Chateau Figeac 1989

JAMES SUCKLING: "Exquisite old wine with sweet tobacco leaf, gorgeous fruit and hints of iodine and oyster shell. Full-bodied, yet so polished and refined. The tannins melt into the wine. So lovely, light and smooth. Glorious now."

DECANTER: "Drought conditions, with 25% less rain than average, meant that 1989 was the second earliest harvest at Figeac since 1893, with picking running from 11 to 29 September. The wine has ripe, mellow tannins and effortless elegance. Crushed berries, black pepper and liquorice drench the palate, even after 30 years, with the gorgeous sweet truffle and saline twist of the finish showing the slide into tertiary flavours."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Tasted at the Château Figeac vertical at the property. In many ways, the 1989 Figeac was the biggest surprise of the vertical tasting. Hitherto lambasted by critics (including myself I might had), here it seemed to have undergone some Damascene conversion! Generous on the nose, it does not quite offer the fruit intensity of the 1990, but there are lovely warm gravel and licorice aromas, all beautifully detailed. The palate is silky smooth on the entry, sensual in style with Provençal herbs and fennel tincturing the mixture of smudged red and black fruit. From all accounts, it appears to have been a wine that shot out of the blocks with style, then ran out of steam for many years. Yet here, it is as if the 1989 has rediscovered that youthful promise, perchance at a point in time when many bottles have been popped and poured. Tasted June 2015."

WINE SPECTATOR: "Rich, with lots of character. Chewy St.-Emilion, featuring green tobacco, dried cherry and fruit aromas. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a chocolate finish.--1989 Bordeaux horizontal."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Medium bodied, elegant, light in color and perhaps a bit light in fruit, still the wine delivers on the earthy, tobacco, floral, plum and cherry nose. On the palate, the wine is elegant and refined, with the patina of age in the texture, and in the finish. Popped and poured was the right way to go with this one."