1990 Brane Cantenac
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Tasting notes
The 1990 Brane-Cantenac was picked September 19 to October 3. Despite the reputation of the vintage, this is one vintage that has never really clicked with me. It has an open-knit bouquet of smudged red berry fruit, leather, hung game and clove – perhaps with just a touch of Brettanomyces ? The palate is medium-bodied with light tannin. Indeed, the main shortcoming is simply an inexplicable lack of substance, bereft of the volume that the growing season offered on a plate. It feels a little monotone toward the finish and needs more personality and charm. Adequate, but a pale facsimile of the previous vintage. Tasted at the Brane-Cantenac vertical at the château .
Critic scores
Average Score
Wine Spectator
Robert Parker
More reviews and scores
Tasted at the Brane-Cantenac vertical at the château, the 1990 Brane-Cantenac is a blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc. It has a strange nose, unorthodox with almost sweet Sauternes-like aromas infusing the kirsch and gamey scents. The palate is medium-bodied, fleshier than almost any Brane-Cantenac from the 1990s, though it clearly does not possess nearly the same complexity or breeding as the preceding vintage. It seems to glide across the mouth, but that finish is short and you seem to forget it too soon. You would finish a bottle even if it is nowhere near a great Margaux for the vintage, but it does not come close to repeating the brilliant 1989 Brane-Cantenac. Tasted March 2016.
Decadent style. almost overpowering. Plenty of ripe fruit along with an aroma of earth and tanned leather. Medium- to full-bodied, with a very earthy and ripe fruit character.--1990 Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now. 29,000 cases made. James Suckling, Wine Spectator 2000
About the producer
Château Brane-Cantenac has been a consistent performer in the Margaux wine appellation since Henri Lurton took over the property, but thanks to replanting and investment in the last decade, quality has seen another sharp upswing.