Château Lynch Bages 1998
Review of the Estate
Château Lynch-Bages is a winery in the Pauillac appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. Château Lynch-Bages is also the name of the red wine produced by this property. The wine produced here was classified as one of eighteen Cinquièmes Crus in the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855.
The 90 hectares (220 acres) of Château Lynch Bages are located just outside of the town of Pauillac. The vineyard occupies a gravel ridge looking down over the Gironde estuary. The well-drained soil consists mainly of deep gravel beds over a limestone sub-strata, and it is planted predominantly with red wine grape varieties There is also a small approximately 4.5 hectare (11 acres) plot planted with white varieties (40% Semillon, 40% Sauvignon blanc and 20% Muscadelle) Château Lynch Bages is primarily known for its eponymous red wine. The malolactic fermentation takes place mainly in large stainless steel tanks, and the wine then spends about 15 months in oak barrels (of which some 50-60% are new) before bottling.
As of 2008, the second label of Château Lynch Bages will be called, "Echo de Lynch-Bages". A third wine has now been added, called "Pauillac de Lynch-Bages".
Vineyard
Surface area: 222 acres
Grape Varieties: 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Average cases produced: 35,000 per year
Plateau of maturity: 6-25 years
Château Lynch Bages 1998 Reviews / Tasting Notes
Robert Parker - The Wine Advocate
Point Score: 87
Slightly austere, leafy and herbal, the fresh 1998 lacks concentration, fat and fruit depth. It reveals a hint of herbs interwoven with attractive red and black currant aromas, but the wine falls off on the palate, and requires drinking up as it is likely to become increasingly desiccated.
Wine Spectator
Point Score: 89
Meat, ripe fruit and mushrooms on the nose follow through to a full body, with round and chewy tannins. Serious concentration of fruit on the finish. A little rustic now, but should come around nicely with bottle age. '88/'98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Best after 2010.
Stephen Tanzer - Vinous
Point Score: 90
Saturated dark ruby to the rim. Grapey, primary aromas of kirsch and mint. Good texture in the mouth, but a bit monolithic today. I don't yet find much personality here. Finishes with slightly rustic dusty, mouthcoating tannins. With record polyphenol levels in '98, Lynch-Bages did a bit less extraction than in the previous year, but this wine still comes across as rather tough today.