Château Montrose, 2ème Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2023
Montrose is arguably the best performing wine in the whole Medoc, so we had lofty expectations for this 2023. We were not to be disappointed. This Bouygues owned chateau is now under the leadership of Pierre Graffeuille, formally of Leoville Las Cases. Another step up, this is a reserved, understated Montrose with lots of latent power, tremendous detail, great tension and haunting length. Everything in its place, utterly harmonious, this demure Montrose doesn't need to shout, it delivers layers of persistent fruit calmly with a sense of restraint and elegance, reinforced by a fine architecture of lacy, stony tannins. A glorious, reverberating Montrose. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc.
critic reviews
The 2023 Montrose was one of my favourite wines from barrel. Now in bottle since July, this fulfils its promise with an intense nose of blackberry, violet and mint, giving it a subtle Pauillac-like allure. The fruit is incredibly pure here. The palate is medium-bodied with chiselled, pliant tannins that lend this Montrose a little more fluidity than I estimated from barrel. Very harmonious, really poised and long, this remains one of the finest Left Bank 2023s.
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Montrose gallops out of the glass with intense scents of crushed blackcurrants, fresh blackberries, and raspberries along with nuances of licorice, crushed rocks, and mossy tree bark plus a hint of iron ore. The medium-bodied palate has impressive tension and tight-knit black and red berry flavors intertwined with mineral accents, framed by fine-grained tannins, finishing long and sparkly. The first wine accounted for only 35% of the estate's production this year. The blend is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc, with pH 3.70.
Gorgeously dark and vibrant fruit, with gunsmoke and campfire, concentrated cassis and blackberry pastille, grilled almond, saffron and pomegrante, luscious but measured, showing the inky character that seems to be at the heart of the best Cabernets of this vintage, with their ripe but not overly exuberant classicism. Organic conversion, to be certified 2025. The first vintage this 1st wine of Montrose is coming only from the section of the vineyard located on Terrace 4 of the Médoc gravel banks that line the Garonne river along the peninsula. Following soil studies from Pierre Becheler, this comprises 35% of the overall production in 2023, or 45ha of vines, and is the historic heart of the property. Pierre Grafeuille director, Vincent Decup technical director.
The 2023 Montrose is another brilliant wine from an estate that's now routinely among Bordeaux's very best, year in, year out. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, derived exclusively from the estate's historic core on the fourth terrace situated just in front of the chateau itself, it unwinds in the glass with aromas of cassis and wild berries mingled with notions of lilac, violet and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, deep and layered, with a textural attack that segues into a dense, multidimensional mid-palate framed by beautifully ripe tannins and lively acids, it concludes with a long, resonant finish. It will be worth a special effort to seek out.