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Tasting Notes
The 2023 Montrose sets a new benchmark for the estate. The nose is expressive, with blackberry, cassis, violet and a creamy depth. It’s medium-bodied but with such complexity – offering layer upon layer of flavour and freshness. It’s incredibly vibrant, polished and pure, with density to the fruit core, and refined tannins. As with the 2022, the fruit for the Grand Vin was only sourced form plots on Terrace Four, and fruit from the previously included Terrace Three plots will be going into a new cuvée that will be released at later date. Aged in 60% new oak, with 13.5% alcohol and 3.65pH. Blend: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc
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James Suckling
William Kelley, Wine Advocate
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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.
The complex perfume displays its flowers, crushed rock, black raspberry, and currants with just a swirl or two. There is freshness, with a sense of purity, lift, and elegance on the palate. The wine is long, complex, and refined. This is not a blockbuster styled vintage. Instead, it is focused, harmonious, balanced, and long, with sweetness, spice, and energy that lingers in the finish. The wine is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. 13.6% ABV, pH 3.7. Harvesting took place September 5 - September 28.
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.
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About the producer
Château Montrose, is one of two Second Growths from Saint-Estèphe and one of the most consistent producers in the whole of Bordeaux. The wines of Château Montrose are both elegant and powerful and some of the longest living in the Médoc.