La Dame de Montrose, St Estèphe, 2024
Quite reserved and understated, the 2024 Dame de Montrose clearly reflects a choice for grace and charm over sheer power. Bright red cherries lead the bouquet, accompanied by quite floral fruit. On the palate, bright and engaging griotte notes mingle with subtle spices, framed by judicious and well-integrated tannins. There’s a real sense of energy here culminating in a salty finish, with notes of brambles and clove.
critic reviews
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored. Strides out with confident notes of fresh black and red plums, black raspberries, and pencil lead, followed by hints of tilled soil and wild sage. The light to medium-bodied palate is tight-knit with crisp acidity and lightly chewy tannins, finishing with great length.
The 2024 La Dame de Montrose—raised in 15% new oak, 20% <em>foudres</em> and 2% amphora—has a straightforward, relatively light bouquet with blackberry, hints of black olive and light gravelly scents. The palate is medium-bodied with sharp acidity on the entry, balanced but just a little austere towards the second half. It needs to muster more <em>fruité</em> on the finish, but at least displays freshness and classicism.
This has dark fruit character, leafy but nuanced and sculpted, lovely savoury mouthwatering quality on the finish, At Montrose they did some leaf removal even in early June at fruit set, and left grass throughout the vineyard all the way through the season to increase competition, and did some tidying up at the very beginning of veraison to remove any that were clearly a little behind schedule - so basically just had to be extremely reactive at all times. The yield was 38hl/h after farming entirely organically. Harvest 23 September to 8 October. 20% large oak casks, 15% new oak.
If the grand vin is built for the ages, the 2024 La Dame de Montrose plays a different hand, emphasizing suavity and charm. Offering up notes of blackcurrants, raspberries, violets and licorice, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and suave, with supple tannins, lively acids and a seamless, complete profile. It's a blend of 73% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc that sees a more reductive elevage than the grand vin.