Château Montrose, 2ème Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2017
After the enormous success of the 2016 Montrose, it was always going to be a challenge to replicate such an accomplishment in 2017, but the team here, led by Hervé Berland were more than up to the test, and they have come inconceivably close. Having already tasted the quality of the Dame de Montrose, we had an inkling that this might be quite good... Produced from 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, this has a real sense of nobility. The bouquet is wonderfully nuanced with haunting aromas of briary wild fruits, complex mineral notes, a hint of florality, smoke, rosemary and Asian spice. There's a perception of breed and class with the powerful array of fruit on the palate. It is multidimensional and very sophisticated, yet it feels so effortless and unforced. Bittersweet plums, crème de cassis, graphite and starry cranberries delight the taste buds, before the tannins bring authority and presence. The tannic backbone is so impressive - it is laced with detailed black and red fruits and hints towards a very long and successful future. A magnificent Montrose.
critic reviews
The 2017 Montrose is one of the most compelling wines of the vintage. Wafting from the glass with aromas of cherries, sweet berries, rose petals and pencil shavings, it's medium to full-bodied, velvety and seamless, with an enveloping core of vibrant fruit, supple tannins and a perfumed finish. This is an unusually suave, youthfully approachable vintage of Montrose that will offer a broad drinking window.
The 2017 Montrose is composed of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet in color, it skips out of the glass with bright, vibrant, and wonderfully pure notes of kirsch, redcurrant jelly, fresh blackcurrants, and black raspberries, leading to a fragrant undercurrent of lilacs, licorice, underbrush, and allspice. The medium-bodied palate is so bright and elegant, with jaw-dropping intensity and firm, fine-grained tannins, finishing with impressive length and energy.
The 2017 Montrose was so impressive from barrel and now, bottled since July, it continues to put in a strong case for being one of the best Left Bank wines. It has a very pure and intoxicating bouquet with intense blackberry, light cassis, juniper and violet aromas, almost Margaux-like in terms of personality. Although there is a patina of new oak after bottling, it is in sync with the fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with gentle grip on the entry. Tightly wound at the moment but supremely well focused, this is a classic Montrose, "cool" and reserved, demonstrating impressive tension and precision towards the finish. It will require less time in bottle than the 2016 for example, so broach this superb Saint-Estèphe after five or six years and then it will give 25 to 30 years of drinking pleasure, and knowing Montrose, probably longer. Tasted twice with consistent notes.