Farr Vintners Logo

Malescot Saint Exupéry 2018

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Margaux
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyCabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Cabernet Franc

This is a 28 hectare Margaux property. Michel Rolland consults here. The vineyard is planted with 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Malescot St Exupéry

Label

Tasting Notes

A seductive Margaux with an intense nose of black fruit and red plums. Some herb and wood notes, too. It’s full-bodied with pretty, pure-berry flavors with some crushed stones and cement. The texture is silky and fine-grained and the tannins melt into the wine. Precise, flavorful finish with length. Try after 2024.

97
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, March 2021

The medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Malescot St. Exupery leaps from the glass with expressive scents of baked blackberries, Morello cherries and boysenberries with hints of blackcurrant cordial, dark chocolate, licorice and tilled soil. The medium to full-bodied palate has impressive intensity without heaviness, delivering mouth-coating black fruits and a firm, grainy texture, finishing with a refreshing earthy lift. Drink 2023-2045.

95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (End of Mar), March 2021

Malescot is always a relatively modern style, and it stays true to form in 2018. It's an enjoyable, high energy wine but it doesn't quite reach the heights of its 2016. It's a rich damson colour, with plump fruit on the attack. The oak impact is a little forced, and this is clearly aiming for vibrancy and character. 5% Petit Verdot completes the blend.

Drinking Window 2026 - 2038

93
Jane Anson, Decanter.com, April 2019

Tasted blind. Fragrant. Fresh and lifted with real energy. And some delicacy and sophistication. Rich but the fruit outweighs the (considerable) tannin. 14.5%
Drink 2027 – 2045

17
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, February 2022

50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot (planted; assemblage for 2018 not confirmed). Barrel sample.
Black core with narrow rim. Pretty oaky on the nose but a hint of something prettily floral underneath. The oak is covering the fruit at the moment but there’s flesh at the core, and the tannins are just slightly hard on the finish. The juicy fruit in the middle gives it a chance for the future. (JH)
Drink 2025-2033

16
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2019

Deep in colour, with a ripe nose of blue fruits and boysenberries. The palate is exotic and rich, modern and plush, with chocolatey ripe tannins and raisined fruits. Despite this, it is not overworked or over-sweet, simply a ripe and hedonistic, smoky wine with generous fruit and supple tannins. Long and cassis-led on the finish, with just a hint of bonfire smoke.

91+
Farr Vintners, Farr Tasting, April 2019

I loved the 2018 Château Malescot Saint Exupéry from barrel two years ago, and it certainly doesn't disappoint from bottle today. Based on 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, this deeply hued beauty boasts smoking good notes of blackcurrants, smoked tobacco, chocolate, and spice. Full-bodied and impressively concentrated, it has a stacked mid-palate, ripe, sweet yet certainly present tannins, a terrific sense of freshness, and a great finish. It's going to fun comparing this and the 2016 over the coming two decades! While there's some up-front accessibility and charm here, it really needs 4-6 years of bottle age and is going to have 20-25 years of overall longevity. This is gem of a wine that's well worth seeking out.

95
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, March 2021

(60 Cabernet Sauvignon, 32 Merlot, 8 Cabernet Franc) | 70% new oak | 14.1% alc Tasted on two occasions - the first time it was not my style at all with sour and slightly mouldy fruit and rather tough oak. The second time I really like it with a complete palate and a juicy outlook. I can only assume that the first sample was stale. My score refers to the second tasting sample!

16.5+
Matthew Jukes, MatthewJukes.com, April 2019
Read more tasting notes...

A structured and muscular Malescot with blackberry and blackcurrant aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Big wine for this producer.

97/98
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2019

The deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Malescot St. Exupery comes prancing out of the glass with flamboyant raspberry coulis, kirsch and redcurrant jelly scents over a fresh blackcurrant and boysenberry core with wafts of red roses, cinnamon stick and forest floor. Full-bodied, rich and opulent in the mouth, the palate delivers stacks of red fruit, cassis and floral layers with a firm, finely grained frame and plenty of freshness, finishing long and fragrant. Just lovely.

94/96+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (April 2019), April 2019

Tasted twice and showing incredibly well both times, the 2018 Château Malescot Saint-Exupery comes from a 28-hectare vineyard in the heart of Margaux and is a rough blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. This full-bodied Margaux has everything you could want from this appellation, offering incredibly complex notes of cassis, tobacco, earth, and spice, full body, sweet tannins, no hard edges, and a great, great finish. It’s an incredibly sexy, flawlessly balanced beauty that’s going to be relatively approachable in its youth yet age effortlessly on its balance and purity.

94/96
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, May 2019
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.