The 1990 Magdelaine is a flat out brilliant bottle of wine that delivers much the same aromatic and flavor fireworks of the 1990 Figeac, albeit in a potentially more transparent and ethereal package than the Figeac. The celestial bouquet soars from the glass in a mélange of cherries, toasted nuts, menthol, tobacco leaf, beautiful herb tones, chalky soil nuances and just a whisper of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, elegant and refined, with great intensity of flavor, laser-like focus, ripe and supple tannins, and endless length on the long, complex and suave finish. While the ’90 Magdelaine is already a great glass of wine, I would still try and give it at least another eight to ten years of cellaring to really let it blossom fully. Believe me, I will not be touching any of mine until a decade has passed. It is a great bottle in the making and drinking well enough right now that it is no crime to be opening it, if one has sufficient quantity in the cellar. I should note that the bottle at our March vertical was not quite up to the quality of previous incarnations, but I put this down to a less than perfect example.