeon or Pheasant. Lamb should also be a good match and it holds up well to mildly spicy dishes.

I think the extended decanting is important especially for young white Musars. Reds don't need as much time as the whites - and indeed some vintages, like the 1999 are surprisingly nice straight upon opening. I still find that it blossoms with a few hours decanting, but the change isn't so marked as with whites or, say, the 1997 red which is a tough beast. I would say that two hours is the minimum I would decant, but 4+ won't hurt. I would love to hear your thoughts on the decanting experiment!

I love a simple lamb covered in herbs with Musar. But it is a very versatile wine on the table.

-O

It is worth noting that Musar didn't make a 1992 red, because of bad weather. But the white 1992 was made, and reports say that it is an attractive wine.
-O

Indeed - how obvious. There's me focused on the history, and yes now I think about it I've seen 91, 93-00 vintages, but no 92. That said I can't recall seeing a 1990 either, but have at least heard reference to it.

All
Matt may be making an early start on the 1999 so if he does, don't be afraid to jump in early.

regards

Ian

I look forward to opening the '99 on the weekend. I tend to pair Musar with dijon and rosemary encrusted rack of lamb - it's almost an effortless pairing. But I feel I've been leaning on it too much recently. Any other suggestions?

Otto, I bought two bottles of the '92 blanc about one year ago. I shared one with Bob and a few friends last year. It's an intriguing wine, with marzipan-like flavours if I recall correctly. It disappeared on the finish, though. Any thoughts on when I should open the remaining bottle? (You planning any trips to Alberta? )

I look forward to opening the '99 on the weekend. I tend to pair Musar with dijon and rosemary encrusted rack of lamb - it's almost an effortless pairing. But I feel I've been leaning on it too much recently. Any other suggestions?

How about a rack of lamb encrusted in Tabil? I make it with caraway seed, dried chilli flakes (mild or hot depending on your preference), coriander seed, crushed garlic and salt. Gently roast the mix until the garlic dries out. Roughly pound in a pestle and mortar to break up the seeds a bit then crust the lamb.

Roast as normal, and enjoy.

How about a rack of lamb encrusted in Tabil? I make it with caraway seed, dried chilli flakes (mild or hot depending on your preference), coriander seed, crushed garlic and salt. Gently roast the mix until the garlic dries out. Roughly pound in a pestle and mortar to break up the seeds a bit then crust the lamb.
Roast as normal, and enjoy.

Nayan, welcome to the forum, you rack of lamb sounds wonderful. I love lamb, and what you do to/with it sounds as if I would enjoy being at your table. I don't think I have seen your name here before, and can't help wondering where you are. Your treatment of lamb sounds as if it might be modification of an Indian dish.

PS, I forgot to say that I too am a big fan of Musar wines, both the reds, and the whites!

Hi Bob,

Thank you for the welcome. Friendly place this forum

I'm of Indian origin, based in the UK at the moment but lived in Oz for a few years. The recipe, however, is Tunisian. Apart from the chilli the rest of the ingredients originate from the Mediterranean rim (it's one of those "what did the Romans do for us" recipes).

There are some very interesting spice mixtures suited to lamb from the Near East/African countries; like Berbere from Ethiopia and Zhug from Yemen. Definitely worth Googling for.

Look forward to joining in the Open Mike with you.

BUMP!

The mike is wired up, so please feel free to open any 1999 Musar you have lying around and post your thoughts here this weekend. We'll probably open ours tomorrow evening.

regards

Ian

The mike is wired up, so please feel free to open any 1999 Musar you have lying around and post your thoughts here this weekend. We'll probably open ours tomorrow evening.

Aye, aye, Cap'n! It's a pleasure taking such orders! I work tomorrow until such an hour that I'll just get home in time to host a dinner, so I will not have time to decant the Musar '99 enough. So I came up with a cunning plan: I'm not going to decant; I'm going to open it tonight and pour myself a small night-cap and hope that the small increase in surface area + a brief decant tomorrow will be enough to show the wine at its best.

Tonight: smells like peach kernel, red fruit; nice but all over the place. The palate also is a bit disjoineted, but has all the elements I hope to see in a young Musar. In short, it's a lovely young wine that cries out for decanting.

I'll continue tomorrow,
-O

Well, I did open mine early in the end. Here's what I made of it:

On opening:

Wine has a very unusual smell which I initially described as pine but was very medicinal - one of my guests sharing the wine likened it to elastoplast! There were also notes of oak and red fruit.

The medicinal quality came through strongly at the start of the taste, but gave way to baked, spicy flavour of red fruit. Acid was high but not intrusive and tannin very soft. Finish was medium length and seemed to really bring out the spice.

After 3 hours of airing:

Medicinal smell and flavour has receded into pleasing elements of pine. The red fruit has become more noticeable and has resolved itself into red apple, strawberry and redcurrant although still baked and spicy - almost like a fruit pie. Acid has also become more noticeable.

Someone else sharing the wine - who didn't think much of it - remarked at this point that with the acid and apple flavours the wine had begun almost to taste like dry cider, which I thought a very perceptive and quite accurate observation although I thought it added character to the wine, rather than spoiling it.

Overall, it's hard to describe this in any way other than "nice, but very unusual". While I enjoyed it I'm not entirely sure that my level of appreciation justified the £16 price tag. I have two bottles to store, and the 2000 to open next week - will be very interesting to compare.

Great start gents and both doing the decant vs. non decant comparison! I really have to do the same, but I may have to do the same as Otto (tomorrow afternoon) as a half bottle wouldn't last long enough!

Matt
Possibly heading over to Holt tomorrow (breakfast at Byfords ). As well as food shopping, will hopefully find time for a stroll in the local country park (an odd thought considering how generally rural it is).

regards

Ian

Initial note on opening (from a small tasting sample size pour). Looking back throught the notes, seems some convergence on the red fruits and different perceptions on the oak. Also agreement on the way it's a bit disjointed on opening. I do understand the comment Matt relayed about cider - certainly similarities with a good traditional scrumpy cider (less so Magners, Bulmers and the like)

1999 Chateau Musar - Lebanon, Bekaa Valley (3/29/2008)
From a half bottle, base of neck fill.

ON OPENING
Showing some age in appearance already, with a medium to light red core, lightening to mahogany at the rim. Neither especially bright or dull.

The nose initially shows small sweet red-berry fruits and a touch of varnish (not excessively so for Musar). I think there's oak there, but it sits in support. Could fool someone into thinking Italy, even Piemontese Nebbiolo. Swirling reveals a greater depth, more substance.

The palate shows prominent acidity which seems to shout louder than the rest of the wine. On the finish however the complexity comes through and there's a good aged, if slightly baked fruit feel to it, with a faint touch of bitterness on the tongue.

At the moment the wine feels a little disjointed, but the finish is long and complex. Let's see what it's like after 2-3 hours in the decanter.

regards

Ian

AFTER 4 HOURS IN THE DECANTER
No discernable change in colour. The nose however is more lively - not disimilar to swirling the wine earlier, though with perhaps a bit more orange-like lift. I sense a hint of vanilla now that I didn't see before. The palate is now more rounded and whilst still having prominent acidity, the rest of the wine seems to be balancing it better. The finish is still excellent and there's more of a progression than before. I hope this shows evidence the wine will come together a little better in time, but still enjoyable where it is now.

Evidence to support the decanting theory (let's just try the same with an older vintage sometime!)

regards

Ian

Some time back in the distant past, I used to know a little organic chemistry. I seem to recall that one of the classes of compound which lends a distinctive flavour to cider are known as aldehydes. Some aldehydes are also used as disinfectant agents in hospitals. They're pretty volatile compounds and when exposed to oxygen they slowly turn into weak acids.

So, I wondered whether there might be relatively high levels of aledydes in Musar - it offers a potential explanation for the medicial and cider-like flavours that I found in the wine, and also for the VA (they're volatile compounds which react to form acids).

A wild stab in the dark with very little supporting evidence, and probably of interest to no-one at all. But since this is an open mike session where we explore the wine, I thought I'd mention it

Ian, Vanilla? Yikes! AFAIK, no new oak is used. And indeed, even when I try to find new oak aromas in the glass infront of me, I can't find them. I do see some oxidative, old wood aromas, though. I think the apple scent and oxidation might be related?

A day open has done marvels for my bottle. The nose is very open, but harmonious despite being very young. I am now noticing the red apple that Matt mentioned, but gladly do not see any vanillary notes (I don't particularily care for them). I don't find as much VA as in some past vintages (and though it was an interesting post on the aldehydes, I don't really sense much of the medicinal aspect, just the apples - and I seem to always find apple aromas in oxidative wines so is it because oxidative wines will usually have aldehydes?). I find that the cherry aromas are stronger, and they are a bit sweeter than I am used to with Musar (if we'll allow a bit of wine-wanking I find the cherry aroma in Musar to be quite tart usually). Related to the cherry is another mouthwatering scent: rust, like in old style Nebbiolos. But the overall profile is of a very sweetly fruity wine; and very clean for a Musar. I'm trying hard to find those lovable shitty scents in my glass, but I can't. Any luck with you two?

Intense, but very sweetly fruity, soft tannins (as usual with Musar) but strangely for Musar, not as highly acidic or volatile as normally. It is still refreshing, however. Unlike yesterday, the palate isn't anymore spiky or disjointed, but perfectly harmonious. This was a little bit strange bottle compared to all the other '99s I've had in that this was uncommonly fruit-forward. And still an excellent vintage for Musar, IMO.

-Otto

Ian, Vanilla? Yikes! AFAIK, no new oak is used.

Otto
Vanilla - Faint (which you almost did when you saw the comment )

No farmyard, shitty, or such-like aromas. I guess I'm not fussed either way. Not an issue for me unless it's pretty extreme, but likewise didn't feel the wine needed it. Personally this tasting has me thinking of putting the remaining bottle and a half away for a few years. I may grab an extra bottle or perhaps two if I see it again at a fair price.

regards

Ian

Regarding the aldehyde theory - dug this up on google:
http://waterhouse.ucdavis.edu/winecomp/acetaldehyde.htm

Curious that neither of you found any sort of medicinal flavour in the wine. I shared my bottle out amongst three people, all of whom commented on the initial "hospital" aroma and flavour although it immediately began to fade and translate into a much more palatable note of pine (which neither of you found in your samples either). Any thoughts on what might have caused this flavour to arise in my sample?

Regarding the aldehyde theory - dug this up on google:
http://waterhouse.ucdavis.edu/winecomp/acetaldehyde.htm

Curious that neither of you found any sort of medicinal flavour in the wine. I shared my bottle out amongst three people, all of whom commented on the initial "hospital" aroma and flavour although it immediately began to fade and translate into a much more palatable note of pine (which neither of you found in your samples either). Any thoughts on what might have caused this flavour to arise in my sample?

Aldehydes can appear as nutty, woody or even citrussy depending on the compound (and while I haven't researched it properly I would imagine that wine contains others than just acetaldehyde). These coupled with the minty/eucalyptus note of Cabernet could manifest itself as a medicinal note.

Another explanation may be a low level of 4 ethyl phenol indicative of Brettanomyces development. If your bottle was stored under warmer conditions then this may have promoted a brett bloom.

[Edited to make a little more sense]

My wife and I had a bottle of the '99 last night with Tabil-encrusted lamb (thanks Nayan).

I splash decanted the wine, had a sip as a sample, then let it sit for about 45 minutes.

There was none of the funk on the nose I usually get with Musar, nor did we detect any vanilla or medicinal aromas. Instead, we smelled bright red fuits, especially cherries, and floral notes.

I must elaborate that most Musars I've experienced had considerably more age, so take my comments in that context. The flavours of the '99 were mostly primary The palate was very fruit forward with cherries, currants and some earthiness, and it was a bit more tannic than I've experienced with Musars in the past. There was no hint of VA. In fact, I'd say the acid was balanced perfectly for my tastes.

In my experience, I often find a lot of cedar and spice notes in Musar. Those were there in the '99, but in the background right now.

My wife and I both found the wine very easy to drink and we finished it within a couple of hours - no experiments with a long decanting time, sorry. It was a lovely match with the food. The earthiness of the Musar matched the coriander, and the fruit was able to handle the mild spice of the Tabil.

I have three bottles that I will put away for the long haul and I may pick some more up while the vintage is still available.

Regarding the aldehyde theory - dug this up on google:
http://waterhouse.ucdavis.edu/winecomp/acetaldehyde.htm

Curious that neither of you found any sort of medicinal flavour in the wine. I shared my bottle out amongst three people, all of whom commented on the initial "hospital" aroma and flavour although it immediately began to fade and translate into a much more palatable note of pine (which neither of you found in your samples either). Any thoughts on what might have caused this flavour to arise in my sample?

Matt
I'd go for different descriptors / taste buds as a best guess. Perhaps my varnish was close to your medicinal? I don't personally use pine as a descriptor (I don't recall smelling any locally and I don't want to rely on toilet cleaners as an accurate guide to the real scent ). In many respects I think I have a very limited wine vocabularly and even struggle on 'plum' - mainly as tasting supermarket plums makes me think of bland, watery and uniteresting!

Medicinal wouldn't be a surprise descriptor for Musar (neither would smelling of sh*t), but both would often be positives, oddly I suppose!

regards

Ian

Mike
Many thanks for the note. Again we all seem very consistent on the fruits (often a source of differences in tasting notes). I guess the other thing that's coming through is this is a bit more mainstream (straight-laced?) for a Musar. Not quite so wild and 'out-there' as it can be. Is this a good thing? I guess time will tell.

Nice to see the Musar working well with mildly spicy food as I reckon it always should.

regards

Ian

Mike B, great note. I am afraid to say I have not got around too opening my bottle yet. Nature Club banquet on saturday evening and yesterday, all day at our new place, Stir, trying to get the staff focused on new concept, new menu, new cocktail list and so on. Hey, we have a new lighted $100,00.00 dance-floor installed just for you!!

Ian, Otto..maybe I should just cellar away eh?

Bob
Or join in this weekend, when we unleash the 2000 (no probs if you want to play catch-up with the 99). No pressure either way.
Have you practised your 'moves' on the dancefloor yet, or are you a natural?
regards
Ian