Wine of the week #4 2016

Its Burns night tonight, so haggis for tea. As Burns himself said, its "warm-reekin, rich". So we'll need a wine just like that. A wine capable of standing up to the "Great chieftain o' the puddin' race". I know just the thing....

Chateau Musar, Bekaa Valley, Lebanon (2003)

A good friend of mine (with a great golf swing) recently extolled the virtues of the 2002 offering from Musar. Knowing I had some of the 2003 tucked away I decided I should revisit. "I said the 2002, this is the Lebanon baby! Vintage is important!", he yelled. With these wise words of warning still ringing in my ears, I proceded with caution.

I was not disappointed. After following the recommendation on the bottle to decant before serving, and after a rather stuttered rendition of the "address to the haggis" we sat down to enjoy the food and wine.

The Musar was a dark crimson with an orange tinge to the edges, reflecting a bit of bottle age. The nose was very rich of dried fruit and spice. What a mouthful! Really full bodied and complex mix of sweet dark fruits, with a long and powerful spicy finish. This really robust wine was absolutely perfect with the haggis, standing up well to the strong spice and grease. Fit fine!

£25, www.exelwines.co.uk