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Year, Vintage 1989

Visit 1989 vintage is a vintage that's close to your heart? Is it a birth year, a wedding year or any other symbol that makes you want to offer or drink a wine from that year? Let us help you decipher this 1989 vintage to help you buy the right bottle for your needs.

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  • Vintage 1989 in BORDEAUX

Visit 1989 vintage is a vintage that's hard to write about without losing the thread of its narrative. The right word is rather complicated. Complicated because many parameters specific to winemakers and oenologists come into play to determine the quality of their wines. This vintage was sometimes criticized, often for its lack of balance, and sometimes praised for its early harvest dates, high-quality phenolic measurements and perfect yields (when they were well controlled). Perfect weather conditions enabled the vines to develop their cycle in the best possible conditions. Not for nothing did the 1989 vintage produce the most abundant harvest since 1893. The warm, dry winter set the tone. An ideal flowering, a slightly early veraison and then a ripening of the grapes that comes to an end very early in the calendar. And that's where things get tricky. Almost all the Merlot grapes will be harvested at full ripeness, with alcohol levels 1.5 degrees higher than usual. Perfect for giving the wines substance and fruit. On the other hand, and here's where it gets tricky, some Cabernet Sauvignons, which will be very ripe, will not have reached physiological maturity and will lack acidity and the necessary balance. Cabernet Sauvignon often determines the potential of a great wine, which is why the winemaker's decision is important, because those who have decided to wait a little longer have seen their Cabarets rewarded with the production of a very great wine.

In the Libourne region, it's clear that the Pomerols fared better than the Saint-Emilions, with great successes for Pétrus and Lafleur Pétrus. In Saint-Emilion, Château Angélus and Château Cheval Blanc are the best wines in the appellation. As far as the left bank is concerned, it's true that, as a general rule, Margaux wines are at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the vineyard, but as in 1982, they will produce good to medium-quality wines, such as Château Margaux and Château Rauzan Ségla. Next up are the Pessac-Léognan wines, which are faring much better. Château Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut Brion offer powerful, highly complex wines.

Three appellations stand out in the Médoc. These are Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac and Saint-Julien. The best estates produced wines as good as the 1982 vintage. Of particular note are Cos D'estournel, Haut Marbuzet, Tablot and Lynch Bages.

Finally, the 1989 vintage is one of the "three glorious vintages", three vintages of exceptional quality for sweet white wines. Little rainfall in September brought the onset of noble rot, which completed a vegetative cycle and perfect grape ripeness.

 

  • Vintage 1989 in BOURGOGNE

The 1989 vintage is one of those great forgotten vintages. It's one of those vintages that, either because it follows an exceptional vintage, is overlooked, or, as in the case of this year, follows an expensive vintage, without even dropping in price, whereas the 1990 vintage fell by around 20%. Less cheap, wine merchants didn't stop there, preferring the very good quality/price ratio of the 1990 vintage.

From a viticultural point of view, this is a vintage for amateurs and winemakers.

The weather was ideal, even if the Hautes-Côtes suffered a few frosts in April, but the very hot summer allowed the Pinot Noir to express itself to the full.

The wines are often racy, rich and powerful. Rather tannic, but more balanced and flattering than the 1988s, they can be enjoyed on the fruit between 5 and 10 years depending on the appellation, but can still be enjoyed today for the finest of them.

As for the white wines, here too Chardonnay benefited from the magnificent weather. The wines are full-bodied, powerful and purely mineral. In Meursault, for example, the wines have remarkable ageing potential.

We were talking about a vintage for winemakers, because even though the few showers in July helped the vines to overcome the summer drought, some vines reached very high alcohol levels. It's at this point that the right decisions by the best winemakers will produce, for some, wines that are too full and heavy, and, for others, wines of great quality, with excellent ageing potential.

  • Vintage 1989 in VALLEE DU RHÔNE

As in the rest of France, Rhône Valley wines benefited from a very hot summer with low rainfall. As in Burgundy, the latter is somewhat forgotten, this time because it preceded the extraordinary 1990 vintage. Nevertheless, when the harvest is well controlled and the work in the winery is commensurate with the quality of this year, the wine produced will be great. In the northern part of the region, red wines such as Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage are exceptional. Powerful, concentrated and very well-balanced. For the finest estates that have succeeded in mastering their balance of alcohol and acidity, the wines will have a very long ageing potential, and can be enjoyed until 2030.

The same is true of the whites. The Roussanne and Marsanne are opulent, very expressive and fairly fat. However, the lack of precipitation will get the better of these wines, which we feel should already have been drunk.

As for the southern part of the region, here too the vintage is fantastic, with only one small downside: the Tavel wines will have missed out and will only offer wines of average quality.

On the other hand, all the indicators are green for Chateauneuf du Pape wines. However, you'll need to be a connoisseur of powerful wines, as the hot weather of 1989 produced very ripe grapes and therefore very powerful, heady wines with a tannic character. They, too, can be kept for a very long time, and can still be enjoyed today without a care in the world.

  • Vintage 1989 in the REST OF FRANCE

It's difficult to single out one wine-growing region above another, as 1989 was a magnificent year for all the terroirs of France. A small note, but the wines are hard to find, on the wines of Champagne, where frosts attacked almost 20% of vineyards, especially on the Côte des Blancs. On the other hand, the little juice that has come out will be fat, powerful and different from what Chardonnay has produced in the past.

In the South-West, wines from Madiran and Cahors are of a very high standard, including Domaine Brumont and Château D'Aydie.

Wines in Languedoc-Roussillon also benefited from the hot weather. Sweet wines, such as those from Sauternes, had the upper hand, with Maury wines bursting with sugar.

In the Loire region, the vintage benefited white wines more than any other. The Sancerre and Pouilly wines are complex and dense, while the Mont-Louis have a rare minerality.

You can find the best wines of 1989 on the site. We advise you to choose a bottle of 1989 wine with a level consistent with its age. The 1989 wine labels are often slightly stained or damaged (but this is normal for an old vintage). Thank you for reading. Visit the greatest wines of 1989 on Comptoir des Millésimes :

> Our 1989 wines in stock

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