Ch Musar 1997 - Beeka Valley, Lebanon

This is a very special wine. It was founded in 1930 by Gaston Hochar in an 18th century castle located in Ghazir, 15 miles north of Beirut. During the war years in Lebanon, Chateau Musar managed to consistently produce high quality wine, leading the "Wine Spectator" magazine to use headlines such as: "Chateau Musar makes great, age worthy reds amid the chaos of Lebanon's civil war".

Chateau Musar attained international recognition during the wine fair of Bristol in England in 1979, where a specialised press named it the "find of the fair". Following this event, Chateau Musar's reputation reconfirmed itself in most other European countries, as well as in the United States, Canada, and in some Asian Countries.

Decanter Magazine paid tribute to Serge Hochar's achievements by nominating him "Decanter Man of the Year" in 1984. Today, thanks to the audience Chateau Musar has attracted and its reputation in the international press, Lebanese wine has become known throughout the world as a wine of outstanding quality.

The vineyards of Chateau Musar are located at an altitude of over 3,000 feet (1,000 meters) in the Bekaa Valley where the vines are sheltered by the surrounding mountains running parallel to the Mediterranean coast. They cover 130 hectares, produce a limited yield of about 25 hl/ha, resulting in approximately 20,000 cases of the "Chateau Musar" wine, and a production of other wines.

The Bekaa Valley is almost frost and disease free, with long mild summers, rainy winters, and an average temperature of 25 degrees Celsius. The red wines are made from a blend of different grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault, Carignan, Grenache, and Mourvedre. The vines are grown on a gravely soil with a limestone base. The composition varies from one year to the next, giving Chateau Musar a different character and identity each year.

Le Revenu Français- Septembre 1998" L'excellent millésime 91 possède la finesse et la longueur des bons Bordeaux ..."

The 1997 Ch .Musar which we tasted:

Dried fruit, aroma of leather, liquorish, cinnamon. Complex wine, light elegant and well balanced. Long aftertaste.

and we still got a bottle of the 1990 vintage tucked away....

Chateau Musar

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