(4.7 g/l total acidity; 13.4% alcohol): Deep ruby-red. Still youthfully closed but highly complex nose hints at cassis, minerals, gunflint and Oriental spices. Quite clean and juicy, boasting lovely precision and size to its flavors of small dark berries, smoky plum, coffee and minerals. This pure, long wine finishes with enticingly soft flavors of red cherry and marzipan. Though rich and opulent, this graceful, seamless wine can still age effortlessly. Maybe the best Lynch-Bages of the last 30 years.

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Lovely deep garnet and vibrant with very little sign of development. Fabulous sweet fruit still, plus a touch of coffee and cigar box. Complex and elegant but rich too. Then vibrant and spreading on the palate. Velvety but still finely structured. A wonderful whole and drinking perfectly even though it still has plenty to give. Later: still plenty of sweet fruit although it has become slightly more medicinal. And the fruit seems less full in the mouth than earlier. (JH)

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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.

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This remains one of the greatest Lynch-Bages ever. Still very dark in color, with intense aromas of currant, mint and blackberry. Full-bodied and very powerful, with eucalyptus, fruit and spice. Chewy. A massive wine. Still too young to drink. -- Lynch-Bages non-blind vertical.

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