CHÂTEAU DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU

The 1989 Ducru-Beaucaillou has always been a difficult wine to love, and this replicates its previous two showings. Readers should note that this came directly from the property and was assured to be unaffected by the taint that afflicted much of the production at this time. Yet there is still a sense of dumbness on the nose, a lack of brightness; a bouquet scalped of what makes Ducru-Beaucaillou such a great wine. The palate is medium-bodied with cedar-infused black fruit that dovetails into more red fruit toward the second half. Like the aromatics, it is missing the tension and backbone of better vintages; it delivers decent length but never quite achieves lift-off. Tasted at the 1989 Bordeaux dinner at Hatched in London. Drinking range: 2019 - 2026 Rating: 88 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Sept 2019)

Ducru's 1989 was one of the more tannic, backward wines in the blind tasting. It is cleanly made, and well-crafted, with plenty of black-raspberry and cassis fruit nicely touched by minerals and a fragrant, floral component. Medium-bodied, elegant, and well-endowed, this is a potentially outstanding wine if all the tannin melts away over the next 5-6 years. One of the least flattering 1989s to drink at present, it requires 4-5 more years of cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2001-2020. Rating: 89 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (May 2006)