Montrose 2023

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 château 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.

The 2023 Montrose is focused on the original terroir of the estate, known as Terrace 4, located in front of the river. It comprises 45 hectares, around 12 to 15 hectares less than previous vintages so as to capture the expression of Montrose classified in 1855. Picked from September 5 to 28 and matured in 60% new oak, this has a very intense and focused bouquet: pure black fruit with just a touch of strawberry, hints of violet petals developing in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins—very pure, with pitch-perfect acidity. This gains depth toward the finish but maintains a sense of linearity that ensures it is one of the vintage’s finest contributions from the Left Bank. Magnificent.

Once again Montrose is contender for wine of the vintage. Driven on the nose, there is a focused intensity of blackcurrant fruit, graphite and seductive pink peppercorn and wood spice. Cedary and multidimensional on the palate, this manages to straddle Saint Estephe typicity with power and finesse. Velveteen but mouthcoating tannins are in high definition, persistent and perfectly extracted. The fruit matches the significant structure to make this muscular but not overweight. Always layered by savoury undertones of woody herbs, graphite, pencil shavings and flint, this is a marvellous thoroughbred of a wine. A pinpoint, long finish that is unerring and focused rounds out a magnificent wine. First growth in all but name.

Wow. This is the essence of Montrose, with blackberry, blackcurrant, crushed stone and earth. I have not tasted a Montrose like this in 42 years of my career. It has a much more vertical nature to it, with layered tannins that go very deep and long, The muscular structure and intensity is something else. This is a new era for Montrose. It is now made from only 45 hectares of vineyards right in front of the chateau, instead of about 60 before. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 21% merlot and 4% cabernet franc.

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 a dark, brooding powerhouse but with the elegance that is such a signature today. Black cherry, plum, leather, licorice, mocha, spice, tobacco and dried flowers infuse the 2023 with tons of character. The Cabernet Sauvignon is so expressive here. Readers will have to be patient, as this is a wine built for the cellar. It's not especially showy today, but all the ingredients are there. The 2023 is quite the bruiser. In other words, it’s classic Montrose. In the end, that's not terribly surprising, as the winemaking team relied exclusively on the original holdings of about 45 hectares from what the estate calls the 'grand plateau' or 'Terrace 4', essentially the historic core of the property. Harvest ran from September 5 to 28. There was some rain on the 21st, but 15mm of precipitation after a heat spike was not meaningful. The 2023 is magnificent in every way. 2032-2063

Made from a strict selection of only the best terroirs (terrace 4) around the estate and the oldest vines, the 2023 Château Montrose is a more Cabernet Sauvignon-driven wine than normal and is based on 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc that will see 18 months in 60% new French oak. The result is a more plush, deep, opulent wine that has classic Montrose darker, almost blue fruits, violets, chocolate, and damp earth-like aromas and flavors. Deep, rich, full-bodied, and expansive on the palate, it has more richness, breadth, and concentration than just about every other wine in the vintage. The 2023 hit 13.5% natural alcohol with a pH of 3.7. It has some similarities to the 2010 (or 2016?) and might end up being the wine of the vintage.

75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc. 35% of the production, all from the historical parcels on terrasse 4. Cask sample.
More Cabernet this year. Deep colour. Purity, freshness and density on the nose. Sensual texture. Suave tannins then plenty of drive through to a long finish. Structured but just so pure and refined. Very accomplished. (JL) 13.5%
Drink 2032 – 2055