Chateau Musar Red 1998
Tart blackberries, sweet dried cherries, bitter chocolate, olive, liquorice, and aniseed. Incredibly youthful, vibrant, complex and balanced.
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1998
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The Chateau Musar Red 1998 – Beautiful ruby colour with very little browning around the rim. Looked astonishing young for going on 26 years. Tart blackberries, sweet dried cherries, bitter chocolate, olive, liquorice, and aniseed. Incredibly youthful, vibrant, complex and balanced. Bricking medium dark red violet colour; aromatic, mature, tobacco, dried berry, dried cherry, dried herb, brett nose; silky textured, dried cherry, dried berry, cardamom, violet pastille, black cherry, hookah cherry tobacco palate with medium acidity; medium-plus finish 93+ points
Chateau Musar Red 1998 is a beautifully mature wine that showcases an elegant dominance of Cinsault. The wine has a lighter color and a delicate perfume, which might initially suggest a gentle character. However, it reveals a deceptively powerful profile with vibrant acidity and fresh, soft red fruit flavors. The palate is graced with notes of dried autumn leaves, black truffles, and pu’er tea, offering a silky texture and a supple mouthfeel. The finish is long and spicy, making it an ideal companion for mushroom and game dishes. This vintage is noted for its harmonious balance, with a sweet start on the palate, slight mintiness, and a dry finish, embodying the classic Chateau Musar character
Chateau Musar Red 1998 is crafted with meticulous care, reflecting the unique terroir of Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. The production process begins with hand-harvesting the grapes, typically a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault, and Carignan. These grapes are fermented with natural yeasts in concrete vats, which help maintain a stable temperature and preserve the wine’s character.
After fermentation, the wine undergoes a lengthy aging process. It is aged for one year in French oak barrels, which imparts subtle vanilla and spice notes. Following this, the wine is blended and then aged for several more years in the bottle before release. This extended aging period allows the wine to develop its complex flavors and aromas, integrating the fruit, tannins, and acidity harmoniously.
The Chateau Musar Red 1998 vintage, in particular, has benefited from this aging process, resulting in a wine with a remarkable depth of flavor and a smooth, well-rounded profile. The careful production and aging practices ensure that each bottle of Chateau Musar Red 1998 offers a unique and memorable tasting experience.
Chateau Musar was established in 1930 by Gaston Hochar at the tender age of 20. His inspiration was both the 6,000-year winemaking history of Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and also his time in Bordeaux – a connection which was strengthened during the Second World War when he befriended Major Ronald Barton of Château Langoa-Barton while he was stationed in Lebanon.
Today it is overseen by the third generation: like their father and uncle, Serge’s eldest son Gaston now manages the day-to-day operation of the winery whereas his younger son Marc helps to control the commercial aspects. Ronald’s son Ralph also works in Musar’s UK office, and his daughter Elsa has immortalised the winery and her family’s rich history in a documentary.
Cabernet Sauvignon
World-renowned and well-travelled, cabernet sauvignon wines makes some of the world’s finest red wines, working either on its own, or blended with other varieties.
While many grape varieties are known for their friendly fruit aromas, cabernet sauvignon’s success as a fine wine lies in its subtleties: secondary, complex flavours that have the potential to develop deliciously in bottle over time. For this reason, cabernet is often seen as quite a ‘serious’ red wine designed for cellaring and keeping for many years. However, you can certainly find younger, fruitier styles to help you explore the flavours of this iconic grape.
Carignan
Carignan is a somewhat confusing red wine grape variety. It was once the most widely planted grape in France, right up until the late 20th century when Merlot arrived on the big stage, yet many wine drinkers to this day remain very unfamiliar with it.
Carignan vines are highly productive yielding large quantities of fruit, which is why many winemakers use it, or have used it, in regions such as Languedoc, to make high volume lower quality wines and blends. Today, it is on somewhat of a mini revival, being produced and nurtured as a quality red wine in its own right, particularly in warmer climates of Spain and Italy, notably Sardinia.
Cinsault
Cinsault, often spelled as Cinsaut, is a charming and versatile red wine grape that originates from the southern regions of France.
In the vineyard, Cinsault is recognized by its dark green leaves and the little down that covers them underneath. The grapes are quite large, with a purplish-black color and firm skin
Cinsault produces fresh and fruity wines, with a floral touch that’s just as captivating as its fruitiness.
- Suitable for Vegans
- Organic
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The Country
Lebanon’s winemaking heritage is as ancient as its history, with roots stretching back to the Phoenician era, when wine was traded across the Mediterranean as early as 1200 BC. The country’s wines are a reflection of its rich past and the influence of French viticulture during the period of the French protectorate from 1916 to 1943. Today, Lebanon boasts around 5,000 hectares of vineyards, producing approximately 78,500 hectolitres of wine annually, with red wines constituting over 70% of the production. The Bekaa Valley, with its favorable climate and terroir, is the heart of Lebanese winemaking, home to renowned wineries like Château Ksara and Château Musar. These wines are celebrated for their unique profiles, often blending traditional Lebanese grape varieties with international ones, resulting in wines that carry the essence of Lebanon’s diverse landscape and storied history
The Region
The Bekaa Valley is the heartland of modern Lebanese wine, producing nearly 90% of Lebanon’s wine.
The oldest winery in the area is Chateau Ksara, established by Jesuit Christians in 1857
The original Bekaa Valley vineyards were planted with Cinsaut, which was later joined by other French vine varieties.
The Producer
Chateau Musar was established in 1930 by Gaston Hochar at the tender age of 20. His inspiration was both the 6,000-year winemaking history of Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and also his time in Bordeaux – a connection which was strengthened during the Second World War when he befriended Major Ronald Barton of Château Langoa-Barton while he was stationed in Lebanon.
Today it is overseen by the third generation: like their father and uncle, Serge’s eldest son Gaston now manages the day-to-day operation of the winery whereas his younger son Marc helps to control the commercial aspects. Ronald’s son Ralph also works in Musar’s UK office, and his daughter Elsa has immortalised the winery and her family’s rich history in a documentary.
