1990 Krug
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Tasting notes
Unusually broad and rich on the nose, with some floral notes, though much less opulent on the palate. The wine initially tasted as though it may be drying out a bit but it expanded in the glass to develop much more fruit. Though I think I would be drinking this vintage now if I owned it in quantity. (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
A particularly fresh example of this wine but still very full bodied and expansive. (JR)
Full copper-gold color. Initially restrained, brooding nose exploded with aeration, showing apple, orange, apricot, honey, iodine, smoke, hazelnut, macadamia and a suggestion of dry oloroso sherry. Dense, full, chewy and rich; an extraordinarily solid Champagne with an intriguing suggestion of Calvados. Broadens toward the back and goes on and on on the echoing aftertaste, with rich, mellow notes of toffee, brown butter and marrow. Like the '92 Clos du Mesnil, this displays its powerful underlying acidity with aeration (Krug's wines never go through malolactic fermentation) and should be long-lived.
At its finest, the 1990 Vintage is superb, revealing a slightly oxidized style, but a full-bodied, rustic, rich personality with the body of a red wine, but loads of character. I cannot recommend the 1989 Vintage as three bottles tasted were all oxidized, possibly from bad storage, but who knows? Dec 2005, www.robertparker.com
About the producer
Krug is a remarkable Champagne House which only makes prestige cuvées. The wines – with their distinctive rich, complex, oxidative style – are some of the region’s best.