Gotta love coincidence. Gotta also love eating some crow, too. I have that in spades right now.
So yesterday in one of the no-less-than three Juge hype-threads, someone calls out Musar, which I point out simply has never spoken to me. Two hours later, a weekend guest brings out a bottle of 2009 Musar. I got a quiet chuckle. We drank half of it last night, then went out to dinner with a 1989 Gloria that showedly beautifully, and tonight I return back to the Musar.
I’ve had some weird, some funky, some VA-ridden Musar in the past. This is about as clean of a Musar as I have had. The oddity is, I normally like some funk, it’s just the Musar funk that has not really worked for me. This wine does. Has a lovely, herbal, red-fruited, almost Rhonish nose. Minty top note. Medium weight on the palate, with a crisp and savory range of red fruits and citrus notes. Some plummy, sweet fruits on the back-end but still lifted by crisp acidity. Tannins are modest, but the wine does have a clipped finish with some tea-leaf like mouth coating.
This wine is quite lovely, and I expect it to improve with some age.
The ‘99 and ‘00 should still be available as I was able to purchase some a few months ago. No weirdness and no funkiness, only beautifully balanced Musar uniqueness that truly shines with age. Get some and you will be a believer.
The “funk” comes more with age in my experience. Glad you’re enjoying them…to me that’s so young I’d have a hard time feeling like it was worth it to pull the cork. However, the 2008’s impressed me so much that I bought 6 in a flash…glad to hear that this is showing well. To me it’s one of the better bargains out there in the wine world.
The 08 is quite good, though of course I’m stashing most of them to age. I had a 99 a few weeks ago - very good Musar vintage, though still pretty primary. A longer decant would be good, or better still, just drinking it slowly over a long evening.
I’ve noticed that it really depends on the vintage how the funk behaves. In many vintages the funk grows with age, but for example 2003 was a very funky vintage upon its release, but the few bottles I’ve drunk within the past two years have been noticeably less funky.
Agreed, the 2008 felt pretty impressive, but mainly when thinking of its aging potential, not current enjoyment. It felt rather backward, but most likely built for the long run. The 2006 and 2009 vintages seem more like ones to drink while the 2008 ages.
I enjoy drinking Musar. I find that it’s usually reasonably priced and most of my clients have never had it, so I order it in restaurants when I see it.
