Medium to deep golden colored, the 1990 d'Yquem opens with unabashed opulence, giving expressive notes of dried apricots, toffee, candied walnut, tree bark and sandalwood with nuances of preserved mandarin peel, lemongrass and fallen leaves. The palate is entering that stage where it still has bags of fruit and yet appears quite dry, with a lively line contributing jaw-dropping tension and finishing with epically long-lingering honey nut and earth-inspired notes. Pure. Hedonism. The multilayered intensity perhaps makes this appear a much bigger, sweeter Yquem than it is, and yet it possesses a relatively modest 12.7% alcohol and 126 grams per liter of residual sugar with 3.9 grams per liter of total acidity (H2SO4). Well into its ideal drinking window, there is no real rush to drink this beauty, as it should remain suspended at the heavenly plateau for another 25+ years. 98 points LPB
1990: An extraordinary effort, Yquem''s 1990 is a rich and fabulously superb, sweet wine. This wine also possesses lots of elegance and finesse. The wine''s medium gold color is accompanied by an exceptionally sweet nose of honeyed tropical fruits, peaches, coconut, and apricots. High quality, subtle toasty oak is well-integrated. The wine is massive on the palate, with layers of intensely ripe botrytis-tinged, exceptionally sweet fruit. Surprisingly well-integrated acidity, and a seamless, full-bodied power and richness have created a wine of remarkable harmony and purity. Certainly it is one of the richest Yquems I have ever tasted, with 50-100 years of potential longevity. An awesome Yquem! Anticipated maturity: 2003-2050+. Robert Parker''s Wine Advocate 23/04/1999
A colossal Yquem from a blockbuster, very powerful, and very sweet vintage in the Barsac/Sauternes region, this medium/gold coloured wine is evolving at a glacial pace, as is so common with this singular sweet wine. The nose has not moved much over the last five or 6 years, but plenty of coconut, tropical fruit, honeysuckle, and creme caramel notes emerge. Very full-bodied, extremely viscous, yet with enough acidity to provide uplift and focus, this is an enormously constituted Yquem that should be one of the great vintages for this for this chateau, and one to last nearly 100 years. Like most vintages, it can be drunk in its infancy (that's where it is, even though it is 16 years old), but it will continue to develop even greater nuances. Anticipated maturity: now-2075. (99)

1990 d’Yquem continues gaining complexity. Now you find an enthralling perfume packed with roasted apricots, overripe pineapple, butterscotch, creme brûlée, toasted marshmallow, spice, flowers and honey. On the palate the unctuous wine is poised perfectly between its waves of sweet honeyed fruit and racy acidity. As good as it is now, it’s only going to get better over the following 3-5 decades or longer! Tasted Aug 2021

This is exuberant, concentrated and luscious. Full of blood orange, nectarine, saffron, touches of carmalised ginger, truffle and crème brûlée. A seesaw of zesty acidity and luscious sweetness, this is a beautiful wine that still has decades ahead of it. Owned by the Lur Saluces family at the time, this clearly shows why Yquem stands in its own category in the appellation. Drinking Window: 2021 - 2050
Tasted by: Jane Anson (at Bordeaux, 01 May 2021)
Part of Bordeaux 1990s: the complete guide

A warm to hot vintage ideal for producing outstanding reds does not necessarily make for a great Sauternes vintage, but in the case of 1990 it did. Dry, warm winds in the autumn contributed to the level of concentration that this wine exhibits. Fortunately, a little rain in late September and early October ensured that botrytis flourished well in the end, the final factor necessary to achieve this extraordinary expression. Medium to deep golden colored, the 1990 d'Yquem opens with unabashed opulence, giving expressive notes of dried apricots, toffee, candied walnut, tree bark and sandalwood with nuances of preserved mandarin peel, lemongrass and fallen leaves. The palate is entering that stage where it still has bags of fruit and yet appears quite dry, with a lively line contributing jaw-dropping tension and finishing with epically long-lingering honey nut and earth-inspired notes. Pure. Hedonism. The multilayered intensity perhaps makes this appear a much bigger, sweeter Yquem than it is, and yet it possesses a relatively modest 12.7% alcohol and 126 grams per liter of residual sugar with 3.9 grams per liter of total acidity (H2SO4). Well into its ideal drinking window, there is no real rush to drink this beauty, as it should remain suspended at the heavenly plateau for another 25+ years.

The estate that led the way in Sauternes, producing only sweet wine from 1847 onwards, owned by the Lur Saluces family since 1785, and named 1st Growth Supérieur in 1855, in reflection of prices that were regularly 4,000 francs and above, the highest in Bordeaux. Today in the hands of LVMH (although still Alexandre de Lur Saluces in 1990), this is a stunning wine full of fleshy opulent pineapple, apricot and tangerine fruit laced with butterscotch, creme brulee, saffron and finessed fresh acidities. Insanely good at 45 years old, and no question that it will keep on delivering from here. Even better than when I last had it three years ago.

Tasted at the Grand Cru Classe opening dinner at Haut-Brion. Still a glorious Yquem when you can find a good bottle, this one has a stunning bouquet with honey, candied orange peel and white flowers, extravagant and showy. The palate is viscous on the entry, very complex with that acidity perfectly in tandem with the mellifluous, pure, honeyed fruit. It just seems to expand in the mouth. Superb. Decadent. Tasted June 2011.

Magnum. Light youthful gold. Peachy smell redolent of botrytis. Also a hint of fine polished wood on the nose. Very long, firm, sleek, confident. Big and rich. 20 and a long long way to go. (JR)