Founded in 1930 by Gaston Hochar, the wines of Chateau Musar are unique expressions from a country with an ancient wine-making culture, as vines have been cultivated from Lebanons high altitude Bekaa Valley for over 6,000 years. Chateau Musars red vineyards are situated towards the southern end of the Bekaa valley, noth of Lake Qaroun and about 30km south-east of Beirut. They lie near the villages of Aana and Kefraya on a range of gravelley soils over limestone: ideally suited to viticulture. Every wine is produced naturally with a non-interventionist wine making philosophy and the winery was the first in Lebanon to implement organically certified viticulture in 2006 for its Chateau Musar red and white grapes.

Average rainfall in winter with some cold days, followed by pleasant weather which allowed flowering to develop well in the spring. However, things started to deviate from the norm with the arrival of summer; July was unusually hot with some very dry days when temperatures exceeded 35°C, followed by a hotter than average August. Harvest started on the 6th September, one week earlier than usual. The crop was healthy and quality good but yields were down by 15%. The grapes were sweet but tannic with good acidity

When tasted in early November 1999, the wines were tannic, concentrated and powerful, but very well balanced. Now at 20 years after the vintage, the 2000 holds on to its primary fruit whilst really starting to reveal the classic Musar identity, balancing out the characteristic sweet spice and desiccated fruit notes with more evolved elements of leather, tar, tobacco and a hint of game. These complex aromas and flavours are lifted with a fresh lick of acidity that will ensure the wine will continue to age gracefully for years to come.