Chateau Musar
Most wineries gauge the difficulty of a vintage based on the amount of rain, sun, wind, hail and the extent of all kinds of mildews. Based in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, a long inland valley where nearly all of the country's vineyards are located, the winery has almost consistently produced wine even during times when transporting grapes from the vines to the winery posed a real risk. This enduring reputation has contributed as much to the brand's prestige as the wine styles themselves. Examples include medium-bodied red wines based on blends rather than single varietals, and white wines simply bottled under the name Blanc. Musar's reputation has been earned through a not always easy period.
Two vintages that never happened
Due to the civil war in Lebanon, Chateau Musar lost two entire harvests. In 1976 and 1984, no wine was produced at all. These gaps sit in the vintage chronology like missing teeth, telling the story of this winery's history better than any cellar tour ever could.
This pattern repeated itself in 2006. When fighting broke out in July that year, the Bekaa harvest seemed destined to be completely lost, and for several weeks, no one in the wine industry expected a 2006 Musar to exist.
However, in the second week of August, a few days before the August 14 ceasefire agreement was signed, the harvest began. Amid jets flying overhead and explosions ringing out in the distance, the staff worked in the vineyards. At the time, Musar's UK director candidly described the dangers, noting that the timing of the ceasefire was, above all, a stroke of luck.
This is the consistent story of Chateau Musar. It was not a business that spent decades in peaceful seclusion in a quiet corner of Europe, but one that constantly had to decide whether the risks were worth taking for the harvest.
Out in the Bekaa
On the map, Bekaa is a narrow region. It is approximately 120 kilometers long and about 16 kilometers wide, stretching along the eastern side of Lebanon, between two mountain ranges. Nearly all grapes grown for wine production in this country come from this region.
Chateau Musar is supplied with grapes from this valley, which is part of a country with a small wine industry. As of 2006, there were a total of seven wineries in Lebanon, all of which were located in Bekaa.
A red with a French accent
Chateau Musar Red is a blend of the following three varieties:
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Carignan (also known as Mazuelo)
- Cinsault
Of these, Carignan and Cinsault are the flagship varieties of the French family in the southern region; thanks to these two varieties, this wine possesses characteristics that are distinctly different from a simple replica of Bordeaux. Cabernet Sauvignon forms the wine's structure. Since Cinsault and Carignan add aroma and liveliness, the wine tends to feel medium-bodied rather than heavy, despite having an alcohol content of about 14%.
The red, and the Blanc
Château Musar's signature wine is the red wine that bears the winery's name. Dry and oak-aged, with a medium body and a blend rather than a single varietal, this wine is the winery's flagship product, one that will age for decades in collectors' cellars.
Alongside it is Blanc, the winery's white wine. While Musar bottles other wines in addition to these two, the red wine and Blanc are the signature pairing that defines the winery.
Musar is not a winery that pursues a consistent, reproducible style year after year. Here, vintage plays a more significant role than at most other wineries, partly due to the characteristics of the growing season and partly due to circumstances that occasionally arise around the vineyards at harvest time. Some years, the grapes ripen early, while other years require patience.
