($138-$155) Full medium ruby. Nose at once subtle and flamboyant, with slightly roasted aromas of currant, cedar, lead pencil and minerals. Large-scaled, sweet and rich, with utterly primary fruit suggesting a long future ahead of it. Tasted next to the '89, this was a much more massive and somewhat softer wine. Very long on the finish, with big but smooth tannins. Of more recent vintages, only the 2000 has a chance to be in the same quality class as the '90 and '89.

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Still very deep blackish ruby with lots of sediment. Very classic minerally/graphite Pauillac nose. Then wonderfully polished and pleasurable on the palate. Then throat warming afterwards. Tastes as though it's at its apogee. One of the sweeter and softer Pauillacs you are likely to encounter. Not a rough edge in sight. Impressively long.

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A remarkable vintage for Pichon Longueville Baron, 1990 is one of this estate's two or three finest wines made in the last 40 years. Still inky/blue/purple-tinged to the rim, it reveals an extraordinary bouquet of charcoal, incense, creme de cassis, blue and black fruits, and a hint of licorice as well as an impressively long finish. While drinkable, its evolution is extremely slow, and I would not be surprised to see it last another two decades or more. Release price: ($390.00/case)

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One of the finest values in top-class Bordeaux has been the 1990 Pichon-Longueville-Baron. Until 3-4 months ago, the wine could have been purchased for under $400 a case, but that seems to have changed as the results of numerous tastings have pushed the price upward. I originally gave a one point preference to the 1989, and I am still convinced that ultimately that wine will last longer and hit a higher peak of pleasure than the 1990, but, wow, the 1990 is showing great. Both the 1989 and 1990 vintages exhibit opaque, dense purple colors that suggest massive wines of considerable extraction and richness. The 1990 Pichon-Longueville-Baron exhibits more of the roasted overripeness of this vintage, but it manages to keep everything in perspective. The wine is opulent and flamboyant, with lower acidity, and noticeably less tannin than the 1989. It is equally concentrated, with a more evolved nose of cedar, black fruits, earth, minerals, and spices. On the palate, the wine offers sensational quantities of jammy fruit, glycerin, wood, and sweet tannin. It is far more fun to taste and drink (more hedonistic perhaps?) than the more structured, backward, yet exceptional 1989. Ideally, readers should have both vintages in their cellars. The 1990 can be drunk now as well as over the next 25+ years.

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More tobacco and cedar character on the nose, with hints of ripe fruit. Full-bodied, yet fine and sophisticated, with elegant tannins and a long finish. This is always a top-quality red. '89/'90 Bordeaux non-blind horizontal. Drink now.

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Consistent notes. Full dark ruby color w/slight amber edge; full nose of mainly red fruit, smoke, haberdashery, and some celery seed and green olive; similar flavors; firm backbone with noticeable tannins that have softened and integrated; well-structured yet feminine; med.-bodied, lush and moderately complex; nice long finish; ready but will hold for many years. Lovely.