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Back Top 1998 Right Bank Reds - Twenty Years On They Are Just Warming Up

Published on 7 September, 2018

It takes a very special wine to turn a dinner table of lively guests to hushed awe struck silence. That happened last night at The Fine Wine Experience’s 1998 Right Bank Bordeaux dinner when we came to the final flight – Le Pin, Ausone, Cheval Blanc and Pétrus. Soon a positive chorus of exclamations reclaimed the atmosphere. The 1998 vintage is then capable of flooring even the most experienced of wine enthusiasts. But the picture – as usual – is more complex. 

As always, it’s the weather that sets the scene. After a warm spring that produced an early bud break, April was wet and  flowering was early. While July was lacklustre, August produced a string of torridly hot days – some touching 40 Celsius, causing some ‘grilling’ of the green grapes. There was also some isolated hail in the Right Bank, including the plateau of Pomerol which necessitated some green harvesting to remove damaged fruit. September was stormy but mainly fine. Harvest got underway in the Right Bank and Graves before heavy rain set in in late September dashing the hopes of the later ripening Cabernet Sauvignon in the Médoc. 

The initial reputation for 1998 was mixed. Michael Broadbent MW, writing in 2002, rated the vintage as a whole two to three stars out of five stars. ‘Variable, like so many recent Bordeaux vintages; but, as always in less than perfect weather conditions, so much depended on the foresight and skill of individual châteaux proprietors and/or their winemakers... Merlot, almost always early ripening, was picked before the heavy rains, Pomerol and St.-Emilion benefitting. The Médocs were uneven with high Cabernet tannins.’ His ratings for wines from both banks often had question marks over the high level of tannin (set by the torrid August). Robert Parker, writing in 2003, shared Broadbent’s assessment of the Left Bank but was more sure of the high quality on the Right Bank and in Graves. He wrote, ‘When all the dust settles 20 years after the vintage, the Right Bank and Graves wines of 1998 will certainly compete with the greatest wines of these areas of the last 30 years.’ At a vertical tasting of Château Pétrus in London in 2004 I recall Jean-Claude Berrouet – who had just completed his 41st vintage at the estate – saying that 1998 produced the best Merlot he had ever seen.

But a consensus around the 1998 Right Bank and Graves’ greatness has been slow to build, and not helped over the past 20 years by the slow, sometimes awkward shedding of the high level of tannin found in so many of them. It’s not always been a friendly vintage to taste, and during the 2000s we saw more precocious, charming vintages come our way – 2001, 2006 for instance, along of course with that always-front-of-mind universal vintage – 2000. The 1998 vintage has been pushed into the recesses of Bordeaux enthusiasts’ minds.

However, recent lead critics’ tasting notes have seen some inflation in their ratings. Perhaps the most dramatic rise has been that of Château Cheval Blanc. Originally rated by Robert Parker for Wine Advocate, it debuted at 90-93 (1999), then 91-92 (2000), then 93 (2001), then 96+ (2003) before being reviewed for the same publication by Neal Martin – 95+ (2016) and most recently Lisa Perrotti-Brown – 100 (2018). Some of this can be attributed to palate and scoring differences – certainly Perrotti-Brown is more liberal with the high scores. But if you look at 1998 Château Angélus for example, Parker rated that 93 in 2001, and then 96 in 2015. The inflationary trend has confirmed for Parker his early prediction that this vintage was headed for greatness. It just needed 20 years to show it, and there is broader agreement about this today. 

Context, though, is key. For a deeper understanding of the vintage, it is necessary too to look beyond the vintage’s growing season and to the year as a snapshot of a Bordeaux in transition. Alain Vauthier had just gained sole control of Château Ausone in the mid-1990s and the 1998 marks the first of a string of vintages that put the estate on a higher plane. In 1998, Jean-Louis Laborde purchased Clinet. The year 1998 also saw Bernard Arnault’s consortium buy Cheval Blanc and Gerard Perse buy Pavie, milestones in a longer trend of billionaire and corporate acquisitions of luxury wine properties that was gaining pace. Chanel had purchased Canon in 1996, but the work required was considerable, and we began to see the fruits of it in only really by the 2010s. At Pavie, however, the transition was more immediate – the 1998 foretelling the style to come, utterly different (immaculately ripe and clean, denser, darker, oakier) to the style of all vintages made prior. By the time of the 2003 vintage primeurs Pavie became the flashpoint in a culture war that erupted between American and British wine pundits. To simplify, the Americans were heralding a dramatic rise in quality, and the British were deriding what they saw as over-extracted, over-oaked monsters, with a formulaic sameness that masked terroir and personality. As Michael Broadbent MW noted in his Vintage Wine book (2002) entry for 1998 Bordeaux, ‘…the increasing use of consulting enologists is having a unifying effect on the style of wine produced.’ Michel Rolland’s consulting influence in particular was controversial. In conjunction with this use of consulting enologists, we saw the rise of the garagistes – tiny estates that also produced the new powerful style of wine, attracting high scores and - given their scarcity - even higher prices. They too were controversial – seen by some as wines for collectors rather than drinkers – trophies. The mood  - the case against, at least - was perhaps best encapsulated in Jonathan Rossiter’s film polemic Mondovino (2004) portraying these trends (and globalization in general) as destroyers of cultural heritage. So… 1998 marks more than a quality vintage milestone for Bordeaux’s Right Bank, it’s also the end of an era and the beginning of another. 

With Robert Parker’s “dust settles” 20 years after the vintage comment in mind, we thought it was a good time to check in on the leading wines. We decided to leave Graves for another day, and instead focus on the top tier St.-Emilions (the 4 today ranked 1er Grands Crus Classes ‘A’), and a selection of the best of Pomerols. Identical line ups were served in Shanghai (23rd August) and Hong Kong (5th September) giving me – as host for both dinners - a double-take on the progress of each of them. 

So, what did we find? There is greatness, for sure, but the level of charm is mixed. While some wines are ready, others are still far from it. The density and tannin levels don’t feel a world away from the 1961s and 1945s, which can even today sometimes feel like they have some room to go (though the texture of the 1998 tannins is far more supple, or polished). The 1998 Pétrus tastes to me less appealing than it did when I first tasted it from bottle in 2003. It is still in its adolescence – brooding, mute, awkward. For how long will it remain dormant? The harmony in Cheval Blanc and Ausone is more evidently impressive and both give full confidence that they will turn out amongst the best wines either property has produced in recent decades. Further cellaring is required however. Pavie, L’Évangile, L’Eglise-Clinet, Trotanoy and Vieux Château Certan all feel like they are on the rise too, though they are more revealing than Pétrus, Ausone or Cheval Blanc. If you are looking for wines that have reached their apogee, however, you will have to turn to Certan de May (elegant charm), Angélus (full of appeal), L’Évangile (complex and sumptuous) or Le Pin (hedonistic fireworks and that room-hushing wow factor). With the exception of Certan de May’s more herbal-fresh expression, the remaining 13 wines tasted in both cities had in common great depth of fruit, freshness in the acidity, and uncommon density. They are mostly on a long slow trajectory. At some point the vintage’s star is going to rise. The dust has still to settle on 1998, but I know where I will lay my bet.

In Shanghai and Hong Kong we asked all participants to vote on their two favourite wines. We also asked them to cast one more vote that excluded the last flight (Ausone, Cheval Blanc, Pétrus and Le Pin) as a ‘value’ choice of the night. The results are recorded below each of my tasting notes. In Hong Kong the serving order within each flight was blind, revealed soon after tasting it (serving order also blind for me). Wines below are listed alphabetically rather than the order served.


1998 Château Angélus

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        91 (as is)

Good colour, dense, with some development at the rim; sweet berry and truffle notes, this bottle also shows a touch of oxidation, though this note sits in the background and overall the aroma is still complex, detailed and appealing; fleshy on the palate, rich, fleshy, sweet and long. There is a touch of oxidation marking this bottle as less than perfect, but it didn’t kill the great appeal of the wine (as the votes below also show). 

Two votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        94

Deep dense ruby; sweet with a touch of leather and truffle, dark chocolate – lovely nose, fragrant and open, yet fresh and confident; lush, sweet, and very supple on the palate, lovely acidity, long and fresh finish. Drinking well, no rush. It is however fully evolved – at its peak for drinking. 

Eight votes for wine of the night (2nd). Six votes for ‘value’ wine of the night (1st). 

1998 Château Ausone

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        96+

Full, deep colour; gorgeous nose, violets, ginger, plums, ripe, but not ‘dried’ or cooked fruit spectrum; amazing depth on the palate, real purity, fine fruit, deep concentration, but silky-textured, full and palate-coating yet also refined. This wine has pools of depth, exceptional balance, and is still so young. An Ausone for the ages.

Five votes for wine of the night (2nd=) 

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        97

Clear, fresh, deep ruby; gorgeously scented and fine on the nose; mineral, aromatic, super fine and quietly seductive on the palate. Real harmony. Still young. Wow. As this wine opened, it revealed an ever changing amalgam of fragrance – fruit, spice and truffle; there’s depth and refinement on the palate, with pools of fruit and a buoyant ride to the long finish. Very youthful still.

One vote for wine of the night.

1998 Château Certan de May

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        91

Bright, clear, lighter in appearance than the Pavie and Angélus; sweet on the nose, fresh fruit spectrum accompanied by a touch of bell pepper greenness, though this offers its own fresh natural appeal; more elegant in weight than the Pavie or Angélus in this flight, good attack and middle, thinner, slightly pinched at the end. Overall this wine is a really charming Pomerol, elegant and appealing.

No votes for wine of the night. Two votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        90

Clear ruby with a touch of development at the rim – lighter appearance than the Angélus or Pavie; fresh-fruit sweet with a fragrant herbal tone, complex and inviting; elegant and bright on the palate, it comes over almost as lean immediately after the Angélus and Pavie, but it is also juicy and tasty. A lighter style wine for some. In terms of all the wines in the dinner, this one is the most ‘green’, but I think it is so in an appealing way. Fully ready, get drinking.

One vote for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Château Cheval Blanc

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        98

Full colour; higher register in the aromatics compared to the Ausone, sweet spices and a touch of herbs; supple on the attack, a supreme wine of incredible depth, freshness and fruit, nuance. This wine is so complete. Rings like a bell. Exceptional. 

Three votes for wine of the night (3rd=)

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        97

Deep ruby with just a touch of development at the rim; dark, brooding, spice-laden – great nose; concentrated, dense, ripe, everything in perfect health, a layered feel to the palate, very deep and brooding, yet oh so supple too – this wine has a great foundation. Dark in expression with a note of ginger. Iron fist in a velvet glove. Remarkable wine, still at the beginning of its journey.

Two votes for wine of the night (3rd) 

1998 Château Clinet

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        90

Bright garnet, with a touch more development at the rim; super sweet, candied cherry and plum nose, candy notes; rich, concentrated, rather dense and solid in feel, chewy texture, sweet all through, however. Lacks a bit of dimension despite its fruity, bold appeal. A bit hard by the finish. Plenty here.

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        90

Deep, dense garnet with a narrow rim showing some development; dark and brooding on the nose, there is a blackstrap intensity to the dark berry and touch of blackcurrant on the nose, a touch of dark chocolate – this is a wild and heroically rich nose – just a hint of decay revealing its 20 years; lush, ripe on the palate, also quite glossy – there is a glossy/resin-like tone to the palate that is less appealing. The fruit is so ripe the palate feels laden by it, with some over-mature fruit flavours in the mix. A bit of chewiness and dryness at the end. This wine is hedonistic but comes over a bit flat in the end, lacking nuance and refinement.

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Château L’Eglise-Clinet

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        93

Deep, fresh ruby – an amazing colour; sweet, lovely cherry-chocolate scent, but also a sweet herbal note offering both complexity and some sense of bottle age on the nose; lush, sweet, yielding, complex on the palate. There’s some furry oak taste and texture at the end robbing its full grace, but this wine has great fruit, and real complexity. It’s still quite tannic and could do with further cellaring to reach its full potential.

No votes for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        95

Deep, glossy ruby – so youthful in appearance; a sweet nose, candied cherry and plum, very pure and expressive, still so utterly primary in its dark fruit expression; concentrated, fleshy, lush-fruited, dark berry taste, lovely freshness, a touch of spice, but like the nose this wine is still so primary on the palate. What wins here is the sense of buoyancy – there is intensity of dark primary fruit, but it is lively, transparent and very long. That gives the impression of refined reserve and sheer class. This wine is a star – just gorgeous balance and refinement. More revealing and harmonious than the Shanghai showing.

No votes for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Chateau L’Évangile

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        94

Bright garnet with fine graduation of colour – still fresh; lovely aroma to this, violets and powder sugar-dusted plums, with lovely come-hither florals and freshness; supple, rich, melting and seductively textured L’Évangile. There’s a touch of oak still in the background, but it is almost all integrated. Superb. 

One vote for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        94

Ruby with an open rim; sweet and toasty aroma, with a toasty/biscuit oak note amplifying a sweet/savoury combination that is inviting and morish – a different emphasis on the nose to the Shanghai bottle; fleshy and really delicious on the palate, focused attack, lovely and complex with a note of ginger, then a hedonistic kick toward the finish, which is then complex, elegant, and aromatic. Lots of appeal. 

No votes for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Château La Fleur-Pétrus

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        93

Full colour with a developed edge; sweet candy cherry, a touch of herb, complex and sweet nose; sweet, cuddly, lush, fleshy and unctuous Pomerol. Not especially long, but really lovely. Such a friendly, happy sort of wine.

One vote for wine of the night. Two votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        92

Fine, clear ruby; a fine nose, lovely fruit, a touch of florals and minerality; melting texture, more reserved in flavour on the palate, well balanced, not all that complex, but pleasurable. This bottle a bit trickier than the Shanghai one.

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

1998 Château Lafleur

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        94

Full colour with a mature rim; complex nose, offering both ‘green’ herbs and sweet spices, floral and tea notes, and a touch of lokhum – very Lafleur on the nose, it stands out in this horizontal tasting; dense and complex on the palate, with a touch of dryness at the finish. Showing better tonight than any other time I’ve tasted it.

Five votes for wine of the night (2nd=); Three votes for value wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        96

Fine ruby; quite fragrant with an exotic edge, this wine has real depth, with a note of musk and lokhum /roses – really lovely nose and so distinctively Lafleur; concentrated, very complex and with the most glycerin of the wines in its flight, coating deep-set tannins. Long and very special on the finish. This wine is superb – easily the most engaging wine of the flight. Even better than the Shanghai bottle, it leaves me completely revised in my estimation of what I had once thought was a wine below expectation for the vintage. Drinking well.

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Château Pavie

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        93

Deep colour, fresh and still young looking; sweet dark fruit on the nose, vanilla, a touch of coffee, butter and chocolate; ripe on the palate, succulent dark fruit, clear and bright, long. There is some grip still. Not as complex as the Angélus but brighter, clearer and more direct.

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        92

Clear, fresh ruby; a fine nose of dark, perfectly ripe fruit – a clear as a bell expression, some nice spice notes - lovely; lush, ripe, with some oak and spice, ripe bright fruit, cocoa notes, long, powdery fine tannin, with more grip than the Angélus served alongside. Lovely as this is there is a ‘grounded’ feel – there’s a dryness to the texture that pulls it down a bit. 

No votes for wine of the night. No votes for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Château Pétrus

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        95

Full, clear, deep in appearance; fine, floral-edged, sweet fruit, fresh; concentrated, thick on the palate, with some oak and grip, close to L’Eglise-Clinet in expression and feel. This wine feels more ‘in the soil’ after the elevation of the Ausone and Cheval Blanc just tasted. The grip is buffered by ample glycerin and depth of fruit. A mocha note from the oak sits out and jars a little at the end. If anything this wine has the gangly awkwardness of a teenager. There’s a lot going on here, but it hasn’t quite come together. I would wait at least another 5 years.

Three votes for wine of the night (3rd=)

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        95

Clear ruby – deep colour; candied plums, dusted with cocoa, mineral notes on the nose; concentrated, lush, fully palate-coating, pristine yet so young. This wine has more reserve. It comes across as a bit thick and furry, with the oak sitting at odds slightly. But loads of fruit and brooding density. Eclipsed by Ausone, Cheval Blanc, and especially by Le Pin, in this flight, but this Pétrus also clearly needs a lot more time in bottle.

One vote for wine of the night.

1998 Château Le Pin

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        95

Full colour with a touch of development at the rim; an amazing nose, lifted, very fragrant, fruity, complex herb notes and a touch of chocolate, it immediately bowls us over with its fireworks; plush, concentrated on the palate, luscious fruit, a touch of cigar, spicy, sweet, juicy, layered in texture. This wine is all pleasure, all on display, lascivious and hedonistic. It lacks only the refinement of some of the others, but that is perhaps not the point.

Six votes for wine of the night (1st). 

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        99

Clear ruby; sweet with an extraordinary array of complex and appealing notes of florals and perfume, and juicy ripe fruit – brighter and just a little more reserved than the Shanghai bottle; lush yet refined on the palate, exquisite expression and texture, really so fine, elegant yet intense. But oh, what a nose, as it sat in the glass over the next hour or so as I resisted polishing it off it rewarded exotic spices – a really wowsa nose, so lush and caressing on the palate. This wine is achingly appealing. 

Twelve votes for wine of the night (1st). 

1998 Château Trotanoy

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        95

Full ruby; gorgeous sweet but subtle, spicy and complex nose. You have to get in close to it – swirl and nose right in the glass, but a real wow! array of subtle complexity is revealed; this follows through to the very refined, melting concentrated palate that expresses itself with natural ease to a long floral-tinged finish. Exquisite.

No votes for wine of the night. Two votes for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        94

Deep ruby, still so primary; a fine nose, dark fruit, reserved and quiet but subtly complex; plump on the attack with palate-coating fruit, lovely berry and plum flavour, caressingly fine texture, still so young. This wine needs time.

No votes for wine of the night. One vote for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Vieux Château Certan

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        94

Full ruby; a reserved but spicy nose; succulent, plump, concentrated, melting, with a mineral note, and a long, sweet, fragrant finish. Superb.

No votes for wine of the night; one vote for ‘value’ wine of the night.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        94

Full garnet ruby, a touch of development at the rim; ripe and brooding, a little closed still, a touch of leather, the nose later opened up more expressively; sweet but fresh on the palate, quite a mineral note to the texture, some grip, mid+ level of power and concentration – a lovely understated expression and texture, there is sweet fruit, and a little milk chocolate, but also a hint of green pea. This wine is overall elegant, complex, enthralling, but just not quite in the ‘wow’ league.

No votes for wine of the night. Two votes for ‘value’ wine of the night. 

1998 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Eiswein, Weingut Joh. Jos. Prüm

Shanghai, 23rd August 2018        96

Still a fine, pale gold; pure on the nose, concentrated cream and golden apples – really lovely; pure and clean eiswein taste, the tiny hint of volatile acidity is in check. This wine is thick, nectar in weight – the thickness of guava juice but the flavour of golden delicious apples. Fine acidity provides balance. Beautiful.

Hong Kong, 5th September 2018        95

Lovely sweet fruit nose – pure and clean; starts opulently on the palate, but the mineral-laden acidity cuts it almost dry on the long finish. Delicious. Impressive purity. 

NB – The Fine Wine Experience is agent for Weingut Joh. Jos. Prüm in Hong Kong.