Whoop, whoop! After missing out last year, we’re back with our annual offer of Chateau Musar. And, thanks to our chums at Mr Wheeler, canny readers of The Spectator have the exclusive on the newly released 2019 vintage for the next two weeks. It’s available nowhere else but here. I mean, do you realise just how much we love you?
Lebanon is in crisis and has suffered far more than it ought. It’s astonishing that only one vintage of Musar was ever lost – that of 1976 – and we must do all we can to help this remarkable estate and this bewitching country. In other words, please fill your boots.
The 2018 Ch. Musar White (1) is a blend of 80 per cent Obaideh (a distant ancestor of Chardonnay) and 20 per cent Merwah (likewise of Semillon), two ancient Lebanese varieties you simply won’t see anywhere else. There’s no other (non-Lebanese) wine like it. I’ve said before that with its peachy notes, its quince, its citrus, its heady herbs, it could conceivably pass for a mature, complex white Rhône, but it’s not really like that either. It’s one of a kind and although I wouldn’t want to drink it every day, on the occasions I do tuck in, I absolutely love it, quirks and all. It’s very special. £36 down from £39.50.
The 2022 Musar Jeune Red (2), with its alarming, cross-eye-making red and white label, is the estate’s entry level red from vineyards in the western Bekaa Valley. A blend of Cinsault, Cab Sauv and Syrah, it’s unfiltered, unoaked and full of vibrant fresh fruit – cherries and cranberries to the fore – and warming spice. Already four years old, it seems younger and has years left to go. £17.50 down from £18.95.
We must do all we can to help this remarkable estate and this bewitching country
The 2021 Hochar Père et Fils (3) is a single vineyard blend of old-vine, low-yielding Cinsault, Grenache and Cabernet. Although Wine 2 is a real charmer, this is a definite step up with greater concentration and depth thanks to time in oak and that extra year of age. It’s richly flavoured with plenty of sweet, ripe, red/dark berry fruit – on account of the Grenache – and swirls of spicy herbs. It’s ready, of course, but I’d suggest tucking it away. £23.50 down from £25.95.
And so to the mighty 2019 Ch. Musar (4) itself. As you know, Ch. Musar only releases its grand vin once deemed ready to drink, usually after seven years, and this has hit its straps nicely and is raring to go. With record winter rainfall (welcome after several years of drought), budburst was late but, with a perfect June, a fine harvest was promised, and this is a gem.
The usual blend of Cinsault, Cab Sauv and Carignan, it’s a deep red, with hints of tapenade, spice, vanilla, herbs, rich cherries and plums. Drink it now or drink a bottle every six months and see how it changes. £39.50 down from £42.50.
For those who want to crack on with the 2019 but would still like to see how Musar progresses, we’ve a retrospective of three striking vintages: the 1999, 2009 and 2015, two bottles of each, in the Mature Vintages case (5). I’ve tried all the wines and can confirm that they’re all in great form and that it was a fascinating compare and contrast exercise. We’ve only 30 of these stylish branded wooden boxes available – £550 each – so don’t dither, they’ll go fast.
And for those who want to compare the 2019 with two older vintages, we’ve the Musar Through the Decades case (6) comprising 4 bottles of 2019 Ch. Musar and one bottle each of 1999 and 2009. £358 down from £370.
Wines 1-4 are offered in an Experience mixed case (7) and unmixed sixes. All being well, given the current uncertainty, the wines will land late March and be available to readers in early April. Delivery, as ever, is free.
Oh, and if you enjoy Musar as much as we do at Spectator Towers, join us for a very special Spectator Winemaker Dinner in the library upstairs at the Old Queen Street Café on Wednesday 6 May, when we will taste the 2019 (plus several back vintages) in the company of head winemaker, Tarek Sakr. To book, go to spectator.com/tastings.
Comments