1990 Château Montrose |
| Vintage | 1990 |  | |
| Type | Red | ||
| Producer | Château Montrose (web) | ||
| Variety | Red Bordeaux Blend | ||
| Designation | n/a | ||
| Vineyard | n/a | ||
| Country | France | ||
| Region | Bordeaux | ||
| SubRegion | Médoc | ||
| Appellation | St. Estèphe | ||
| UPC Code(s) | 015643565137, 031259043678, 0400006550354, 3258691277783, 3364420028530, 3364420050364, 3419466162523, 616773413604 |
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2008 and 2034 (based on 143 user opinions) | |
| Wine Market Journal quarterly auction price: See Montrose on the Wine Market Journal. |
| Community Tasting History |
Community Tasting Notes (average and median of 97 pts. in 684 notes) | |
| Tasted by PANYC on 4/8/2024 & rated 96 points: Drinking beautifully now with lots of life, the balance is impressive. (670 views) | |
| Tasted by Jmrobotics on 3/16/2024 flawed bottle: Bummed, was sour. (1074 views) | |
| Tasted by oxwombat on 3/9/2024 & rated 97 points: Opened at Noble Rot in London. P&P and enjoyed slowly. This was absolutely wonderful. Perfect condition bottle and it showed, performing better than the one I had in HK a few months ago as well. So fresh, so vibrant - you never would have guessed the age on this. Initially opening up with darker fruits on the nose, but with some air the entire spectrum started coming to the fore, with more sweet red fruits (almost like top Sangiovese) alongside floral notes coming out too. On the palate this was complete finesse, not tired at all, everything so perfectly integrated. Slight hints - just teasing really - of more tertiary notes, but not prominent and just adding to the complexity of the flavours coming through. Overall, just wow. This showing solidifies this wine as one of the best Bordeauxs I've ever had, and probably the wine of the vintage for me on the left bank. Always a pleasure to try this and cheers to reunions with old friends - a treat to share with A! (1378 views) | |
| Tasted by Fatty Cat on 3/2/2024 & rated 97 points: Early Mar 2024, Rheingau Gourmet Festival, rarity diner “25 vintages of Chateau Montrose”: according to the sommelier double decanted for up to 3 hours; deep crimson color; lavish aromas and flavors of cassis, cherries, mint, and herbs in nose and mouth; on the palate a lush and smooth texture, balanced with a juicy acidity. 96-97/100 Best scored wine of the whole tasting . Vintages of flight II: 1975 - 1986 - 1989 - 1990 - 1991 - 1994 - 1996 (1345 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 2/29/2024 & rated 98 points: Vinous Icons of Bordeaux with Neal Martin (Legacy Records, New York City): WOTN for me (and others around my table). Spectacular nose with smoke and charcoal exploding from the glass. Beautifully delineated tannins. Lots of tar and wet earth. Lots of complexity. Our host described it as "controversial" but I don't see how any Bordeaux fan would not love this? (1449 views) | |
| Tasted by essenceofreal on 2/2/2024 & rated 96 points: Loved this. 90 Montrose has always delivered. Have had the good fortune to drink this a dozen or so times and every bottle has been superb. Opened at 3pm. Decanted 4:45 for an hour. Decanted again at the restaurant, Bear in Napa. Wine was open and expressive but I could feel still could give more. Indeed I was right as the last glass 2 hours later tickled my sphincter! Yeah, felt like I was back in Thailand! Ha. Hence, one flaw of all these tasting notes is the lack of details on decant time. I see this time after time for most reviews. I gotta say so disappointing when on a great wine how irresponsible to not give it the respect it deserves w a proper 2-4 hr decant ..... So this was sooooo much better after a 3 hr decant. What a decadent finish. Very much in its peak. Can easily have had a 4 hr decant. I should have known as last time I had this a few years ago I decanted 4 hours and that was ideal. Drank next to 96 Margaux and 86 Las Cases. 90 Montrose, my bottle, was the star and bested both. Drink as often as possible and repeat with Pete (me!!). Thanks ))) (1699 views) | |
| Tasted by rocknroller on 1/15/2024 & rated 96 points: Heidi's Gang: Wind Chill & Frostbite (Maison Margaux, Mpls): Very dark red/purple color. Unsure of prep on this. Drank a glass over 45 minutes plus. This was high toned, with oodles of pencil, cassis and black cherry notes, leather and more subtle soil notes. The palate really shows the minerality with that dense dark fruit, cassis and blackberry pie, leather, more pencil, layered and powerful, shows some red raspberry over time. The tannins are polished and there's a soft texture here. The wood was showing some and this drank younger than it's 34 years. Interestingly, I had about 10 or 15mls that I forgot about in my glass overnight. It was singing the next morning. Who says you can't start day with wine. (1785 views) | |
| Tasted by chablis28 on 1/15/2024 & rated 96 points: Heidis Group in the Minneapolis "Warehouse District". Jim's btl and our last wine of the night and it did not disappoint! I sensed Jim may have parting regrets about bringing his one & only legendary '90 Montrose? Yes it has lots of gas still in the tank but, is there ever a wrong time to drink a great red? Even if, it's only 34yrs old :). Of course, this will likely be even more awesome when Jim & I are in long-term care facilities but, if you're in your late 60s like us, I say go for it while our olfactory & tasting equip are still on thier game :). Yes, it youthful but there's plenty of both tertiary & pristine fruit to enjoy now. Jim, you had a great career, go get 3 more! These are worth backfilling! Loved it! A case for ROTN could apply here too. Too bad the food situation at our venue was so screwed up. Kind of messed with my wine karma but I'll still savor fond memories of all our wines and the laughs. Thanks Jim, I loved it! (1984 views) | |
| Tasted by Verb on 1/14/2024 & rated 98 points: consistent with my previous tasting notes - black cassis fruit just bursts out of the glass without any coaxing - some tertiary aromas of graphite and tobacco, but not very prominent in the nose - beautiful mouthful of dense black fruit with superb fruit-acid balance - ripe velvety tannins still very much in presence - long 30-45 sec finish - drinking beautifully now, but can easily last another 10 years - much bigger body than the 1990 Margaux tasted alongside, but not as elegant in the nose and mouth - very different styles of two equally superb fully mature Bordeaux (1706 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 1/6/2024 & rated 95 points: A fair amount of Brett had me concerned when I opened the bottle. But miraculously it vanished with some time and air to reveal a classic masculine super concentrated Montrose at its peak. The fruit is lively and dark but not all black, perhaps lifted by its Merlot. Tannins are civilized and support the wine admirably. Clearly First Growth quality in this vintage. (1791 views) | |
| Tasted by Caruso on 1/1/2024 & rated 82 points: Ruby to garnet with slight orange hue in thin layers. Affected by Brett, but not totally destroyed. One could argue if this should be scored as a faulty wine. If so it should get 70 points or so. But that is not my point of view. Still some fruit shining through, though it is quite simplified by the horsy notes. 5/9/12/6. As this seems to be a common phenomenon and not a fault by a particular bottle as it is the case with a corky bottle, I score this. Bottles like this, which are not to be identified without popping the cork, should be drunk up, as it is only getting worse. P.S. This bottle was stored under textbool conditions since release, bought in spring in Germany 1993 and so unlikely to be exposed to high temperatures. (1471 views) | |
| Tasted by ShadowIII on 1/1/2024 & rated 94 points: Drinking beautifully, dark fruits, currants, blackberries, spice, long lingering finish, would have rated higher if it had not been paired at dinner with the 1990 Latour. (1285 views) | |
| Tasted by apbru on 12/24/2023 & rated 98 points: It was time to drink my last bottle and it provided serene enjoyment. Perfect balance and cosseting tannins but it is indeed time to drink up. (1295 views) | |
| Tasted by Lollipop on 12/20/2023 & rated 98 points: Spectacular. Opened about 30 minutes before drinking and then enjoyed the evolution through the night. Showing some tertiary flavours but still dense and powerful. Black fruit and leather with a beautiful mineral backbone. (1413 views) | |
| Tasted by ttchan2024 on 12/15/2023 & rated 98 points: Brought in and drank in a restaurant. Pop and pour. Much alive after 3 hours in bottle. Excellent, very expressive nose, silky tannin, still has some good acid - one of the best wines I had. Only down side is that it was slightly past peak. Drink up. (440 views) | |
| Tasted by oxwombat on 12/15/2023 & rated 96 points: Opened at Otto e Mezzo in HK. Decanted and was shared a small glass after 30 minutes of breathing. The legend shows its class again. Absolutely amazing Bordeaux that is arguably the wine of the vintage, especially from the Left Bank. Everything was there, and I was very happy. Not quite as fresh as my previous bottle (which I gave 96) but still extremely good. Thanks as always to T and M for sharing! (1563 views) | |
| Tasted by Vinvir on 12/9/2023: Drank at Jeff’s loft wine group party and toasted Bill. I was not present as I was out with Mike, Bobbi, and Doc at an Irish Dance event at the SORAYA and sushi dinner at Yamaha (previous engagement). I am sure it was good. (1167 views) | |
| Tasted by Papies on 12/9/2023 & rated 99 points: 2023 Athens Wine Event; 12/8/2023-12/9/2023 (Athens, Greece): Tasted blind. There was no doubt what this was nor how exceptional of a wine this was. We actually said thank you to our friend that offered it ahead of even posting our guess. We went with Lynch Bages 1990 as we did feel some of the austerity of Pauillac. The wine is simply stunning , soft, almost feminine but with a lot of presence and this has another 20 years to go but ever so subtle and magnificent . Pointless to rumble on. 99 Interestingly a few weeks ago when crossing paths with the magical 1990 Margaux ( Papies 99) we made the comment that that was the ballerina in the Chinese theatre’s production on Swan lake where the ever stoic ballerina just mesmerises all while balancing on the guy’s shoulders. The 1990 Margaux was the Ballerino. This 1990 Montrose was the Ballerina Ever so magical scene, And here is the link - https://youtu.be/O6CRB_dLTYo?si=isMcz985UMNWUc0R (1856 views) | |
| Tasted by Rbhan12 on 12/3/2023 & rated 96 points: Fully mature. Gorgeous nose with fallen dried leaves and tart red fruits. Little bit of grip from tannins still with a nice bite from acidity. Palate showed lovely lighter fruits with plenty of elegance. Little bit of leather and earth play to the medium body. Just a gorgeous wine—exactly what you want from aged BDX. 96 for me. (1641 views) | |
| Tasted by zimmy07 on 11/17/2023 & rated 94 points: This was not a perfect bottle, but held together great. I decanted 45 minutes and it needed longer, I was scared to go too long. Fruit to tannin profile was very good. Not as great as I hoped for, but still good. (1845 views) | |
| Tasted by Dionysos55 on 11/13/2023 & rated 95 points: Robe encore bien grenat....Bouquet complexe de cuir,menthol,terre,cassis,prune,tabac,viande mais manquant d'intensité.La bouche est étonnamment légère pour un St Estèphe:certes,la bouteille a 33 ans mais je m'attendais à davantage à de puissance.Tanins complètement fondus d'où un grand velouté,une élégance magnifique.Longueur finale correcte mais pas extravagante non plus.En résumé,légère déception...Peut-être attente démesurée vu la cotation maximale de Parker.Cela reste néanmoins succulent. (1905 views) | |
| Tasted by mike410 on 10/19/2023 & rated 89 points: Slight bricking. Muted fruits and medium finish. I suspect that this bottle wasn't stored very well for the condition that it was in. (2149 views) | |
| Tasted by Benoit Hardy on 10/18/2023 & rated 99 points: Drunk for the first time 3 years ago, the wine does not seem to have changed. Masterful nose of tobacco, menthol, black fruits in quantity, earthy aromas and coffee beans. It’s crazy elegant and has a rare intensity. The mouth is velvety. There is enormous intensity in this wine, but everything is just velvet, it is a caress. Juice of rare depth, still very young for its 33 years! Complex and refined, the flavors follow one another in majestic harmony, the fruit is still bright, then the tobacco, undergrowth and menthol follow one another or sometimes mingle. We keep coming back to it, each time with a different caress, a breeze full of freshness or a dip in a cigar box. Majestic, silky finish on mocha, cedar and dried flowers. This Montrose is impressive. (2057 views) | |
| Tasted by ElAzul on 10/8/2023 & rated 88 points: Jeff Leve you are right about this wine, and Brett mostly murdered it. It recovered from the horsey nose and musty flavors after 48 hours open but not enough to give it even a 90 score. Out of a case of 12 I have had 2 100 pointers and 4 bretty losers. I guess I should be glad of the 2. (2110 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 9/27/2023 & rated 100 points: Bacchus was shining on us today because 1990 is either murdered by brett, or if it's clean, the bottle can be majestic. This bottle was majestic and more. The wealth of palate-staining, perfectly ripe, sweet, regal fruit is something to behold. The finish hits the 60-second mark, crosses it with ease, and keeps right on going. However, it is imperative to keep in mind the wine is Jekyll or Hyde and there is no way to know without popping a cork. Drink from 2023-2055. (3916 views) | |
| Tasted by csimm on 7/27/2023 & rated 93 points: Giuseppe's (Scottsdale, AZ): Super funky and pretty rustic in terms of fruit flavor, but with an insanely creamy and balanced texture and contour that both confuses and satisfies at the same time. Orange rind, tea, and red cherry dominate the flavor profile here, with the fruit fading quickly on the back end. The execution is remarkably seamless, even if the meat has melted off the bones here a bit. A resolved Montrose to be sure, and sliding toward the back end of its evolution for my preference, though for those tertiary traders out there, you will find all sorts of pleasure. (4307 views) | |
| Tasted by Francophile1 on 7/3/2023: July 4th Mondo Event (Atlanta, GA): My wine... so not blinded. That said, I have been blessed to have consumed '90 Montrose at least a dozen times in my lifetime and it is one of my favorites. Blinded or not blinded, the nose on this wine is so unique and powerful. It has equal parts of exotic fruit and Bordeaux funk that is utterly intoxicating to smell and drink. Double decanted for 2 hours, but this could have been consumed straight out of the bottle too. (2837 views) | |
| Tasted by BrendanMcS on 7/2/2023 & rated 97 points: Still excellent. Nose was juicy red fruit, but blew off quickly. Really complex. Initially, but fruit with raspberry and cranberry, giving way to more earthy tones. Lots of good stuff here. Drinking well now. No decant; PNP and drunk over the next two to three hours (2520 views) | |
| Tasted by BernieMSY on 7/2/2023 & rated 97 points: Opened 5 hours prior to tasting. Did not decant it. It has a dark black/purple color; no bricking at the edges. Slightly brambly black fruit nose. Lots of concentrated fruit, with tons of secondary and tertiary flavors: cedar pencil, cigar box, roast meat, mushroom, and mint. Deep, dark, and mysterious. This is a Montrose for the ages. Rich mouthfeel, with plucky tannins underneath. This one has many, many good years ahead of it. That said, it is drinking beautifully right now. (2317 views) | |
| Tasted by I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine on 6/21/2023 & rated 98 points: Another Grand Tasting in Arizona! (Guiseppe's in Scottsdale): Not sure about prep, it was double decanted, but didn't get details on time. This was my WOTN, and it had some stiff competition (see tasting story for other wines). This was in a perfect spot for my palate, and I cannot imagine it being any better with less or more time. For me, this wine had that perfect, magical balance between fruit and tertiary goodness I love! I could go on and on with everything this wine was showing, but suffice to say it was glorious! Wish I had cases of this in my cellar, as I could drink this everyday! We have probably all been asked at one time or another, if you were stranded on an island, what case of wine would you like to have stranded with you (only one wine)...for me, it would be this wine or a 1994 Harlan. 98 points for my palate! Absolutely loved this! (3039 views) | |
| Tasted by jviz on 5/12/2023 & rated 97 points: Another chance to try this legend. This time it was a full bottle with two good friends over a few hours from the decanter. And what a more meaningful way to approach and understand the wine. If you took 2/3 part 86 Mouton and 1/3 part 90 Margaux, I think that would closely approximate the way this impeccably clean bottle tasted today. It had a core of black cherry fruit and kirsch. Incredibly youthful at age 33, with little tertiary notes or green character. There was a wisp of cinnamon and it had a lovely weight and pasty fruit. I’d not touch the next bottle for 5 years if possible. (2780 views) | |
| Tasted by Nutty08 on 5/12/2023 & rated 96 points: Dark fruited and surprisingly youthful and introspective. Still tannic, but fine and high quality. Really long finish, adding smoke and cedar spice notes mixed with just a sprinkle of leather. Shows the plushness and fullness of the vintage, but while dense--didn't find this fatiguing at all. Not as expressive as my last bottle 10yrs ago--but this bottle still seems to have upside. (2325 views) | |
| Tasted by burlingtonm on 4/23/2023 & rated 97 points: An outstanding Montrose from one of my all-time favourite vintages. Everything in balance with the tannins well integrated allowing the expression of the rich, opulent fruit and a long finish. A glorious bottle of wine. (2397 views) | |
| Tasted by d'Artagnan on 4/14/2023 & rated 99 points: Dégustation bordelaise 1989-1990 (Chez François G.): Premier de la série des '90, en semi-aveugle, j'ai vite compris qu'il serait difficile à détrôner. D'entrée de jeu, le nez est spectaculaire, très jeune, avec des mûres, de la mine de crayon, tout d'un bloc mais d'une puissance olfactive remarquable. La bouche est dense et concentrée, c'est un élixir d’un jeunesse incroyable, d’une profondeur sidérante, avec un fruité mûr et savoureux, des tanins fins, des propos qui s'étirent sur une longueur kilométrique. Il parait avoir plusieurs épaisseurs, tellement il est dense, mais miraculeusement, il ne parait jamais lourd, portant ses vertus avec une aisance et une élégance indicibles. Cet équilibre est proprement fabuleux, c'est un vin immense, très jeune et très grand, la perfection bordelaise dans toute sa splendeur. Comme c'est encore un bébé, il n'a pas encore développé de complexité aromatique, mais aucun doute qu'il y arrivera, dans une quinzaine d'années ou davantage! Un des plus grands Bordeaux qu'il m'ait été donné de boire. Aisément mon vin de l'année jusqu'ici. 99+ pts, 100 points dans quelques années. (2985 views) | |
| Tasted by Mario17 on 4/14/2023 & rated 98 points: Dégustation Bordeaux 89 vs 90. Un fruit éclatant au nez comme en bouche, puissant et fin à la fois avec un touché de bouche magique ou presque, longueur hors norme. Un beau moment d’émotion que ce vin presque parfait. Close to perfection if that’s possible, what a gorgeous and impressive wine, class and power, texture, energetic fruit, marathon like length, amazing. Easily no 1 and ahead of Latour 90 by a good margin. (2521 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 2/18/2023 flawed bottle: A lot of brett at first but still drinkable. But gradually TCA emerged and killed it. (2918 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 2/13/2023: Mmm, this is classic 1990 Montrose, bretty, earthy and deep, ripe, long finish, so very long, so much structure, earthy, dark and brooding. (3229 views) | |
| Tasted by Philip67 on 2/12/2023 & rated 100 points: Wow! Wonderful. Full on. Just perfect. Amazing breadth and depth of blackberry fruit. Great structure, still young. Long complex. Drink now and over the next 20 years. (2694 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 1/22/2023 & rated 97 points: blind Powerful BX with some fruit elements and tertiary notes. Still 20 years ahead. 2 month ago the 89 felt younger and more charming. Both great. 97 (3389 views) | |
| Tasted by oxwombat on 1/18/2023 & rated 97 points: Rogue night at Mato in Hong Kong. P&P with friends. This was absolutely incredible. Just shy of WOTN in a very strong line-up. Would not have been able to guess that this was a 1990, as this was still extremely fresh and fruity. However, this was accompanied by structure that could go on for days, tempered by a beautiful acidity that was never too over-powering. Absolutely perfect drinking window right now. The hype is real. Would love to revisit again. (2897 views) | |
| Tasted by MQuentel@web.de on 12/21/2022 & rated 100 points: What a divine wine. The nose offers the complexity and power of a great orchestra. The bouquet is deep and powerful, dark fruity and spicy. Notes of black cherries, various earth tones, cigar box, dark spices (some with slight sweetness), cocoa powder. The palate is full-bodied, intense and long. The wine has an extraordinary aromatic depth while being perfectly structured, the tannins are fine-grained and spicy, the acidity is perfectly integrated and the patina of over 30 years of aging is simply beguiling. A powerful, deep, persistent and enormously multi-faceted wine that showcases its mature masculinity with an enormous amount of beguiling charm. Perfect bottle! (3275 views) | |
| Tasted by maaike2 on 12/20/2022 & rated 95 points: Dinner at Richard's and Anita place on december 17, some short notes of the spectacular line-up: still young, start of tertiary notes, fruit still dominating, relative high in acidity, powerful tannins, robust, length, In future 96-97? We will see! After one hour in the glass, more developed, more prominent tertiary notes. (2653 views) | |
| Tasted by joshabramson on 12/18/2022 & rated 100 points: Poured from 375ml half bottle. I’ve had this wine a few times and this bottle tonight was as good as I’ve had. So fresh, ripe, and perfectly balanced, beautiful wine! (2987 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 12/10/2022: ESTG Year-End Tasting (Newcastle, WA): This was a pretty heavy Mr. Ed version of the 1990 Montrose. So very 1990, deep, ripe, intensely concentrated. On the scale of bretty bottles of this wine, I would put this at a 7 out of 10. (3171 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 11/24/2022 & rated 95 points: This has rounded out considerably in the last 7 years. Ripe dark fruit, smoke and gravel. (2783 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 11/20/2022 & rated 96 points: Decanted about an hour, but seemed to need another hour to blossom. Nice nose and well integrated palate after that for a couple hours. (2395 views) | |
| Tasted by englishman's claret on 11/19/2022 & rated 97 points: A gregarious if slightly atypical Montrose, with ripe red fruit channeling a sunny vintage in its exemplary energy and clarity, accented by cedar, a touch of brett, chestnut, allspice, and squab. A beautiful intensity on the palate follows- showing that as well as this wine is drinking now, it has the legs to run a long race. Bravo. (3834 views) | |
| Tasted by jviz on 10/29/2022 & rated 98 points: What a treat to taste this legend. This was generously poured by a couple at an adjacent restaurant table(!) This was a wine on my bucket list and I was most surprised to discover the vintage. I’m rating the wine on a small glass at the end of a bottle that was probably open about two hours. The wine is in a perfect place of maturity. Youthful color with homogenous bricking, the nose jumps from the glass. No significant brett or taint of any kind on this bottle. Deep and pure, and among the most classic sips of aged BDX I’ve yet to enjoy. (2878 views) | |
| Tasted by rocknroller on 9/27/2022 & rated 98 points: Lonny Should Turn 65 More Often (The Kenwood, Mpls, MN): Very dark red/purple color, 2mm clear margin. PNP, drank a glass over 90 minutes. Oh my, here we go again! Another Wow in my notes, with three underlines, following the same entry on the '83 Cheval. This was monumental and captivating from the outset. The nose is pure sensuous pleasure, complex, alluring, damp forest floor, violets and sandalwood, cassis, creme de cassis, huckleberry, pencil shavings, with incredible lift and intensity to the aromas. The palate takes that and encapsulates it into a divine, powerful package, a tour de farce of mouthwatering dark fruits of cassis, creme de cassis, huckleberry, and black raspberry in spades; followed by violets, pencil, truffle, damp forest floor, and the mot velvety mouth feel. The tannins are polished and this goes on for 60 seconds plus. Have I mentioned how much I love '90 Bordeaux? This is a great wine, and it has to be to edge the stunning '83 Cheval tonight. (3330 views) | |
| Tasted by chablis28 on 9/27/2022 & rated 97 points: Siggy's btl tonight. Monumental, quintessential St Estephe and one literally "for the ages". This is "take no prisoners" BDX simply in need of 3-5 more years to reach its zenith. Speaking almost exclusively of its tannin resolution & ultimate harmony. It has complexity, fruit and tertiary notes in spades. I just preferred the elegance, silk and tranquility of its flight mate, the '83 Cheval, tonight. What a great opportunity though to drink & contemplate this benchmark BDX! Bravo! Thanks Siggy. (3102 views) | |
| Tasted by alpinemartin on 9/17/2022 & rated 100 points: Simply outstanding! Phenomenal complexity both nose and palate, including mature black fruits and berries, chocolate, leather, tobacco, mushrooms and wet leaves, supported by silky tannins. Perfect balance and a long finish. Perfect to drink now! (3190 views) | |
| Tasted by Grafzahl on 9/16/2022 & rated 98 points: Superb, very Fine and low tannins. For me 98PP No 100 pp (2747 views) | |
| Tasted by BernieMSY on 9/10/2022 & rated 97 points: A slight whiff of barnyard upon opening, but after an hour in the decanter it has disappeared. Deep garnet/ruby color; crushed black fruit nose. Incredible depth of flavor! Layers and layers of dark, concentrated fruit: plum, currant, blackberry, and dried fig Lots of savory secondary and tertiary notes:cedar, cigar box, leather, mushroom, and roast meat. A stunningly long finish, at least a full minute, is supported by silky tannins that are present and noticeable. This wine should go another 20 years. Quite impressive. In short, it achieves something miraculous: a fruit-laden umami bomb, quite unique in my experience (2695 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 6/18/2022 & rated 93 points: Dinner with Friends (Gen Hoe): Double blind. Faded crimson red with a bit of bricking. Starts off quite bretty, reminiscent of the old Cordier wines. Red berry fruit underneath the brett. Medium-bodied, with a mix of red and black fruit and a decent bit of funk as well. Finishes with good length. The favorite of all at the table but me. I guessed older Talbot. (DR) (3475 views) | |
| Tasted by ShadowIII on 4/30/2022 & rated 93 points: nose had definite barnyard funk (individual bottles have varied from very clean to Brett dominated), but enough currants, cassis, pencil lead, cigar box to not let the funk overwhelm the other aromatics, solid wine good fruit, long finish (3898 views) | |
| Tasted by RockinCabs on 4/28/2022 & rated 98 points: Nose: Black cherry, blueberry, coca dipped raspberries, spice and licorice. Palate: Gorgeous layers of ripe blue and red fruit, glycerin, cigar tobacco, cedar, baking spices and sappy raspberry. Incredible weight and texture. Finish: penetrating length and deep berry and spice notes linger. Completely eclipsed a prior bottle that I had two years ago. This just had the extra exotic fruit layers, perfume and deep freshness. A wine that sets the mature vintagr standard for this estate. (3886 views) | |
| Tasted by englishman's claret on 4/26/2022 & rated 98 points: The 1990 Montrose is showing so beautifully today, accessible immediately after decanting and showing unwavering class for the next 4 hours until the last drops were consumed. This can be a variably-horsey wine, but 4 of the 5 bottles opened tonight showed beautifully (sadly, one lost to cork). The nose provides a fine entree to this remarkable wine with soft wild raspberry and a slightly horsey character, but it’s on the palate that simply explodes with energy and complexity. Delectably juicy raspberry, camphor, allspice, leather, and cedar intermingle to compose a Montrose that is almost atypically lush and dangerously quaffable. Gorgeous flavors, soft textures, and remarkable depth mark this out as a unique vintage of Montrose in the prime of its life. Picked Sept 14 - Oct 3 64% Cabernet Sauvignon / 32% Merlot / 4% Cabernet Franc 13% ABV (5729 views) | |
| Tasted by Cailles on 4/24/2022 & rated 95 points: 48x 1990 (37x Bdx, 6x Napa, 5x others): One of the highlights of the left bank, this Montrose 1990 showed incredibly young, much younger than the other bottles I had in the past two years. Hardly any tertiary development and not yet completely melted tannins and the perfect creaminess the best, more mature 1990s Montrose achieve. Still, this was great to drink with the depth and purity as highlights. 94/95 pts today, which is some steps away from the almost perfect level this wine can achieve. TN: Deep, dark, dense, spicy, herbal. The nose is far away from what Montrose 90 can deliver. With time more open but lots of herbs and minty notes drive the nose. On the palate this is better as it is a bit more open. Superb precision, which is the highlight, so much freshness, minty and herbal notes, a touch of coffee and a dark fruit core. So well delineated. Loads of round, velvety tannins, high but superbly round tannins, nice creaminess which will only get more and better, long lasting finish with fruit, herbs and minerality. Beside some hints of tobacco, this had almost no tertiary notes. So much life left. Decanting: Quick double decant roughly 3 hours before the tasting. As is true with the 1989, this 1990 usually needs many hours in the decanter to shine. I think this bottle would have been better with 4-5h decant. (5021 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 3/26/2022 & rated 96 points: Decanted about 3 hours. (3682 views) | |
| Tasted by Old Joe on 3/25/2022 & rated 97 points: Great color, has earth like flavors with a lingering finish (3091 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 3/11/2022 & rated 94 points: I almost poured it down the drain when I opened it because I thought it was overwhelmed by Brett. But no, it cleared up miraculously and was perfectly clean a few hours later after double decanting. It’s a beauty. Almost luxuriously fruity and at a wonderful state of maturity. Indistinguishable from a fine Pauillac with its slight ink and undergrowth. Not too tannic or acidic. WOTN for some of us at least. (3427 views) | |
| Tasted by Beeck10 on 3/10/2022 & rated 98 points: It is nearly perfect , maybe the longevity is the not anymore what it was , it’s ok but it will fade away after 10/12 seconds, but for a wine that is 32 years old , it has a incredible balance , Color , nose and mouth are one , it is silk , nothing that would think the wine is already going down, I did open it and decand it straight away and even after one hour it was still holding strong !! In the nose a had some terroir with chalk and nice old cabernet ! In the mouth some cherry with no sweet , but the wine is still sharp Really nice , I drunk this wine many times and it was still a monster , but it came from a very powerful wine in the nine tees and to a very classy great bordelais know ! To cherish ! (3367 views) | |
| Tasted by yaCellar on 2/27/2022 & rated 96 points: Had the ‘89 last night. The fruit is more dominant in this vintage; the other showed more savory elements. Black cherry liqueur, minced habanero pepper, wet earth. (3456 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 1/29/2022: stunning bottle exhibiting burnt sugar, wet hay, and earth. (3906 views) | |
| Tasted by HowardNZ on 1/22/2022 & rated 97 points: 1966 – 2010 Château Montrose vertical (Regional Wines, Wellington, NZ): Served single blind, one pour. Varieties: CS 64% | M 32% | CF 4%. A magical bottle. I have heard about good and bad bottles of the 1990. On the night, we definitely had one of the good bottles. Velvet colour with garnet highlights. A more evolved nose than the three or four wines before it, with notes of dried herbs, warm earth, preserved berry fruit, cinnamon and other spices, pipe tobacco, old leather, mushrooms and hints of truffle. Complex and aromatic. A lovely sweet fruited entry to the palate. Then structure and power followed by mellow, savoury complexity. An array of notes including cedar, cigar leaf, tilled soil, brown spices, dark fruit, graphite and old leather couch. Fully ripe, melted and soft tannins. Rounded but dense and concentrated. Very long. A beautiful and profound fully mature Bordeaux but with the matière for good bottles to probably drink well for another two decades. The 1990 though divided the room. Eight tasters had the 1990 as their top or second wine of the tasting but four had it as their least with nine suggesting brettanomyces. I saw threshold brett but at a level that, if anything, added additional savoury nuance to the wine and therefore was a positive, not a negative. 97+. Rankings: Me 3/12 | GK 6/12 | CT 1/12. (4620 views) | |
| Tasted by NostraBacchus on 1/15/2022 & rated 100 points: Deep healthy garnet/rubyish color with some brightening up and bricking towards the rim. Explosive, deep and authoritative, with notes of cedar wood, leather, tobacco, deep dark and red berries, truffle, sous-bois/underwood, also some cigar smoke, sweet spices (cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon), licorice, a touch of smoke, just a hint of barnyard, the fruit is building up and getting a little darker (like cassis, black currant, blackberries) with some more air. And then there is the structure of medium+ tannin that is perfectly silky and smooth, there is also some medium- acidity adding some freshness too. Extremely long finish, the wine literally lingers around for almost a minute. What an incredible Bordeaux, an epic bottle that is just at the early stage of showing everything and probably has another 20 years ahead. One of those moments in which you just want to stop time and hold on to the moment for as long as possible. (4446 views) | |
| Tasted by Gregmonroe on 1/5/2022: WWC - JD (FWC): Tasted blind - in a lineup of four 30+ year old bordeauxs, the nose on this one shined. Some bricking, but still generally bright and deep in color, with some sediment. Slight medicinal (cherry medicine) on the nose and palate, but generally beautiful red fruit flavors, with some leather and earth in the background. Perfectly integrated tannins and acidity. This wine was fantastic today. Guessed a 20+ year old bordeaux, cab based. (4052 views) | |
| Tasted by D'Yquembe Mutumbo on 1/2/2022 & rated 99 points: Impressively, this bottle was even better than the last, providing one of the very best tasting experiences of my life. There was no hint of brett in this bottle at all, which came out with a perfect cork and great fill. Lovely nose of lead pencil, tobacco, barnyard, cedar, and cooking spices. They should make a candle that smells like this wine. The palate was explosive yet refined, with pure red and black berries, tea, nutmeg, dark chocolate. This was at its glorious apogee after 3 hours in the decanter, showing no signs of fading and maintaining an incredible finish for what seemed like minutes between sips. We should all be so lucky to drink like this all the time, but only having this every once in a while makes it that much more special. (3877 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 1/1/2022 & rated 97 points: blind This is a monster. Massive, juicy with still black currant nose and ripe tannins. Pencil and cigar box but with dark berries in the background. Doesn't reach his peak. 97 (3841 views) | |
| Tasted by Beric on 12/31/2021 & rated 98 points: We were lucky and had one of the “Dr. Jekyl” bottles. Decanted for 2 hours and got better over dinner. Agree with other notes in that it is loaded with ripe black fruit, pencil shavings with hints of leather and tar. The only thing preventing the 1-2 more points is the finish is slightly less than other bottles we have had (‘86 Mouton, 03 La Turque). A great bottle. (3113 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 12/10/2021 & rated 99 points: A clean bottle! The issue with this wine is, will you open Jeckyl or Hyde? The worst bottles are filled with TCA. However, the best bottles and this was one of the best bottles are a thrill-a-sip experience. There is an incredible level of intensity that is packed with Asian spice, Cuban cigars, cedar chest, forest floor, currants, smoke, tobacco, and oceanic influences. Full-bodied, long, structured, and displaying the patina of age that has softened its once fierce tannins, replacing them with a regal textured, fruit and earth packed wine, the finish builds and expands for at least 60 seconds. (5461 views) | |
| Tasted by CamWheeler on 12/5/2021 & rated 93 points: SLDS Decadence 2021: Herbal aromatics, with some meat, iron and red berry fruit. The palate continues the sweet and savoury profile, with plenty of earth/herbs and red fruit. Really good carry. A bottle in 2017 perhaps was a tad less fresh, so I think we got a really good bottle here. (2270 views) | |
| Tasted by mflesh on 12/3/2021 & rated 96 points: I'm not sure if I even want to drink this. The nose is ah-ma-zing. Black truffle, pipe tobacco, fig, earthy red fruit tart. Smooooth finish. This is rreeeeally easy to drink and was an afternoon highlight. About as funky aged Bordeaux as I can take, and this one was a home run. (3564 views) | |
| Tasted by ocassiuso on 11/26/2021: Tasted blind. Garnet with brick rim. Aromas of elevated intensity, cedar, tobacco, mint, much more. Obviously Bordeaux, obviously high quality, obviously mature. On the palate, elevated spicy acidity, long fine-grained soft tannins, medium body and alcohol under 14°. Long and layered. Left Bank, 1990, I said. The mint threw me, and I didn't take it to St-Estephe. Drinking very nicely indeed. (3391 views) | |
| Tasted by joshabramson on 11/17/2021 & rated 98 points: A bit green and rusty out of the bottle, but that started to blow off after 15 minutes or so and very nice ripe fruit presented itself in its place. Not sure if it's a perfect bottle, but it's still quite nice. Fast Forward an hour. Woah... what a difference a bit of air can make. All of the funk and green blew off entirely and what's left is a close to perfect wine. So good! (4049 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 10/31/2021 & rated 95 points: Decanted 2 hours. (4078 views) | |
| Tasted by viniferatu on 10/23/2021: Glorious wine. Took a minute to open up, but it really blossomed. Aromas of leather, tobacco, prunes, creme de cassis, cherry jam, cedar, thyme, eucalyptus, mint, myriad brown spices, damp dark soil... truly velvety, very full in body, quite heavy really, sweet and ripe, broad and rich, rather confectionary on the mid-palate but the finish is plenty fresh and extraordinarily long. This really lingers. I should imagine it is pretty much mature, but it had a youthful fruit element, so maybe it will continue to develop in a positive way. In any case, it is far from tired and will surely be worth following many many more years. What a privilege! (4126 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 10/17/2021 & rated 91 points: Second Sunday Group: 2002 Burgundies (R&D's): Opens with a dried straw overtone, with currants and iron underneath. Medium-bodied, with flavors of red fruit, straw and leather. Medium finish. (FK) (3919 views) | |
| Tasted by Paul D on 10/14/2021 & rated 94 points: Po's 1990 Bordeaux Dinner (La Trompette, Chiswick): Bottle #2. Youthful, blackcuurant fruit, cedar, touch of gravel. Medium/full bodied, quite mouth-filling with lovely presence, dark fruit, spice, mineral, fresh acidity, quite long too. Lovely, no hurry (4153 views) | |
| Tasted by Paul D on 10/14/2021: Po's 1990 Bordeaux Dinner (La Trompette, Chiswick): Bottle #1 (smoke damaged). Had an odd, rotten seaweed aroma which was difficult to get past. A bit better on the palate but certainly not what it should be. NR (3917 views) | |
| Tasted by NickA on 10/14/2021 & rated 93 points: Po's 1990 Bordeaux dinner (La Trompette): Seemed much more typical and what we'd have expected than the first (likely heat-affected) bottle. Solid, a touch of Brett, still some tannin noticeable on the gums after drinking it. Smoke, truffle and purple fruit. Excellent wine, but not as exciting as I suspect this wine can be (perhaps because it wasn't decanted, being a back-up). (3808 views) | |
| Tasted by NickA on 10/14/2021 flawed bottle: Po's 1990 Bordeaux dinner (La Trompette): Heat-affected and seemed off. I got an airy, mentholated scent that then became reminiscent of Chinese food, but others got stagnant pondweed, and others still actually enjoyed it...! (3681 views) | |
| Tasted by SimonG on 10/14/2021 & rated 91 points: Po’s 1990 Bordeaux (La Trompette, London): Bottle 2. Not dissimilar on the nose, though perhaps a little more giving initially. A rubbery top note emerges though that’s hard to get past. It does open nicely without shedding its dense ness, but there are signs of it starting to give. Cool and composed and still a little surly with that lingering sense of rubber. **** (3647 views) | |
| Tasted by SimonG on 10/14/2021 & rated 92 points: Po’s 1990 Bordeaux (La Trompette, London): Bottle 1, a touch of smoke damage. Very flat on the nose. Similar on the palate initially. Compressed and monolithic.a pinch of spearmint on the finish with gingerbread on the nose, tempered by pine sap. A little mote open and interesting cf bottle 2, though I think the majority view was the other way round. **** (3542 views) | |
| Tasted by Verb on 10/9/2021 & rated 98 points: deep black with bricking on the rim - agree with other notes that the black cassis fruit just bursts out of the glass without any coaxing - some tertiary aromas of graphite and tobacco, but not prominent in the nose - beautiful mouthful of dense black fruit with superb fruit-acid balance - ripe velvety tannins still very much in presence - long 30-45 sec finish - this wine is drinking beautifully now, but should develop even more with additional time - confirms my opinion that Montrose takes at least 30 years to come into its optimal drinking window (but then will hold there for another 20-30 years) (3354 views) | |
| Tasted by Gabsby on 9/27/2021 & rated 93 points: I had a great experience with ithis wine at my favorite restaurant with my favorite person. The color was medium garnet at its core, with a brick red meniscus and showing medium+ on viscosity. Nosing it undisturbed in the glass revealed notes or cigar box, eucalyptus, dusty gravel and preserved plums. Upon swirling the wine went on to further reveal layers of game, dried flowers, ocean breeze and prunes. On the palate the wine showed a high level of refinement yet clearly retained some of its youth. The acidity remained fresh, but the tannins were almost fully resolved, silky with a “pull” that was ever so slight. Alcohol and finishing were medium+ and complexity high. (3618 views) | |
| Tasted by broadband013 on 9/13/2021 & rated 97 points: tout simplement fantastique! jeune et vieux à la fois, puissant, long, complexe, un nez incroyable! (3941 views) | |
| Tasted by spillwine on 9/12/2021 & rated 97 points: Impossible pour moi de le différencier du 1989 bu 1 semaine avant, très similaire, les 2 fantastiques. (3731 views) | |
| Tasted by BenBlu on 9/3/2021 & rated 97 points: 1990 Champagne / Bordeaux / N Rhone (London): My third time with this wine this year and consistently a great bottle. Today side by side the BD90 it initially had to fall in line and was viewed as slightly less interesting by the table. I agreed but felt that when the bottles came around again a few hours later it really came into its own and was such an archetypical pitch perfect classic 1990 left bank that I would be putting my money on this one longer term. (4418 views) | |
| Tasted by Cailles on 8/24/2021 & rated 96 points: 17x Bordeaux 1982-1990 (+ 2 Martha’s): All wines tasted single blind. It’s a privilege to taste the two legendary Montrose vintages 1989 and 1990 side by side. On this evening the 1990 (96 pts) edged out the 1989 (95 pts) by a small margin. The 1990 was more open and more round on the palate than the 1989, which usually needs a a lot of time and air to sing (better on day two). For both wines, this was not their best self as they can be more mature, softer and expressive. These Montrose are quintessential, classic Bordeauxs and truly outstanding. TN: A tad less expressive on the nose than the 89 but more open, complex on the palate with sweet yet pure red and mostly dark berries, tobacco, wet forest floor, dry earth, leather, mint. All those tertiary and earthy notes are well balanced by the sexy sweet fruit core. All aromas are delivered in HD. The best bottles of the 90 show even more complexity and more mature aromas. The structure is impeccable with very fine tannins, a beautiful soft texture with a nice creaminess to it and a good freshness. The finish is long and shows sweet fruit and tobacco. Decanting: Decanted for roughly 4 hours. More wouldn’t have hurt. Group score: 96.1 pts Group rank: 2nd out of 16 reds (5333 views) | |
| Tasted by Geoff on 8/14/2021 & rated 99 points: Impecable bottle stored in my cellar since release, mid to low neck fill, excellent cork. One hour decant. Dark red color. Tremendous nose comes firmly out of the glass. Not a blast, rather a strong, yet subtle persistent smooth flow. Dark and red fruit with great depth of secondary and tertiary notes, beautiful smoke and oak, saddle leather, spice box and tobacco. Very complex. Powerful, yet refined. Tannins smooth and reduced, yet still present.Plenty of life left in this beauty. Long, long finish. A memorable bottle of wine. Extrordinary! (3701 views) | |
| Tasted by BenBlu on 8/11/2021 & rated 96 points: A truly great showing here outclassing easily a LLC 90 (which to be was not a perfect bottle). Scintillating lavender on the nose, and then this powerful never ending 1990 Bordeaux fruit on the palate. Shame the wine was served a bit too warm which held it back for me from being scored even higher... (3908 views) | |
| Tasted by Cailles on 7/19/2021 & rated 98 points: 15 Mature Bordeauxs Magnums (with Heitz MV in the mix): From magnum. My clear #1 of the tasting, no doubt. Montrose can be stubborn and needs a lot of time and I feared that a large format might not be ready but luckily, this was not the case. With a bit of swirling this wine showed exceptionally well: expressive, hyper complex, perfectly delineated, impeccably structured and with a long and expanding finish. A very complete wine and in this form at its peak (if you like fresh fruit like me). So classic and aristocratic which made the great Poyferre 90 magnum in the next glass look like a slutty sister. The 90 Montrose is ready, whereas the 89 Montrose shows variable with many bottles still rather dormant and in need of a lot of air. TN: Highly expressive and layered nose with masses of black truffles, herbs, minerality, lots of dark fruit. Classic and tertiary in the best way. With more time, more and more fruit sweetness made it even more balanced. Wow, a nose to die for and easily worth 98 pts but the palate was even better. The same intense and perfectly defined aromas with lots of tobacco, black truffles, slate and graphite, dark and blue fresh berries, earthy notes and herbs. Always changing a bit and revealing new aromas in the classic/fresh spectrum. Fine velvety tannins, a perfectly integrated, well-measured acidity, a fresh but creamy enough texture and a long finish with a rainbow of autumnal/truffles and black fruit aromas. It got more expressive and intense by the minute. Decanting: Not decanted and that worked well. Still, these usually need some time (2h?). (5399 views) | |
| Tasted by sirpat00 on 7/3/2021 & rated 98 points: Magnum rarities tasting; 7/2/2021-7/3/2021 (Zunfthaus zur Waag, Zurich): Magnum rarities tasting hosted by a merchant and collector. The headline line-up of the main event featured 18 aged red wines from magnum which was preceded by warm-up tasting of a dozen aged reds. The highlights across both days were Chris Ringland 1998 (99), Montrose 1990 and Yquem 1948 (both 98). Also strong were Palmer 1989 (97), Cheval Blanc 1985 (97) and Léoville Poyferré 1990 (96). None of the wines were decanted prior to serving. Tasting note: From magnum. Forest floor, mushrooms and truffles, broad range of berries ranging from bramble berry to raspberry, minty, slate mineral notes, a bit of spice and violets. Mind-blowing complexity. A prime example for everything that you would imagine to describe a archetypical Bordeaux. Palate with great balance, structured and still very fresh. Needless to say plenty of aging potential left and the second magnificent bottle within a week, although this latter one from magnum revealed even more grandeur. 98+ (4620 views) | |
| Tasted by G_H on 7/3/2021: Annual Richter Extravaganza (All bottles out of magnums): Dark berries, herbs and an intense opulent structure. We drank this prematurely, as it would have benefitted from 3-6 hours of decanting. Hard to pinpoint a rating like this. (3765 views) | |
| Tasted by beatles on 7/1/2021 & rated 96 points: Great, great wine. Mushrooms, plentiful friut, a sweet, carresing sende, tobacco here, very classic indeed. In my book, this is fully mature, others may prefer to wait. #Ib (4049 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 6/30/2021 & rated 93 points: A Multi Birthday Celebration (Tocco - Winnetka IL): Late night pop-and-pour. while not quite as powerful and dense as the very best previous bottles, this showed plenty of fresh and mature black cherry and plum with charming spice with the most faint hint of brett that remained interesting without dominating. (4485 views) | |
| Tasted by La Sprezzatura on 6/26/2021 & rated 94 points: This is a blockbuster. very powerful and tannic still. strong aging potential. (1941 views) | |
| Tasted by sirpat00 on 6/26/2021 & rated 96 points: Bordeaux 1982-1990 tasting (Restaurant Essen'z, Brugg): Bordeaux 1982-1980 tasting of selected wines, including a couple of pirates. All wines were decanted for at least 2-3 hours, tasted in flights of 2 and single-blind. While not a representative sample, I would venture the following observations: 1/ First growths in 1988 should not be underestimated for the hedonistic pleasure they offer, 2/ 1990 first growths have not yet passed through their closed stage, 3/ you’ll find stand-out second tier wines from 1982. 4/ Highlights were Palmer 89 and Gruaud Larose 82 (96 each). Tasting note: Rose water, subtle leather, mixed berries showing dark, blue and red dimension as well as a generally sweet undertone. The palate is juicy, fruit-forward with a rock-solid structure. This is a linear, no-BS wine and unlike in the previous encounters came in on top in the face-off against the 1989. (4378 views) | |
| Tasted by RayOB on 6/25/2021 & rated 98 points: Drank at 67 Completely different to my last bottle. Rich powerful and still young, Beautiful (3425 views) | |
| Tasted by Brolawa on 5/12/2021 & rated 100 points: M&PD Zoom Tasting night of following white Burgs and red Bordeaux: 2013 François Raveneau Blanchot 2011 François Raveneau Valmur 2008 Vincent Dancer Chevalier-Montrachet 2000 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles 1990 Château Troplong Mondot 1990 Château Montrose 2009 Château Smith Haut Lafitte This wine is incredible. How can a wine have so much density on the nose without it being overdone on the palate? It just exploded out of the glass with raspberry, dusty floral notes, earth and smoke. There is some barnyard (and apparently it was all barnyard upon opening) but it was faint. According to Eric (our resident Bdx expert - see his note below), Brett is an intentional element of this wine, and it drives that elegant earthiness, smoke and, yes, barnyard. Mixed with the fruit and floral, it was a perfect balance on the palate. This wine made the the other reds taste linear if not flat. (4444 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 5/12/2021: M&PD Zoom Tasting: White Burgundy & Red Bordeaux (Zoom): Wow, wow, wow, this is a great example. Some horse on the nose but screaming left bank, tobacco, floral. Explosive fruit, massive structure, just monumental wine. The barnyard is there in the background, spicy, earthy, but this is just such a titan of a wine that all of the goodness overwhelms the manure elements. (4692 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 3/20/2021: Tasted blind Perfumed bouquet following lovely potpourri of red fruits. Finished with noteworthy tangerine. An exhilarating wine but not meant for those seeking to lick velvet. Without knowing what was what I preferred it to the ‘89 Montrose. Gracias jefe. (4982 views) | |
| Tasted by bookert on 3/3/2021 & rated 93 points: Great intensity. Still young and primary, tannins still present. Quality shows through though. (4766 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 2/21/2021 & rated 96 points: Decanted about 2 hours. (4494 views) | |
| Tasted by Benoit Hardy on 1/17/2021 & rated 98 points: Floral and fruity nose, the wine is still very young. Velvety and textured on the palate. It is as silky as you want, just like a silk taffeta coats a generous material that unfolds majestically in the mouth with a touch of spice and cinnamon. The depth of the wine surprises me, the balance is perfect, the whole is as impressive as it is evident with a very aristocratic grain. The wine takes us far with this very pronounced fruit / spice / flower blend, alchemy makes sense. Big finish, slightly oaky, as creamy as it is airy, it may seem paradoxical but I felt it like that, with enormous length. Great wine, this vintage is the best I have tasted so far. on this chateau. (4762 views) | |
| Tasted by gondrik on 1/10/2021 & rated 98 points: This wine has been drinking well for a decade but is now getting more refined without any evidence of decline. In the past I have decanted for four to six hours. This bottle only required an hour to fully open. It was smooth, very full flavored, but light. At 13% alcohol it has perfect balance (4300 views) | |
| Tasted by BenBlu on 1/3/2021 & rated 98 points: My first time with this Bordeaux legend. High fill, the bottle was in superb condition. No brett notes here whatsoever which I can read people note that this can sometimes display. Very clean on that front. A massive and great wine. Opened and decanted a bit on day 1 and left the rest on recorked bottle for day 2. Best result was day 2 with a decant of 4-5 hours (!) showing how much this wine has in the tank. Surely will be a 50-100 year wine when all is said and done for well kept bottles. This is supercharged but always pulls back at the right moment, classic 1990 Bordeaux which I love on steroids. Not a hair out of place. The vintage is visible and it reminded me of a great Pichon Baron 1990 I had a month back which was also totally gorgeous. (4520 views) | |
| Tasted by Schwarzer Hund on 12/25/2020: We all know this is a near- perfect wine. Decanted 2 hours before prime rib Christmas dinner. Happy New Year y'all (3492 views) | |
| Tasted by Bullethead on 12/24/2020 & rated 98 points: Decanted for 2 hours for short breath and to get rid of sediments. Perfect condition. Garnet rim on glass. Intensive pronounced aroma with strong truffle note on nose. Can still taste the grippy tannin for palate. Very long finish. Still youthful. Classic bordeaux with upside 98+ (3513 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 12/20/2020 & rated 95 points: If I didn’t already love Montrose this bottle would have convinced me. Perfectly clean, no funk, no Brett. So massively concentrated and intense even a COVID affected palate could easily taste it. And perfectly ripe too, with juicy acidity to frame it. The fruit is all black - berry, currant, licorice. Persistent and true to the finish. Better with food. (3610 views) | |
| Tasted by Ericsson on 11/28/2020 & rated 97 points: Bouteille achetée en primeur, la dernière hélas. High fill, bouchon parfait. Ouvert 4 heures avant dégustation. Robe grenat prune, légèrement plus claire sur les bords. Nez d’un classicisme d’école, cassis, charbon, graphite, une trace de fumée. Au palais, structuré, complexe, harmonieux, finement puissant. Une très légère amertume des tanins est la seule « fausse » note avant une finale explosive. Tiendra encore de longues années mais aucun scrupule à le boire aujourd’hui. Fait nettement plus jeune que LLC bu il y a quelques semaines, est plus classique aussi alors que LLC offrait plus de charme et de folie. 2 très grands vins dans un très grand millésime. (3826 views) | |
| Tasted by Charlie Carnes on 11/26/2020 & rated 97 points: When the 1990 Montrose is on, it is nearly breathtaking! I popped this for the family on Thanksgiving! The color here is quite dark, but the fruit jumps out as gorgeous black cherries and something akin to pencil lead and black sweet smelling earth. In the mouth this 30 year old is fresh, with those great Bordeaux qualities that always take me back to imagined days of old. The wine is showing great secondary traits, tobacco in a cedar box, forest floor, with maybe some forest berries. And man, what a great swallow. This drinks so perfectly! I believe this bottle to be well on the short side of the apex of its aging curve! (3331 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 11/22/2020 & rated 96 points: Decanted about 3 hours. (3670 views) | |
| Tasted by KenPlace on 11/3/2020 & rated 98 points: Perfect bottle, cork. Gorgeous claret, with a little funk but still had great fruit. (4127 views) | |
| Tasted by noblerot23 on 10/12/2020 & rated 97 points: 1990 Château Montrose (Saint-Estèphe, Bordeaux) The cork was stiff, long and smooth—youthful in every way. Ullage unchanged. Brilliant medium to dark garnet hue. The complex aroma release was immediate and featured pencil shavings, leather, black currant, charcoal and cola. Motley dark and disparate flavours of blackberry, black cherry, black currant, black tar and even black pepper somehow melded harmoniously in a serious yet casually natural melange (imagine each and every black garbed justice of the Supreme Court, abreast and smiling, tapping shoes in unison to the lively strains of Riverdance). Tannins were far more complementary than intimidating, completely collaborative now yet built for further longevity. The velvety mouthfeel was full and unrestrained yet primly elegant despite each of my intraoral sensory nerve endings firing in unison like a distant, unattended car alarm. Every swallowed sip left a gustatory afterglow that lingered for at least 45 seconds, conjuring happy but wistful memories of one’s first romance roused (or last final exam completed). GOAT (greatest of all time)? Probably not, but definitely a big and beautiful Bordeaux. Bottom line: not too shabby a tipple indeed (4046 views) | |
| Tasted by BillyNelson on 10/10/2020 & rated 95 points: A very ‘classy’, fully mature claret ..... Just delightful. The kind of wine that has you making eye contact with your dining companions and nodding. While everything was exactly in its place, I would highlight that this wine can take a long decent and we found it was more open after 2hours (ie no evidence of the decline once open that one often sees from a wine of this age). IMO this wine can see the decade out at or near the top of its game, but it is just superb now. (3829 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 9/21/2020 & rated 97 points: Best Bottle before Clos du Mesnil Vertical Tasting (Rocaille Düsseldorf): blind This is still a baby. Typical left bank Bordeaux at its best. 2-3 decades ahead. 97-98 (4711 views) | |
| Tasted by sfwinelover1 on 9/7/2020 & rated 99 points: Opened by the ever generous A_M, as part of a night of socially distanced wine, food and friends. Received about 90 minutes of air, and while I can't speak to how it came out of the bottle, after the 90 minutes, it was singing a sweet song. On the nose and palate, powerful notes of funk, earth, underbrush, dried spice, cedar, semi-sweet cran-cherries and dark berries, and just a bit of cigar box and a slight floral note. Medium purple with a garnet note closer to the BdMs than the Cole cab, medium bodied with medium to thick legs. Medium+ complexity, medium intensity (I hear BurgundyAl's comment about this being not subtle, which may be fair enough if you're coming to this via Bordeaux, but not for damn sure if coming via Napa), and extraordinary persistence, like a whisper which stays in your ears days after you last saw your lover. No heat, medium tannins and acidity. This is my first Montrose of any vintage, so I have no idea what this was like 5, 10 or 20 years ago, but the freshness of this is absolutely amazing, and while the subtlety and balance are immaculate as you'd expect in a high end mature wine, there's nothing that suggests that this is anything less than prime drinking window which may go on longer than I (and for those of you asking, I'm near the wrong end of my 50s). I've had more pratfalls than successes with Bordeaux, and while I know it's rude to look, I can't help but see the W-S price as I type this (which would come pretty close to buying a total of 3 of the '12 Ovids or '16 Spottswoodes), so it's not like I'm letting the world in on an unknown, cheap secret, but this was certainly one of my great wine-drinking experiences, and one I'll remember for quite some time. As stunning as it was a standalone, it was crazy good with A_M's wonderful, slightly gamy ribeye. Hard to stack up either the Ovid or Spottswoode (closest, of the great wines I've had this year, was the '06 Verite), but it's certainly in the conversation for quality. Thank you, AM; this is what makes wine drinking so exciting to me. Glad that you're my friend and have such a great collection. 98-99+ (4610 views) | |
| Tasted by AaronMaxwell on 9/7/2020 & rated 98 points: Another flawless Bordeaux. Just as good as the last bottle I wrote up. (4110 views) | |
| Tasted by AaronMaxwell on 8/26/2020 & rated 98 points: Damn, this is an outstanding wine. I cracked this open on a whim today. I wanted something extravagant to get us through the rest of the week : ) It's been breathing for 90+ minutes as I write... It's garnet in color, but not as brown as I was expecting at this age. The nose is an expressive dance of warm cedar, vanilla, plum, and eucalyptus. Cigar box meets dark fruit perfume. First sip: hard to believe this is 30 years old. It leaps from the glass, bright, complex, and richer than I anticipated. The barnyard funk (I adore well integrated brett) suits this wine perfectly. The tannins are so delicate and velvety, the alcohol is low-ish @ 13%, and the acid is not harsh at all at this age. This wine is leathery and sits atop wet earth. A bit meaty (bacon?) and dense, like some of my favorite CdPs. I'm having trouble writing the fruit notes because there are simultaneously fresh fruit (cranberry / cherry?) and dark blackberries and currants making their way to my brain. The finish is endless. I've only ever tasted an '05 and a '16. The '05 was divine -- served with a truffle tasting menu at Gary Danko. The '16 was infanticide, and I didn't like how much it wasn't what I wanted it to be. This .... is the perfect age for this wine. I can't imagine how it would change more over time. But fortunately, I have one bottle remaining, so maybe I'll be able to keep my hands off it for the next 5 years (doubtful). I plan to eat a ribeye in an hour and may comment back with more as the wine continues to develop (4178 views) | |
| Tasted by sirpat00 on 8/24/2020 & rated 94 points: Bordeaux 1990 horizontal tasting (Fribourg): 1990 Bordeaux horizontal hosted by a private collector. 30 years down the road, the vintage comes across as bold and muscular, youthful and in general not yet open for business or at times closed. Highlights included Figeac, Haut-Brion, Mouton, Calon Ségur – and to my surprise – Marquis de Terme. See tasting story for more take-aways and the complete line-up. Tasting note Elegant, very faint hints of brett, minty with fresh, ripe and red berry fruit. Big and bold on the palate yet with a soft mouthfeel. Very fresh and fruity finish. Not in the same league as the 1989, but a strong Montrose nonetheless. If you must open, give it a good 6h decant. (4743 views) | |
| Tasted by RockinCabs on 8/15/2020 & rated 96 points: Nose: Massive core of blackberry, plum and creamy cassis. Truffles, graphite, star anise, tobacco, sweet cedar and leather. Effusive nose that kept gaining as this was open. Palate: Initially enters with a tidal wave of smooth, sweet, creamy back fruit. Nuances begin to emerge and change around that with tobacco, graphite, stone, anise and licorice. Finish: Exceptional and regal finish that sticks around for 40+ seconds. No brett notes that others indicate, but also not quite at the epic level that many describe. I found this to be an exotic plush Montrose that was powerful and voluptuous. (3846 views) | |
| Tasted by Hanibal on 7/24/2020 & rated 94 points: A step below the last one i had but still this wine remains above many of its vintage. (3998 views) | |
| Tasted by Ltim BE on 7/5/2020 & rated 95 points: H2H blind with Cheval Blanc 1990 and Angelus 1990. The Montrose was the youngest in appearance and style but overclassed by the 2 others. But the Montrose can still age for probably 100 years. Was not so impressive in this line up though. (3934 views) | |
| Tasted by doug374 on 6/26/2020 & rated 95 points: Wonderful nose of roses and chocolate, hint of graphite and woods. Fully ready expect to hold at this level for many years. (3714 views) | |
| Tasted by Trent Walker on 5/15/2020 & rated 98 points: A wine I could smell all night. Intense cedar box and fresh cigar leaps from the nose. later (4 hours) a core of fruit appears in the nose, right in the middle, but oh my that beautiful nose. The palate has tannins which are starting to resolve but honestly the fruit is so thick that it gives the illusion of resolved tannins. There's plenty of structure here for another 10 years. My bottle was clean although another bottle in our zoom tasting showed some stewed fruits. Really remarkable depth of fruit showing off the best of all the components - deep berries but not jammy, more of the dusty fruit that's ripe but not sweet, which is my preference. No one would EVER pick this for californian for example. Tar with spices, and the faintest bits of secondary leather, complete the palate. I missed with my note half a decade ago when i wondered if the fruit would outlast the tannin. I'm an idiot. A legend. (4576 views) | |
| Tasted by Verb on 4/30/2020 & rated 95 points: black with bricking on the rim - beautiful mouthful of dense black fruit with superb fruit-acid balance - ripe tannins still very much in presence - long 30-45 sec finish - less developed but better structure than the 89 Montrose tasted alongside - this wine is definitely still very young, and should develop even more with additional time - I rated both wines equally, but prefer the 89 now and would wait another 5-10 years for the 90 to realize its full potential (4493 views) | |
| Tasted by Iroi on 4/1/2020 & rated 100 points: Also tased with 1989 Montrose, 1995 LLC and 1986 Ducru B. Definitely this 1990 is the champion of the night! Can’t believe how this vintage is still in the red purple color and the tannins is so silky! The forest floor, cigar box, mushroom smell so good! All bottles were decanted in bottle for 30 min. 1989 montrose is also good, but if we put these two stars together, 1990 is more smooth than 1989. This is what we all agreed with. I think this wine should be enjoyed within 10 years if you have any in your hand. 100 pts. (4943 views) | |
| Tasted by t-sama on 3/22/2020 & rated 98 points: Simply incredible. Consistent with previous tastings, but more mature. Decanted 3 hours. Bought as futures ($21.99 a bottle!) and stored in our 60 degree cellar since delivery. Cork fell apart and was fairly wet. Mild bricking on the edges of the glass. I really don't have the vocabulary to describe this wine. Definitely one of the greatest wines I've tasted. It's hard to tell whether it will improve further or last more than another 10 years, but it seemed fully mature. My experiences with 30 year old Medocs clearly are fairly limited. (4366 views) | |
| Tasted by Nanda on 3/11/2020 & rated 94 points: Single Blind 1990 Bordeaux (The Bristol - Chicago, IL): A full nose of ripe plum and black cherry layered with herbs, clay and classic Cab notes. Wow the palate has so much richness and intensity with a bright elegance. Complex array of flavors in the finish. Guessed Haut Brion - oops. (4689 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 3/11/2020 & rated 94 points: 1990 Bordeaux Dinner (The Bristol - Chicago IL): Single blind at 1990 Bordeaux dinner. Nothing subtle or restrained here, this is rich, dense and meaty, Most were able to correctly identify this as the Montrose give the three remaining wines. Easily showing best tonight of the flight tonight, almost as good as a few better bottles from the recent past. (4920 views) | |
| Tasted by Ara Kafafian on 2/19/2020 & rated 95 points: Blind, slight brick rim, still dark colored, superb complex aged Bordeaux perfume, cassis, leather, barn yard, incredibly smooth and a very long finish. Very sweet. A big wine that can still hold 10+ years. (4316 views) | |
| Tasted by winesnout on 2/2/2020 & rated 98 points: Still the same monster as years ago but has now reached is peak. Old-style Bordeaux with an intense bouquet of earthy notes, leather and some licorice. Very long finish, will last for decades. (4039 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 1/5/2020 & rated 100 points: Tasted with seven other 1990s from our cellar, almost all purchased on release. This was third favorite, after Pichon Baron and Beausejour Duffau. This wine is at its peak, and it's perfect! Still very deep garnet and completely opaque. The nose is immediately very pronounced with deep cassis and blackberry notes mixed with French oak, quite complex. Extremely viscous, the "legs" barely moving. Big dark fruit flavors but perfect balance, not heavy or too hot. Amazingly youthful for being 30 years old, would have guessed 10-15. Full-bodied, lingering aftertaste. Just a perfect wine from an excellent year. This will easily last another 5-10 years. 6 ounces left in the bottle, preserved with inert gas, was just as great two nights later. Ric (4959 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 12/8/2019 & rated 94 points: Decanted about 4 hours. Decent, but not the best showing relative to previous bottles. Not much on the nose and palate lacked excitement. (4974 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 12/5/2019 & rated 95 points: Dark, dense and unyielding. Typical Montrose profile with dark Cabernet fruit front and center. Menthol, eucalyptus and licorice. Nice brooding complexity. The wine still felt very tight and closed about 1.5-2 hours after opening and unlike other 1990 Bordeaux may need another 10 years to fully come into its own. (4351 views) | |
| Tasted by BernieMSY on 11/23/2019 & rated 98 points: 4 hour decant. Dark purple, bricking at the edges. Rich, deep and complex. So delicious. Deep, wonderfully integrated. Currant, tart blackberry, leather tobacco and earth. Wonderful. (4469 views) | |
| Tasted by BrendanMcS on 11/23/2019 & rated 98 points: Pre-Thanksgiving Family Wine Night: One of my unicorn wines, this is stellar. The nose is not too overpowering, but refined. The palate is delicious, silky smooth, some lucious dark fruit that is incredibly well balanced. Almost a ripe strawberry with cranberry as well, and a finish of cigar box or cedar. She is a real beauty. Incredibly smooth. Remarkable wine. (4197 views) | |
| Tasted by Cailles on 11/1/2019 & rated 98 points: Tasted blind. Clearly identifiable as a 89/90s Bordeaux, my guess was Pauillac, though. This is a wonderful wine, fully mature, very expressive and concentrated and super elegant. While the 89 Montrose I’ve had a few weeks back is definitely at its peak, this 90 seems younger and should continue to develop for 10 more years easily. Which vintage is the better one? It’s splitting hairs, the first glass of the 89 was the overall winner but 90 delivered a more concentrated and cohesive performance over the entirety of an evening. TN: Massive but weightless nose with all signature tertiary Bordeaux aromas along a strong minerality all circling around a dark fruit core. Tobacco, leather, black truffles, fresh red fruit, ripe dark fruit, dark fruit liquor, herbs, wet stone, graphite, slight but very sexy brett notes come in waves and are embedded in an absolute elegant, fine and harmonious structure with melted tannins and a very good freshness. Very good length. Decanting: A short decant should do the job. It was good from the start. (6040 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 10/18/2019: Really nice example. Strong iron, blood, and some of the usual horse. Deep and powerful on the palate with generous, still plump, brooding and dark fruit. Long, mineral driven finish. (5343 views) | |
| Tasted by joshabramson on 10/18/2019 & rated 98 points: Beautiful wine. Drank at Kinship in Washington DC. Lots of ripe & rich fruit, nice structure, really in a nice place. (4769 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 9/22/2019 & rated 96 points: Decanted about 4 hours. Another nice bottle. (4487 views) | |
| Tasted by Frank Schneider on 8/18/2019 & rated 95 points: 89 vs 90 This was closed. After 7 h of decanting it showed more but not all. Has years to come. Hoooold !!! A great wine with future . 95+ (5369 views) | |
| Tasted by D'Yquembe Mutumbo on 8/17/2019 & rated 98 points: What an absolute treat this was with a fantastic steak dinner at Bourbon Steak. I came in fully aware that brett might dampen, if not ruin the experience, which the sommelier noted when he brought the wine over to the table (after an hour and a half of decanting). The brett scent was very apparent on first sniff out of the glass, and while it was odd I wouldn't say that it was enough to put me off. Still, I set it back down and focused on my cocktail for a while, doing some occasional swirling and sniffing to see if it would dissipate. It did, and wow was this spectacular right from the jump. The first word that came to mind was 'elegant'; the tannins were velvety, the purity of fruit was deep but not overwhelming, the secondary and tertiary notes of minerals, cedar, leather, and black tea meshed so well with the blue and blackberries that jumped out at you initially. The finish was long; I swear I was still tasting this before I went to bed later on that night, the distinctive flavor lingering on the back of my tongue via the great memories of this night. I already can't wait for my next bottle. (4998 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 7/14/2019 & rated 96 points: Decanted 4 hours. (5332 views) | |
| Tasted by Verb on 7/14/2019 & rated 97 points: Bastille Day fete - opened 2 bottles along with 1990 Margaux - very different styles, but a toss-up for quality - Margaux had the more effusive elegant nose and the Montrose expressed bigger black fruit without as much complexity as the Margaux - brett certainly present, but not overpowering as some others have found - a beautiful mouthful of dense black fruit with superb fruit-acid balance - ripe tannins still very much in presence - long 30-45 sec finish - perfect with rotisseried leg of lamb and preferred over the Margaux by half the revelers - this wine is definitely still young, and should develop even more with another 5-10 years (5145 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgnick on 7/10/2019 & rated 95 points: Decanted for 90 mins before serving. It could have benefited from a longer decant. Perfumed, dark fruit, earth, spice and herbs. Very intense on the palate with sweet core dark fruit. The substances were not fully unleashed. Better days are ahead. (5387 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 6/23/2019: Both Gary and Mark each brought a bottle of this wine, unknown to each other. Apparently the bottles came from the same case. But one was extremely horsey, the other much less so. (5071 views) | |
| Tasted by unrelenting on 6/16/2019 & rated 95 points: Actually had to decant since it was so tight. Pleasantly funky. A bit closed. (4887 views) | |
| Tasted by englishman's claret on 6/7/2019 & rated 94 points: This was a good but not great bottle of the 90 Montrose. Reasonably deep, succulent blackcurrant and leather but without the aromatic intensity, focus, or complexity that marks out the best (clean) bottles of 1990 Montrose and earns this wine its sometimes-deserved reputation as thrilling claret. Alas. 750 wth a neck fill, decanted 30 minutes and followed in the glass for 3 hours afterwards. (5317 views) | |
| Tasted by KenPlace on 5/28/2019 & rated 97 points: PnP. Upon opening and first 30 minutes this was a 100 pt wine. Sexy nose (everything you want in an aged clared). On the palate, everything in balance, smooth. However, after 45 min or so it started to fade every so slightly, thus the 97 pts. (4865 views) | |
| Tasted by fcxj on 4/11/2019 & rated 94 points: Rodger Arai. Clean, hint of rubber. Dark fruit and cedar. Impressive. (5819 views) | |
| Tasted by MalcolmV on 4/10/2019: Dark brick, marsala nose. Sweet and spicy, raisins, fruit cake and cloves. Very concentrated. Amazingly long. ***** (3479 views) | |
| Tasted by WineAggregate on 4/5/2019 & rated 99 points: Still the perfect wine. My previous note says it all. (5441 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 3/14/2019 & rated 94 points: Dark and dirty but very good. Rich fruit and tangy acids. Lots of development yet to come on this bottle (5729 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 3/6/2019 & rated 98 points: Achim's Magnum Tasting 2017 (Berens am Kai 1 star Restaurant): Der kräftigere, kantigere Wein in diesem Flight. In der Runde gibt es keinen eindeutigen Sieger in diesem Kampf der Titanen. Habe nebenbei erfahren, dass der 1989er Montrose sich nicht vor dem 1990er zu verstecken braucht. Unendlicher Abgang. Die Frucht wirkt konzentrierter und wuchtiger als beim Margaux, ohne von seinem feinen Schliff zu verlieren. 98(99) (6447 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgnick on 3/4/2019: This bottle showed a bit of bret and funk which is a common trait for 90 Montrose. Very dense and dark with lots of powerful. Still a baby. (5606 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 3/2/2019 & rated 93 points: Continues to be an interesting combination of ripe dark fruit, silky acids and dark almost bretty notes. Good bottle. 93+ (5072 views) | |
| Tasted by Purple Tooth on 3/2/2019 & rated 98 points: This is why you buy good wine on release, and then painfully store it without touching it for 29 years. You get magic in a glass! Who knew wine could be this way, when I was happily drinking fruit filled wines in my twenties while this beauty was sleeping. The 1990 is at its peak for the second stage of its 3 lives and will peak again in about 10 years or more in its final stage. Right now, you get greeted with an alluring musty barnyard bouquet, intermixed with evening flowers. Underneath it, you have a living jubulous cuve of youthful dried red fruit intermixed with old barrel spice, wrapped in earth and flowers. The wine exits with some feisty tug and pull for its age and lingers and departs gently, leaving sweet flowers and earth behind. For me, this is a Drink now and will get better and better with time. So, DRINK or HOLD (5881 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 2/25/2019 & rated 98 points: A nice clean bottle, with a developed personality of cedar, Asian spice, tobacco leaf, cigar wrapper, cherry cassis and herbs. Full-bodied, dense and powerful, the wine is long, complex and mouth-filling. This is probably quite close to the sweet spot for this gem, where is should remain for at least another 20-25 years with ease. (6232 views) | |
| Tasted by depdoc on 2/13/2019: At 4 hours after decanting, it was still opening up. So, take heed and plan ahead when you consume this beauty. (5087 views) | |
| Tasted by kr522 on 2/8/2019 & rated 97 points: not sure i've had anything less than a superb experience with this wine, it continues to thrill. crackling with dimension and energy, what's impressive is how this has shifted gears from a young, powerful and dark fruited personality, to a multi-dimensional wine with black & red fruit, spice, earth and minerals. it's refined without losing it's zest and power. was next to a 90 La Mission, and it was impossible to pick a favorite (5128 views) | |
| Tasted by tgkswine on 12/31/2018 & rated 97 points: Still a young wine. 5 hour decant and was still opening into it’s full intensity as the bottle was fully consumed. Same tasting notes as others. This still has years of great drinking ahead of it. (5785 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 12/20/2018 & rated 100 points: A perfect wine, perfectly ready! Amazing powerful aromas as soon as it was poured, after double decant three hours earlier. Very typical leather, cassis, cedar and French oak typical of St. Estephe. Plenty of fruit still there, rich and full, dark and dense, with an extremely long aftertaste with anise notes. It stayed perfect all evening, still hadn't lost anything five hours later. No hurry to consume the others. This should last for years more. Ric (6321 views) | |
| Tasted by cadamson on 12/16/2018: Pretty damn phenomenal in my book. Not much missing that one could hope for. Classic, exactly mature Bordeaux. Tons of leather. Any modernity has passed. Probably sexy as hell when young, now just damn elegant, beautiful and even understated. Lots and lots of life ahead, though do not see how it could get any better. (5854 views) | |
| Tasted by Ben Christiansen on 12/12/2018: A little out of place in a line up of Rioja but certainly a deserving wine - a complex nose of fruit, flower and minty earth notes. Still very vibrant and alive, delicious off the cork pull and kept getting better. (6110 views) | |
| Tasted by gsquireh on 12/1/2018 & rated 98 points: Full-bodied, aromatically rich and full of clove and sweet forest floor, the nose herbs and fresh barnyard. Perfectly balanced, wonderful minerality, this is a powerful, textured, exciting and layered wine. Glorious to drink and share. (6112 views) | |
| Tasted by BernieMSY on 11/21/2018 & rated 94 points: Wonderful after 3 hour decant. Rich and delicious (5810 views) | |
| Tasted by europat55 on 11/11/2018 & rated 97 points: Platinum Tasting - First Growths from the 80's (with two 2nd growth ringers) (Andre and Sabine's House, Mountain View, CA): Nose: A+/A++ Taste: A/A+ My #1, Group's #2. Tasted Blind (6204 views) | |
| Tasted by Dehrmann on 11/11/2018 & rated 96 points: Delicate, full bodied, silk...Marcus & Annette dinner in Hamptons white Chave, Timbach Riesling, Cambettes and ‘95 Haut Brion and ‘90 Montrose (5720 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 11/4/2018 & rated 96 points: Decanted about 4 hours. Continued to evolve further over the following 2 hours until gone. (5566 views) | |
| Tasted by fontaine on 11/2/2018 & rated 98 points: Ca fait longtemps que je voulais boire Montrose 90. Un nez profond de fruits rouges et noirs. Framboise, cassis, cerise. Du tabac, herbal et un petit coté un peu sucré qui me rappelle le coke ? En bouche la texture est superbe et c’est soyeux. C’est encore gorgé de fruits et l’attaque est assez puissante. Parait beaucoup plus jeune qu’il l’est, à mon sens, le vin peut encore s’améliorer. Grand vin ! Un des meilleurs Bordeaux bu à vie. (4590 views) | |
| Tasted by M.S.L. on 10/26/2018 & rated 98 points: Served next to Leoville Poyferré 1990 (97). Tasted a few weeks a go so no detailed notes. The hosts had done a great job decanting, so the wine was ready from the start with a gorgeous nose of macerated dark berries. In the mouth I felt the wine just landed perfectly with impeccable balance and a lush almost velvety feel. This wine kept evolving over the time we had it in the glass, where the almost equally excellent Poyferré started declining a bit after ca. 1 - 1 1/2 hours. The difference in score is due to this more than the Poyferré being the lesser wine when poured. I really love the 1990 vintage in Bordeaux and these two bottles were absolute top examples of what you can hope to experience with it. (5879 views) | |
| Tasted by StasMedvedev.lv on 10/13/2018 & rated 99 points: Super Vintages of SuperSeconds🍷 (Riga, Latvia): 🏅 Rating 99/100 (4,9🌟) Speechless! This wine comes from another planet. Crazy wild rose in the pine forest. 4th dimension. Blockbuster wine of the night. Exceptional! Liquid magic. 2eme GC Classé. 65% CS, 25% M, 8% CF, 2% PV. Fermentation in steel tanks w/ frequent pumping-overs. 18 mo aging in 50–70% new oak w/ 6 rackings. Fining w/ egg whites. No filtration. The best in St.-Estephe from '89. 1st Growth quality RP100. He has probably tasted it ex-cellar. --- Read my wine writing at stasmedvedev.lv and follow me on Instagram (6374 views) | |
| Tasted by Alongfield on 8/22/2018 & rated 96 points: Rich and wonderful. Still robust with nose of blackberry fruit. (7033 views) | |
| Tasted by Doc90 on 6/30/2018 & rated 96 points: Tasted blind. Whoa, definitely French. Aromas of bacon, horse stable, crushed herbs, pinyon pine. Bordeaux fiery intensity. Fully mature. This screams St. Estephe to me. Saturating and balanced. Soulful. I will have fond memories of this. (7869 views) | |
| Tasted by robmatic on 6/30/2018 & rated 93 points: Sweaty horse stink pervades the nose and seriously affected my enjoyment of this otherwise great wine. Fortunately very little of that stink comes through on the palate, which is astonishingly dense and deep. Great juice with a problematic nose. Drink or sell. (7807 views) | |
| Tasted by Marc on 6/3/2018 & rated 93 points: Wine Dinner in Ngaio (Trelissick Crescent, Ngaio, Wellington, New Zealand): On first sniff, this was incredibly intoxicating - brilliant fruit ripeness, with intense levels of herbal and mineral top notes. However, with more time in the glass, the wine showed huge levels of Brett, I can't recall a modern Bordeaux that I have drunk that has been quite this horsey! In fact, this bottle had more apparent brett than a 1989 Beaucsastel CNdP, I drank last month! In the mouth, this is hugely proportioned, with leathery merlot character adding a lot of flesh to the more defined cabernet. However, the brett does take over, and the wine feels slightly unfocused and over-ripe on the finish. I can imagine that a bottle without the high levels of brett would be a complete knockout wine. I would continue to hold on to this wine! 93 + or - ..... (8019 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 6/2/2018 & rated 96 points: Annual gathering with Chicago winos in Chicago - Burgs, old Bordeauxs, Cult Cabs and SQN (Smyth and The Loyalist - Chicago IL): Youthful slightly lean nose displaying cool black fruit, cassis, blueberry, a hint of red currant, eucalyptus, a hint of green, lead pencil and mineral. Very precise and detailed palate, nicely layered cool blue fruit, silky and polished, nicely integrated tannins and a long cool black fruit driven finish with a hint of green and lead pencil at the end. My guess is Haut Brion. I am certain that the second wine is Montrose, i.e. thinking brett. (8550 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 6/2/2018 & rated 94 points: Wine Dinner Extravaganza (Smyth and The Loyalist - Chicago IL): Single blind in 1990 left bank star flight. All open 3 hours before serving. Big and very bold/ meaty aromas and flavors, borderline rugged character. Lots of layers and complexity. I correctly identified this as the Montrose from its more rustic hints. (7472 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 6/1/2018: tasted blind n - stinky, earth, hay, burnt sugar m - wow wine. potent fruit veering to the darker end of the spectrum - rich boysenberry, coffee, led pencil, long tannins, delicious, framed with lovely earth overtones. My guess was Gruaud. at age 28 showing youth, and more power than the 1989. much better than the last time tried which was a Brett-bomb I suspect this wine will continue to improve for many more years. (5968 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 5/12/2018 & rated 98 points: Spectacular wine. Pure velvet. Lots of gorgeous red fruit and licorice with incredible nuance and complexity. The tannins are there but very well hidden. This continues to exemplify the brilliance of the 1990 vintage for me. (6186 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 5/4/2018 flawed bottle: badly corked. damn (6115 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 4/8/2018 & rated 94 points: Decanted 4 hours. Nice, but not the best showing relative to previous bottles. Perhaps an off bottle. (6266 views) | |
| Tasted by rgrosz6 on 4/7/2018 & rated 95 points: Tasted my second bottle. After decanting for two hours, the Montrose is simply overpowering. The nose is amazing, but the wine does not reveal much to my palate. If I closed my eyes and guessed what I was drinking, this wine seemed more like a Rhone than a Bordeaux Maybe wait three MORE years before opening another bottle. (5956 views) | |
| Tasted by KenK on 4/3/2018 & rated 97 points: A DC Wino hits Chi-town (RPM Steak): Singing tonight among a ton of gems. Sweet long dense ripe black berry fruit with a very pleasant scorched earth aroma. Balanced with tremendous density. A sense of purity with class, drinking young and pretty. Simply Brilliant. Thanks Rocky, perhaps you did bring the wine of the night, lol (6859 views) | |
| Tasted by lovewine123 on 3/23/2018 & rated 98 points: Master piece. Complex, full, soft, and long. There is even some green apple taste jumped out of mid palate. A very sophisticated and tireless fine wine. A left bank at its very best. (6168 views) | |
| Tasted by k H i L o on 3/18/2018 & rated 96 points: Un ascenseur qui vous élève au gré des effluves enivrants d'émotion et de plaisir. (6030 views) | |
| Tasted by valedeniro on 3/18/2018 & rated 95 points: Classic old school Bordeaux.Profound nose with mature dark fruits,plum liqueur,autumn flavours,saddle leather and tobacco.Rich,sweet,complex and long on the palate.Tannins are completely integrated with perfect acidity and fruit balance.A fine drinking wine after 28 years,but does not leave you speechless. (8807 views) | |
| Tasted by europat55 on 3/11/2018 & rated 97 points: Wow, just wow!! Nose: A/A+ Palate: A/A+ My #1, Group's #1 (39 pts) Tasted blind. (5856 views) | |
| Tasted by Bordeaux_Jon on 3/11/2018 & rated 100 points: The 1990 Montrose is the Kim Kardashian of old Bordeaux. So voluptuous and ostentatious, you can’t help but admire her. Served blind and guessed correctly. Ranked first in a double blind tasting of 93+ point CellarTracker scoring Bordeaux from 1982/1985/1989/1990. The groups clear favourite, this wine is the pinnacle of funky Bordeaux and it consistently delivers. The nose is a beguiling melange of oak, herb, menthol, cigar, earth, damp leaves, and of course Brett that screams 1st Growth Quality. The palate is intense, iron fist in velvet glove class, with cigar, over-ripe fruit, earth, umami, and of course funk that no other wine in any tasting can compete with. Parker called this so bad, and all the credit to him! (6319 views) | |
| Tasted by Bordeaux_Jon on 3/1/2018 & rated 100 points: Served double blind from Coravin and my wife called it Montrose - that’s why I married her! Beside a tasting of 12 vintages of Pontet Canet include the 100 point 2009 and 2010, and beside a 1988 Mouton which was Excellent, this wine was in its own class on top. From the first sniff, everyone agreed it was something special but it got even better. A different bottle that the Mar 11 tasting note from a different cellar but incredibly consistent notes. I took the rest of the bottle in to my startup the following week to share with them “the greatest wine I’ve ever had” because everyone should try a sip of this! (6213 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 2/2/2018: courtesy of which funky homo sapien? oh sorry, same patriarch as before. onward march... nose - of true funk. even the decantation ahead of time couldn't subdue this whiff bomb - handed to us almost apologetically by the wine staff. wet hay , coffee, pungent; off putting to some mouth - powerful fruit is the first impression, which is surprising daresay alarming given the nose. bold dark fruit spectrum with a big fat pickle sitting in the mickle. very very peculiar. long finish. Bigtime Brett. (6168 views) | |
| Tasted by mye on 1/21/2018: Birth Year - Themed wine dinner: Decanted 3 hours before consumption, followed for 3 more. Shows the intensity and power of the vintage and the wine. Wow!. Still tightly coiled after 3 hours...amazing depth of fruit, and secondary earthy notes. But this thing can last for EVER. Not our favorite for this night but i can see the epic future. Hold.. 5 years minimum. (6559 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 1/19/2018 & rated 100 points: Tasted at dinner with 1990 Chateau Margaux, just as perfect, which was a bit softer and more elegant, showing the merlot component. This wine is at its peak, and it's perfect! Still very deep garnet and completely opaque. The nose is immediately very pronounced with deep cassis and blackberry notes mixed with French oak, quite complex. The fruit is definitely still there, no fading, stayed powerful a few hours later. Big dark fruit flavors but perfect balance, not heavy or too hot. Nice lingering aftertaste. Just a perfect wine from an excellent year. It should last for some years. Ric (6394 views) | |
| Tasted by Francophile1 on 12/1/2017 & rated 97 points: I’ve been lucky enough to have this vintage of Montrose at least 10-12 times before. It still remains one of my top 10 wines of all time. While there has been some bottle variation at times, it is so consistently great. This tasting was no different. The only thing that would have helped is if it had been decanted for longer. By the end of the night, it was every bit as good as I remember it. Decant for at least 1 hour before consuming. (7271 views) | |
| Tasted by NaperWino on 11/17/2017 & rated 98 points: Fantastically beautiful (7060 views) | |
| Tasted by tcarter on 11/16/2017 & rated 97 points: from magnum (6655 views) | |
| Tasted by cct on 11/13/2017 & rated 94 points: A mildly bretty version Dense and savory, with St Estephe dirt, tobacco, dark fruits on the dark side of cassis, and a little stony fruit. There is a little band- aid brett, but not overwhelming. Structured, dense and imposing, and with excellent depth. I would love to get a non brett affected bottle, as the underlying wine is impressive and seems to have a great combination of structure, earth and fruit. I bet it would be fantastic. Still, this was delicious and serious wine. (6555 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgnick on 11/5/2017 & rated 96 points: Decanted for 3 hours before serving. Nose has truffle, cassis, leather, dark fruit, graphite and sweet cedar. Palate is very tannic at this stage, yet incredibly powerful and young. The aftertaste is very long and mouth-coating. The wine is 10 years from its ideal drinking window and it can easily age another 30-40 more years to develop more layers and nuance. A blockbuster legend. Although I always like the 90 lynch bages, this is another level. 98+ point when its fully mature. (7333 views) | |
| Tasted by Billigan on 10/19/2017 & rated 99 points: An absolute colossus, and one of my favorite Bordeaux of all time. Hard to truly capture the complexity of the nose, it's so kaleidoscopic. All the traditional BDX aromas are there: cedar, graphite, cassis, leather, etc., but there's a whole other dimension, with coal dust, violets, pen ink, warm stone, and mocha. Ample ripe black fruit (like dark cherry) on the palate, but so much minerality and crackling, spicy energy too, especially on the long finish. My first time with this legend, and it deserves all the plaudits it's rightly received. (6727 views) | |
| Tasted by JulianSkeels on 10/18/2017 & rated 96 points: Not sure this bottle was correct, but drunk alongside the 1989 (which also wasn't a good bottle) it re-enforced my 1989 preference. There is much more structure and freshness in the 1989 and for my palate it is improving every year whilst the 1990 has plateaued... albeit at a very high level! (6381 views) | |
| Tasted by RayOB on 9/22/2017 & rated 96 points: Incredibly powerful and young. Rich complex nose full of dark fruit, mushrooms, funk, leather and spice. (6444 views) | |
| Tasted by Francophile1 on 9/9/2017 & rated 97 points: George's 60th Birthday: Hands down, this was WOTN. I nailed it blind the minute I put my nose in the glass. Every bit as good as prior tastings. This is a show stopper. You just cannot get enough of the sheer power in the glass, wild game funk, and length of finish. In my opinion, this wine defines the 1990 Bordeaux vintage and continues to be listed on my top 10 list of favorite wines of all time. While it is not the most noble of wines, when you have this in your glass, who cares about nobility. (7532 views) | |
| Tasted by lepetitchateau on 9/9/2017 & rated 93 points: From opening this bottle, it was clear this was beautiful but slightly thin on the nose. The palate is very pleasing but a bit simple - this observation did not change from the start to two hours after opening, despite some improvement. Other tasters liked it a bit more than I did - scores of 94 and 95. (6466 views) | |
| Tasted by kr522 on 8/27/2017 & rated 96 points: No real tasting notes, I had this at dinner out and remember the most striking part being how well refined it is. Not roasted, nor overtly black, nor heavy, but balanced with a lot of energy. (6467 views) | |
| Tasted by CamWheeler on 8/20/2017 & rated 93 points: 1967 Dinner with FV and Friends: Tobacco lead, capsicum, ash and cherry with tea leave and ash - a nice mix of herbs and earthy notes. Great balance, really nicely concentrated fruit and plenty of savoury kick to it. This bottle felt like it was near to its peak but I'm sure there are others out there that look more primary. (6655 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 8/13/2017 & rated 95 points: Decanted 4 hours. Improved a bit more over the following hour, but this bottle needed more time. Nose was nice but a bit shy just like the palate. (6268 views) | |
| Tasted by thebonnydooner on 7/19/2017 & rated 95 points: Occasion of my 50th. Seemed like the appropriate time to uncork this beauty. Did not disappoint. Dark in colour, with warm brink red and brown tinged rim. Intense on the nose, dark fruits, slightly smokey, with meaty hints, currants. Medium bodied and very dry, but soft and smooht with blackcurrant and berry fruit. Long complex finish. Maybe not "blow your socks off", but a really outstanding, balanced wine. (5112 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 6/17/2017 & rated 95 points: Christie's Wine Dinner: A Journey Through the Vinkällare of Staffan Hansson (RPM Steak - Chicago IL): Open 5+ hours before serving. Black plum with cigarbox and slightly sweet licorice and allspice notes. Meaty and incredibly powerful. Kept getting better for the hour+ in glass. So much better than my last bottle tasted earlier this year. (8569 views) | |
| Tasted by Blake Brown on 6/11/2017 flawed bottle: corked (5174 views) | |
| Tasted by DrZett on 5/25/2017 & rated 95 points: Great 1982 vs 1990 Vintage Tasting (Rare-Bordeaux-Weine, Wachtberg (Germany)): Still very young although nice integrated tannins and beginning beautiful aging notes. A lot of power left. Beautiful red and black berries. Long finish. (5806 views) | |
| Tasted by DrinkBordeaux on 4/16/2017 & rated 99 points: Probably the best bottle of 1990 Montrose that I can recall. This bottle showed off what I would call deliciously sweet barnyard, marrying well with the sweet cassis, fresh cedar, and cigar tobacco. It was hard to find a fault with this wine, as I savored every sip. (8190 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 4/15/2017 & rated 90 points: Much simpler than the previous bottle, this one seemed younger but less deep. The plummy fruit is attractive enough yet the bouquet is modest as is the finish. A perfectly sound and nice drink but far from what '90 Montrose should be. (8064 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 4/15/2017 & rated 100 points: From a bottle never moved from the cellars of Chateau Montrose, this was mind blowing! Not off aromatics or brett here. Powerful, full bodied, deep, concentrated and intense, the fruit was pure, earthy and spicy. The texture was like velvet, stained with wet earth, leaving you with a finish that stuck around for close to 60 seconds. I've had this wine a lot, but I've never experienced a bottle this good before. It's in a good place to open now, but there is no rush, you could easily wait another 20 years or longer without fail. (10101 views) | |
| Tasted by Javachip on 4/1/2017 & rated 94 points: Bucket List 3.0 (Sbicca Restaurant, Del Mar, California): Decanted. Clear dark garnet color. Magnificent bouquet of mixed black and red fruit, licorice, fennel, hints of old leather, cigar humidor, and flowers. Similar on the palate, full body, seamless, classic balance, long finish. Perhaps some palate fatigue was setting in at this point in the evening. I was very impressed, but not quite as wowed as my colleagues, who would score this wine closer to Parker's rating than mine. Group's FIRST PLACE in this flight. Thanks ShaneT! (8351 views) | |
| Tasted by kenv on 3/23/2017 & rated 96 points: WCC Saint Estephe Blind Tasting (Provence Restaurant, Albany, NY): Rich, complex, great structure. Stunningly long finish. Serious wow factor. Best wine so far. [Eventually my 3rd WOTN.] (7344 views) | |
| Tasted by ledwards on 3/20/2017 & rated 98 points: Outstanding balance and length. Everything proportional. Seems to have a very long drinking window. (6596 views) | |
| Tasted by Collector1855 on 3/8/2017 & rated 100 points: Council meeting of the Commanderie de Bordeaux. Had this bottle many times, always scores in the high 90ies. Today it it was the best bottle ever, late purchase ex Chateau, a perfect Medoc. Cool fruit with a great minty, pine and medicinal touch. Fab! BTW, if you think Chateau Latour is unaffordable buy the pairs 1989/90 and 2009/10 Montrose and you have a wine that is at the same level and has a very similar aromatic profile. (9398 views) | |
| Tasted by dream on 2/24/2017 & rated 97 points: Simply gorgeous now. Very full and almost Pomerol-like to me as it's sweet and opulent but totally left-bank in its intensity and refinement. Balanced and delicious with sweet flavors of tobacco, dark fruits and exotic spices. Very very complex on the finish. A brilliant wine! (6415 views) | |
| Tasted by Alex G. on 2/24/2017: Served blind, mature with moderate tannins, still plentiful fruit mostly plum. This goes down quickly. In a good place for current drinking, surely will retain fruit for many years. (6614 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 2/24/2017: A 40th Birthday Celebration, Dinner Edition (Atlas Bistro - Scottsdale AZ): Certainly tasty and enjoyable but substantially more bretty than the (dozen+?) better bottles I've had over the years. Others thought it more correctly representative, but I have to disagree. (7140 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 2/23/2017 & rated 95 points: Ripe nose with dark cherry and blackberry on the soft and velvety palate. 2.5 hour decant. Fully resolved tannins on this bottle. 95+ (5722 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 2/23/2017 & rated 96 points: An epic vertical of Chateau Montrose (Restaurant Daniel): One of the wines of the night. Great fruit. Raspberry rather than blackberry notes. Soft and voluptuous. Hard to put this down. Drinking at peak now. Montrose vertical 1895-2000 (6579 views) | |
| Tasted by DrinkBordeaux on 2/10/2017 & rated 98 points: This is consistently an incredible wine. It just always seems to improve significantly in the glass. There is so much complexity, with ripe black currant, blackberry, cedar, smoke, herbs, and cigar box. Complete and perfectly balanced on the palate. Everything just falls into place when you drink this. And the long, lingering finish is perhaps the best part of this wine. (6241 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 2/3/2017 & rated 95 points: Dark flower petals, red plum, light tar, and a rose petal finish. Quite a young and clean bottle. 95+ (5361 views) | |
| Tasted by Stefanos T. on 1/29/2017 & rated 97 points: Excellent wine. It was overshadowed slightly though by the sexier Mouton 1989. Despite the reviews... Ink, cedar, pencil shavings, velvety texture. A powerful and lean wine with some austerity that on its own can be very pleasing but having the temptress Mouton 1989 beside it, it somehow seemed to lack something... Has not yet reached its peak, I think it will only get better within the next ten years and stay there for another ten. (6382 views) | |
| Tasted by Bob H on 1/28/2017: Bought on release, and opened to check the wine prior to dinner tonight; cork was in good shape, and the fill was base neck. Great nose here (and at least on the outset, I'm not getting any of that excessive brett/"horsiness" that can sometimes afflict this wine). Ferrous notes and blood - that may not sound like a great combo, but I'm liking this nose. Black & red fruits (blackberry most prominent), nice acidity, great length on the finish - with the caveat for a wine known for bottle variation, unless this takes a serious "detour" between now and dinner, this is a bottle that looks like it's in great shape. (6297 views) | |
| Tasted by Keith Levenberg on 1/24/2017 & rated 99 points: Highlight of the vertical. First impression from the scent (transcribed directly from sloppy notes): "Mmmmm." Then you take a sip and it's just nice mature wine for about a second and a half and then WHAM comes this crazy wave of exotic flavors - carob; singed campfire wood; grippy, sapid fruit. Made the mistake of checking for wine-searcher listings midway through the glass and apparently it was a Parker 100, sooooo... but I can't really argue. (5882 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 1/24/2017 & rated 98 points: Chateau Montrose with Mr. Herve Berland (Ripple Restaurant in DC): Fully mature complex nose displaying cassis, a hint of decadent red fruit, plum, a hint of green, caramel, forest floor, dark milk chocolate, cedar and earth. Beautiful harmonious palate, decadent red fruit and milk chocolate driven palate impression, warm and round yet silky and polished, nicely integrated tannins and a long sweet finish. The bottle served at Pano’s table seems more youthful but I prefer our bottle as it feels more complete and enjoyable. It is always fascinating to compare the fresh and precise 89 and simply hedonistic 90. Unfortunately, the 90 Montrose can be terribly inconsistent often with strong brett. However the 90 is the clear winner today. Drinking magnificently. (8118 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 1/21/2017 & rated 96 points: Decanted 4 hours. (5950 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 1/13/2017 & rated 93 points: Not a great experience with this wine. Fruit dominated bottle, largely one-dimensional. Still a good wine, but not what I have come to expect from '90 Montrose. Another recent bottle with a very fruit forward complexion. Even more puzzling since owned since release and properly stored. (5992 views) | |
| Tasted by Old Vino on 12/21/2016 & rated 96 points: delicious stuff already in prime drinking window this will likely go on for 2 more decades (5538 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 12/10/2016 & rated 94 points: It's fabulous and it's perfectly clean, no Brett whatsoever in this bottle. From memory it's a much bigger wine than than '89, although I'd have to have them together to be sure. The color seemed surprisingly advanced when first opened since there was some brown at the rim. Big bouquet of ripe dark plum, black cherry and oak, very attractive. Deep and full with good acidity. At first the tannins seemed a bit coarse but they smoothed out with air. What's missing is any distinctive character to tell me it's Montrose or St. Estephe; perhaps this will come in time. Lovely, stylish wine - but not 100 points. (6795 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 12/2/2016 & rated 96 points: Bordeaux: Second wines in great vintages. (Valuas): Beautiful and mature bouquet with red and dark forest fruits, beautiful oak, some earth and forest floor. On the palate luxurious oak, dark and red berries, good acidity and tannin with still some bite and even a bit green. This wine is not tired yet. (7712 views) | |
| Tasted by GlöckliWein on 11/25/2016 & rated 100 points: Einfach GRANDIOS !° Immer wieder: der beste WEIN jeder Blindverkostung Schon vor Jahren bei einer BLINDVERSKOSTUNG: Horizontalen von 20 verschiedenen Großen 1990er Bordeaux´s im Glas gehabt: DAS war die Granate - im Sinne von alter Bordeaux Schule: Subtil, frisch, süß, fruchtig ... langer Abgang überhaupt nicht aufdringlich fein verwoben mit allen Zutaten von feinstem MARGAUX ... der Blumenwiese an Aromatik unter der Streuobstwiese ... Ein Gedicht - poetisch: Geruch: beerig, Cassis, brombeerig, Waldhain, Unterholz, trüffelig leicht moderig, "kompostig" im positiven Sinne Holzschlag Duft wie Im Walde ... Geschmack: Anfangs: eher wie der 1991er etwas astringierend frech frisch, nicht so zugänglich, kurzangebunden ... dann: bereits nach 20 Minuten - kräftig beerig, Anklang von Grenadine, Cassis, Apfel, Brombeere schwarze Trüffel, feine Vanille Gipferl, zartbitter Süß, Hauch von Lakritze, die Absolute Urtinktur und mit 2 - 3 Stunden immer üppiger offensiver .. da sollte man am besten eine MAGNUM im Keller haben (7271 views) | |
| Tasted by DrinkBordeaux on 11/8/2016 & rated 99 points: This edged out the 82 Pichon for wine of the night. Obviously this wine is much younger, and hasn't developed all of its tertiary elements. It was actually a solid performer on opening, but it put on weight in the glass. With the ripe cassis and blackberry, there was nice forest floor, cedar, smoke, herbs, cigar tobacco, and menthol. Another wine that was so complete on the palate, with a powerfully elegant character. Silly tannins that should soften nicely with time. Ultra-long finish with a lovely fresh acidity. (7116 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 11/4/2016: Nose - wet hay, vegetal Mouth - complex, char, cornucopia of fruit, hint of celery. Tasted next to a bunch of cult cabs and it was a bit like comparing cucumbers to watermelons. (7346 views) | |
| Tasted by KenK on 11/3/2016 & rated 97 points: Jimmy John 100 point Magnum Event This was a massive wine with tremendous sense of density and fruit purity. Powerful rich earthy aroma of black berries and some bretty notes. Initially the wild animal aromas had me a bit concerned, but upon tasting these worries melted away. Ripe sweet and concentrated black fruits dominated, yet had wonderful balance and smooth finish. A big boy wine that is packed with fruit and offers up a multi layered experience. A real WOW wine in a great place for those who like fruit. (6534 views) | |
| Tasted by rocknroller on 10/20/2016 & rated 98 points: Jim's Big 6-0 Bash with Wine of Particular Significance (Jim and Michelene's Place, St. Paul, MN): With the fist bottle being corked, our gracious host and birthday boy opened another bottle which proved to be everything we had hoped for. PNP, drank 1 glass over an hour plus. Wow, holy s&#*, this was just so sexy. One of those noses that is so explosive and so complexly intoxicating that you can't put it down. Incredible perfume of fresh roses, dried herbs, saddle leather, cassis, raspberries, damp earth. The palate is intense and so nicely layered, full bodied and not heavy at all. It glides across the tongue with silken grace. The fruit is amazing for its purity and depth, very bright, earthy, fresh cut herbs, velvety tannins and a long penetrating finish. Wow, spectacular. 98+pts. WOTN. (7521 views) | |
| Tasted by rocknroller on 10/20/2016 flawed bottle: Jim's Big 6-0 Bash with Wine of Particular Significance (Jim and Michelene's Place, St. Paul, MN): Seriously corked. The bottle had been opened the night before and the cork taint was intense and textbook. Bummer. (6939 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 9/24/2016 & rated 97 points: An absolutely gorgeous wine. This wine has everything I love in the 1990 Bordeaux vintage: ripe exuberant fruit, a full body, a stunning nose, long length, and a silky smooth mouthfeel without a single hard edge. The Montrose is especially viscous and concentrated. The wine is drinking perfectly now but will probably last at least another 5 years. (6909 views) | |
| Tasted by Collector1855 on 9/16/2016 & rated 98 points: 66x Parker 100-Pointers from Bordeaux 1947-2010 tasted blind (Switzerland): Tasted blind. Dark garnet, darkest of this flight. Expressive nose of dark fruit, oak, leather, herbs and barnyard, clearly more masculine than the Margaux 1990 next to it. Very complete mid palate, full bodied but fresh with good structure. Long and aromatic finish. I am giving 98, the group liked it a little less though. Again here, Kudos to Robert Parker for awarding this wine 100 points back then and by doing so recognizing that Montrose can shoot the lights out if the vintage is right. BTW, if you like back vintages of this cru, try the 1989 Montrose, which is equally impressive and quite a bit cheaper. Group score: 17.66, group rank: 36/64 (20731 views) | |
| Tasted by Thejaaysog on 6/27/2016 & rated 100 points: Staggering, wonderfully layered and complex. Perfect, just perfect. (9112 views) | |
| Tasted by FamilyLarsson on 6/21/2016 & rated 99 points: Detta är verkligen ett helt magiskt Bordeauxvin!!! Det har verkligen allt man vill ha av ett toppvin från Bordeaux med mörk, tätt koncentration med mogen frukt, läder, svampskog, cigarrlåda, stall, choklad, blyerts. Detta skulle man kunna sitta och bara dofta på i evigheter. Smaken är väldigt rund och koncentrerad med söt frukt. Väldigt komplext och fylligt med helt perfekt balans och en eftersmak som fortsätter i evigheter. Ett stort vin!!! (7228 views) | |
| Tasted by t-sama on 6/20/2016: Decanted 3+ hours. Amazing wine. Still a baby. Purchased as a future and stored in cellar since release. We'll wait another 10 years to try the next bottle. Score reserved - not sure we are expert enough to rate it! There were some funky (brett) flavors that kept it from perfection. (8056 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 6/12/2016 & rated 100 points: This wine is at its peak, and it's perfect! Still very deep garnet and completely opaque. The nose is immediately very pronounced with deep cassis and blackberry notes mixed with French oak, quite complex. The fruit is definitely still there, no fading, stayed powerful a few hours later. Big dark fruit flavors but perfect balance, not heavy or too hot. Nice lingering aftertaste. Just a perfect wine from an excellent year. It should last for some years. Ric (8213 views) | |
| Tasted by KenPlace on 5/30/2016 & rated 97 points: A wow wine. A notch below last bottle (which was perfection). (7910 views) | |
| Tasted by King Julien on 5/29/2016 & rated 96 points: Decanted 3 hours, very nice on both nose and palette over the next 2 hours, could possibly benefit from more cellar time. (7348 views) | |
| Tasted by Francophile1 on 5/28/2016 & rated 93 points: Memorial Day Mondo Event - Burghounds & Bordelais: I love it when the same wine shows up twice in the same blind tasting. It makes for an interesting intellectual tasting experience. This bottle was not stored as well as the prior bottle. The core of fruit was a bit faded and it was showing many more secondary characteristics of tobacco and leather. It was still excellent, but not a perfect example of this wine. (6933 views) | |
| Tasted by Francophile1 on 5/28/2016 & rated 97 points: Memorial Day Mondo Event - Burghounds & Bordelais: '90 Montrose consistently places in my top 10 of all-time wines. I am fortunate to have had this wine at least a dozen times and it continues to impress. At this point my favorite Bordeaux vintage of all time is 1990 because it blends opulence with terroir. Nothing like exotic Bordeaux varietal fruit blending perfectly with flavors of the earth. This particular bottle of '90 Montrose was a text book example of what this wine can be... black (as pitch) fruit mixed with truffles, wild game, beef blood / iron, and a little bit of funk that makes the nose on this wine fantastic. The finish goes on for over a minute. For the Bordeaux purists out there, the wine might be a little "dirty" for your liking, but I love it. The best one night stand wine you can buy! (6980 views) | |
| Tasted by Rezy13 on 5/27/2016 & rated 94 points: Burg & Bordeaux $100+ (Duluth, GA): Cloudy, showing age; sweet fruit, sweat, leather, currants, green pepper, more exaggerated than previous bottle; solid delicious, we have been spoiled to have 2 bottle tonight; a bit fuzzy at this point in the evening but the differences were clear when comparing these 2 '90 Montroses. (6243 views) | |
| Tasted by Rezy13 on 5/27/2016 & rated 96 points: Burg & Bordeaux $100+ (Duluth, GA): Crimson core with brick rim; chocolate, earth, clay, Cuban cigar, tobacco, clean, aged but very fresh; power but resolved tannin, prune, cedar; cleanest example of this wine for me, stunning but can't admit to a perfect wine. (6205 views) | |
| Tasted by KenK on 5/21/2016 & rated 88 points: Brett dominated. You could drink it pretty as nice underlying material, but earthy black shoe polish was unavoidably dominating. (6781 views) | |
| Tasted by Trent Walker on 5/21/2016 & rated 94 points: Perhaps Montrose is just not my style. I liken it to brutalist architecture. Just big, structured, with an expectable note. There's no little inlays, or pretty mounding to amuse the eye. It's a 500 foot concrete pillar in the sky. Big, structured, but with fruit. I think the fruit versus structure will be a race to the finish. The nose is very pleasant with some dry herbs but mainly just big, typical Bordeaux smell. I honestly would t touch this for five more years, see where it goes. Not in my top fifty all time bordeauxs at all. (6460 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 5/18/2016 & rated 94 points: Came off as quite plumy and grapey on this occasion. A lot of licorice on the nose along with the ripe fruit, complemented by light spice and coal dust. Ripe blackberry and black plum on the palate. Good structure, good acid, but lacking notable earthiness and secondary depth. Underwhelming finish on this bottle. But good structure clearly, this bottle just needed another ten years. 94+ (6335 views) | |
| Tasted by Barry Rothof on 5/17/2016: Elegant black fruit, spices and cacao on the nose. Wow! mouth filling with rich dark fruit, some leather, forest floor and tobacco. Pure, sweet, seductive and gorgeous, beautifully balanced and very long. This bottle was perfect now and will last for years. Stunning BDX!!! (6495 views) | |
| Tasted by Bacchus&Ceres on 5/16/2016 & rated 95 points: A heady heavy weight. Cigar box, fire pit, tar. Finish was dessicating and astringent. Big boy. Perfect with juicy red meat. (5884 views) | |
| Tasted by winesnout on 4/2/2016 & rated 98 points: At age 26, still a young wine. Big, concentrated and elegant at the same time. Loads of dark fruit, some leather, cedar and tobacco. Beautifully balanced. Excellent today, will continue to age beautifully. (7279 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 3/26/2016 & rated 98 points: consistently stunning. superb after 30mins in decanter. (7322 views) | |
| Tasted by WineAggregate on 2/20/2016 & rated 99 points: This bottle was as close to perfect as any I've ever had the pleasure of tasting, though I can't rate it 100 if only on principle. Easily the WOTN, it has the complete package. Decanted 4 hours, cork perfect and wet about 1/4 up the side. Deep red color, wonderful rich perfumed nose of plum, spice, and a perfect dose of brett; on the palate it has everything: mouth coating, rich fruit and soft tannins, balanced with a bit of forest floor, saddle leather and dried meat. Soft herbs, cherry, plum, so much going on that it defies classification. Some bordos lately have been a bit hollow on the mid-palate for me, but this has everything going strong from the initial attack to the long, long finish. Average from 5 tasters: 97.6 (8098 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 2/6/2016 & rated 98 points: With 1990 Montrose, similar to Jekyll and Hyde, you never know who is going to show up as some bottles are completely marred by brett. Fortunately, this was a fresh, clean bottle and it was singing. Still young, but past the primary stage, the wine is big, powerful, concentrated, yet regal in its bearing. The fruit is fresh, earthy and vibrant, and the finish sticks with you for close to 50 seconds. 2 hours of air helped, but 10 more years of age will help even more. (8078 views) | |
| Tasted by Dave Canada on 2/6/2016 & rated 97 points: Yes!!!!!.....cedar, leather, earth, forrest floor, cassis, black currant, spice. Palate is so svelte.......this is the business. Pure sweet, dark, spicey fruit augmented with earth, cedar, pipe tobacco, forest floor, smoke, pencil lead, graphite, and plum. Finish is long, layered and elegant. Awesome wine!!!! Reference point bordeaux (8006 views) | |
| Tasted by Wine Canuck on 2/6/2016 & rated 98 points: Chris' Housewarming (Hamilton, ON): Stunning Bordeaux. Best I've had in a long time and possibly the best Montrose ever? The nose is wildly exotic with perfectly ripe dark fruit. The complexity is seamless and perfect. The nose is of blackberry, cassis, slight bandaid, very slightly herbal, mixed baking spices, smoked meat, leather, pipe tobacco, sweet cedar, spice box (it goes on and on). The palate is round, sleamless, and velvity. The long finish is dark, sweet, complex, and long. (8914 views) | |
| Tasted by nywine68 on 1/31/2016 & rated 97 points: 89 vs 90 tasting. Beautiful wine. Still incredibly youthful with unbelievable depth of dark fruit flavors. Preferred this over the 89 tonight. (7267 views) | |
| Tasted by Nanda on 1/17/2016 & rated 100 points: 1989/1990 Bordeaux Dinner (Feast & Imbibe - Evanston, IL): Perfection! Dark ruby in the glass. My first note upon smelling the wine ... "Holy fu**ing shit!" The aromatics literally explode from the glass with a combination of power/grace and breadth/depth that blew me away. Aromas were varied and deep including bright fruit, earth/funk tones, mineral, tobacco, cigar box and bell pepper. In the mouth this wine packs power and richness with amazing levels of elegance. Layers of flavor and texture. Vibrant acids and lively acidity. And a long, lingering and penetrating finish. Perfection in a glass. (7979 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 1/17/2016 & rated 95 points: 1989/1990 Bordeaux Dinner (Feast & Imbibe - Evanston IL): Open, decanted 2 hours before serving. Great concentration with dense black fruit, spice and espresso. A little bit more bretty than I'd prefer, but others didn't mind, and many thought it WOTN, but I thought it 3rd or 4th best. (8246 views) | |
| Tasted by fcxj on 1/12/2016 & rated 98 points: Dinner with Herve Berland. Pristine bottle direct from chateau, which was truly wonderful. Classic old Bordeaux nose, resolved tannins, great concentration as expected and long. Special. (7554 views) | |
| Tasted by Raage on 1/11/2016 & rated 94 points: Impressionnant de force et de vigueur, ce Montrose m'a bluffé (d'autant qu'il n'était pas prévu ce soir là). Au nez, il exhalait des arômes précis, intenses et puissants de poivron rôti, de sous bois, de cedre et de terre. Quel nez enivrant, quelle élégance bordelaise! En même temps, on sent une pointe d'austérité, ou de rigueur, voire des arômes sombres et végétaux qui lui donnent de la tenue, de la prestance (un rien aristocratique?). Mais les tanins sont polis, la matière est noble, ample et fraîche. Très Bordelais dans l'élégance, très classieux et raffiné, bien que "viril", il promet encore une belle longévité (2025/2030?) (6842 views) | |
| Tasted by kr522 on 1/10/2016 & rated 98 points: Just a great wine, it has shed a little power and on this night showed a good deal of balance, which I think is a welcome development and maybe a little surprising because I've never detected that in the past. The aromatics are off he charts...coffee, boysenberry, and earth, maybe a hint of mushroom explode from the glass. It's intoxicating. And it's a succulent, savory full bodied mouthful too. Gone is the baby fat and what's present is a beautifully formed wine in its prime. I had it alongside the Beausejour which is more powerful but without balance of the Montrose. This time I slightly preferred the Montrose (6940 views) | |
| Tasted by d'Auvenay on 1/6/2016 & rated 96 points: Tried a few times the past 10 yr with reasonably consistend results. Wine opened in 2+ hrs and lasted 5+ hrs. Great structure and length. Still many years to go. (6090 views) | |
| Tasted by the player on 1/4/2016 & rated 98 points: At the risk of emulating my fellow drinkers at Cellar Tracker, I have to rate this wine a 98. I had tried it two years ago and rated it 100 points and qualified it as one of the best 1990s I have tasted. The latter remains true. Bottle was opened and left to breathe about two hours before being decanted then drank over three hours. Deep ruby red color, hardly any signs of aging. Nose of leather, graphite, baked black fruits, mushrooms and cassis beautifully and complexly reflected on the palate. Very well structured mid palate, nice lift and acidity to the wine, great and long finish and an excellent precision. Medium to full bodied this is a stunner. (6915 views) | |
| Tasted by LJT on 12/29/2015 & rated 98 points: As good as the raters said. Showed better than a 1989 Montrose, which was also wonderful. Strong bouquet; rich fruit; balanced tannins. Ready, but still young. (6788 views) | |
| Tasted by McKraftyWino on 12/19/2015 & rated 98 points: simply gorgeous! beautiful presentation, mouth feel, taste, and aftertaste splendid still a baby in the bottle after all these years (6857 views) | |
| Tasted by Aglenardi on 11/22/2015 & rated 98 points: Amazing wine drank alongside the heavyweight of the 1990 vintage (haut brion, margaux, dominus). Came second after the HB in my opinion. Explosive nose of floral bouquet, jam of berries with a hint of spiced paprika and smoked meat. Dense, jammy yet Smooth and silky on the palate with loooong finish (7692 views) | |
| Tasted by stealthman_1 on 11/21/2015 & rated 100 points: Opened and slow-oxed on the counter for two hours. Initial pour was saddle leather that quickly went to burnt rubber and iodine as if it had been bottled 18 months ago. Mouth coating, sublime texture with deep baked black fruits and all sorts of earth goodness. We were having a foi gras course with '03 LaTour Blanche, so we let this sit in glass for a bit. With another hour, served with lamb roast, broccoli and carrots in a butter and St. Agur sauce, it's tall, broad and yet still sexy elegant. This wine has changed a lot in the last 10 years, it isn't the brute it was, but it is still astoundingly proportioned for a mere 13% alcohol Bordeaux wonder. We found this to just sing tonight, I've no doubt I will still taste it tomorrow. It always amazes me to see other vintages of Montrose compared to the 1990. Tonight especially, but on every other occasion there is no comparison. As I drink the last teaspoon, I have to say, this bottle was 100 points. (7398 views) | |
| Tasted by Pacalet on 11/18/2015 & rated 93 points: Dark and brooding, dark ripe fruit with inky and earthy tones that may not please all. A pretty full bodied bordeaux that is drinking very well now and have the propensity to age for a very long time. (7350 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 11/9/2015 & rated 90 points: This occasionally perfect wine lacks consistency as some bottles are ruined by brett. Sadly, this bottle was quite bretty. It smelt like I was in a barn with Mr. Ed. I cold not finish the glass. Others raved about it. Clearly it was massive and intense, with incredible levels of concentration and richness, but the barnyard smell just took over the wine. (8677 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 11/7/2015: again courtesy of the patriarch, this was tried blinded next to the '89 montrose, and this time around I found it to be a fuller, richer wine, very funky as before, with superb power such that I would call it a very young wine at age 25. The '89 montrose was more monolithic. The '90 had an unreal complexity to it. Phew. In spite of prior palaver, I formally recant. 90 is better than the 89. (7150 views) | |
| Tasted by Bordeaux_Jon on 11/6/2015 & rated 100 points: The Super Platinum Tasting - Highest Rated 1982 - 1990 Left Bank Bordeaux (Platinum Tasting Group): Tasted single blind in a flight of 100 point Parker wines, all 1982-1990 Left Bank Bordeaux. Tonight, I proved to be a "cheap date", ranking this wine, which I brought, #1, which was the cheapest of this group of insane wines. Looking back, I have to admit this wine was not as complex as the others in the flight. However, the nose was just absolutely incredible. So aromatic, so sexy, so haunting, and so beautiful. Ever time I smelled it, I was just blown away. The hedonism just overtook the intellect. It was like that time you saw that women that just took your breath away. She could have been a high school drop out you couldn't even have a meaningful conversation with, but dear God, she looked stunning! The nose was dominated by smokey, sexy, oak, with a little bit of brett. I wrote sexy in my notes twice. It was wide open for business from the first whiff. So aromatic with fruit and cigar as well. The incredibility of this wine and the smokiness made me think Haut Brion 1989. The palate was so intensely flavoured and mouth-coating, with fruit and smoke, and excellent tannic grip. I score wines by giving "-" when I don't like the nose or palate, "0" when I feel neutral, and "+" when I like it. Sometimes, I will smell or taste a wine and give a "++". I gave this wine "++" 11 times! It was phenomenal!!!!! This was my third time having this wine. It had previously won a tasting of 1989/1990 Left Bank Bordeaux, and then won a tasting of the top wines from a year's worth of Platinum Tastings. This was clearly the best bottle and also had the least brett with was very present in a good way on the other two bottles. I have to say, Robert Parker called with wine correctly. It is off the charts! My #1, group's #4. (6589 views) | |
| Tasted by kenv on 11/5/2015 & rated 96 points: WCC Blind Tasting of Chateau Musar and Chateau Montrose (Salty's Pub & Bistro, Clifton Park, NY): [Double decanted for two hours the previous evening.] Sweet and nearly perfect to drink tonight. Such a gorgeous and seductive wine. Still young, but ready. Should drink well for 20 more years, but why wait? My #2 WOTN by a narrow margin. (7466 views) | |
| Tasted by BradE on 10/29/2015: Folks were raving about this bottle, but I thought it one of the weaker bottles of 90 I've tasted. Decent, but for me the provenance wasn't particularly good. (6876 views) | |
| Tasted by KenPlace on 10/11/2015 & rated 97 points: Wow! Concentration, power, smoothness. This bottle has it all. Gorgeaous bouquet. WOTN. (7086 views) | |
| Tasted by gondrik on 9/28/2015 & rated 97 points: Beautiful compelling fruit. Tanins were a bit harsh. Decanted for four hours; should have done six. (7479 views) | |
| Tasted by Collector1855 on 9/13/2015 & rated 96 points: During a tasting. Ex Chateau bottle. Decanted for 2h. Dark garnet. Expressive nose of dark fruit with a distinctive medicinal touch, some barnyard and mint. Tannins fully softened, full bodied with very good freshness still. An excellent Medoc at its peak but not 100pt on this showing. (7938 views) | |
| Tasted by pavel_p on 9/12/2015 & rated 94 points: Montrose dinner (Singapore): Had from two bottles. Medium garnet. Following the 2000, the first bottle was soft and musty, not sure if this came from the cork. 91 We asked for a second glass from a second bottle which was showing much fresher fruit but overall still a bit musty, leather and tobacco, black tea, some medicinal notes, tannins almost entirely resolved. A nice, mature Bordeaux but not great and these two bottles were not on First Growth level and poor QPR. 94. (8071 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 8/4/2015 & rated 100 points: This wine is at its peak, and it's perfect! Still very deep garnet and completely opaque. The nose is immediately very pronounced with deep cassis and blackberry notes mixed with French oak, quite complex. The fruit is definitely still there, no fading, stayed powerful a few hours later. Big dark fruit flavors but perfect balance, not heavy or too hot. Nice lingering aftertaste. Just a perfect wine from an excellent year. It should last for some years. Ric (8696 views) | |
| Tasted by Wine_lvr on 8/1/2015 & rated 95 points: Reinterpreted Paris Tasting 'Best Bottle Circle' Style (Emmen, Switzerland): Deep color. Nose shows coffee, strawberries, leather and Early Grey black tea. Nice sweetness, power and VERY long. Tannins are smooth as Cashmere. Surprisingly there was some dryness and maturity to this wine. This was a good but not a perfect bottle of Montrose 1990. (8158 views) | |
| Tasted by BradE on 7/22/2015: A clean bottle (relatively speaking), and this was very decent. (7738 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 7/21/2015 & rated 98 points: My seventh or eighth experience with this wine, all courtesy of R&D, and one of the best. Deep crimson color with only the slightest bit of bricking at the meniscus. An initial aroma of dried hay faded away leaving black currants, dried plum, dusty earth, dried leaves/forest floor. Nicely integrated showing a mix of red and dark fruit and earth, but has a slight austerity. At the half hour mark, a lovely herbal, dried mint note emerged, but this really began to open and strut its stuff at the one hour mark. Notes of florals, black fruit, dried herbs and forest floor. Earthy black fruit, tobacco, leather and dried herbs on the palate. A lovely match for the rack of lamb with plenty of life ahead. (7739 views) | |
| Tasted by thelostverse on 7/21/2015 & rated 94 points: Opened by R&D at Anvil for Allred's birthday. Typical Bordeaux nose, with a palate of dark fruits and florals. This was fine on its own, but with the lamb, it came alive and was beautiful. Mrs. TLV liked significantly more than I did. (7384 views) | |
| Tasted by dharrison93 on 7/3/2015 & rated 98 points: Drank with friends at a local restaurant after a brief decant. Fantastic juice! Dark ruby/garnet without a hint of sediment, this wine is all dark fruit, berries and a hint of mocha. plush in the mouth with a long, long finish. My tablemates scored it similarly and agreed further improvement through bottle age is unlikely. If a date, this was a 30 year old Latina beauty who pays the bill then takes you home and uses you for sex, much to your immense okeasure and total satisfaction. (7524 views) | |
| Tasted by tbabes on 7/2/2015 & rated 100 points: The fill was well into the neck; sound cork; opened about an hour before dinner, with no decant. Youthful purple core, turning towards garnet at the rim. Ethereal bouquet, offering up intoxicating scents of ripe dark fruits, lilly, white truffle and crushed stone; just incredible! Medium-bodied, with impressive depth of flavor; great precision and grip; heavenly texture, with a silky and velvety mouthfeel. Long and complex finish, with excellent focus. Truly a monumental wine! (7322 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 5/24/2015 & rated 96 points: Another outstanding bottle. This wine, while amazing, really is a beast and needs plenty of time. (8222 views) | |
| Tasted by MikeATL on 5/9/2015 & rated 97 points: Brisket, Bordeaux, and Rhones: Stunning, and the first great bottle of the 1990 I've had after a number of disappointments. It shows a little of the fresh, dry hay I always seem to find in the 1990, but not the overwhelming brett that is too common. The red-leaning fruit has toned down with age, revealing more nuance, and savory leather and earth have joined the mix. (8520 views) | |
| Tasted by LWI on 5/3/2015 & rated 99 points: 31 Vintages of Château Montrose: 1928-2010; 5/2/2015-5/3/2015: Big, clear and sweet dark berry fruit, even more structured than the ’89. Again, no brett. Explosive finish with kaleidoscopic tastes. Bright future – will get even better. One of my best bottles.. (9366 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 3/24/2015 & rated 97 points: great as usual but didn't quite hit the heights of some other bottles. grassy notes a little too overpowering. (8984 views) | |
| Tasted by William Kelley on 3/15/2015 & rated 96 points: The 1990 Montrose is a profound, monumental wine, bursting from the glass after a few hours in the decanter with glorious notes of sweet black fruit, leather, cigar ash and hot bricks. On the palate the wine is stunningly broad and deep, with beautiful, layered structure, fresh tangy acids and an endless finish. This is very similar to the superb 1989 Montrose, which I drink quite regularly, but a step up in intensity, volume and breadth—with none of the torrefied notes of some of the other top 1990s such as Haut Brion, La Mission, Lynch Bages etc. Yet while the 1990 Montrose is a massive wine, its balance is unerring and its sense of proportion perfect. Very, very fine, and entering an attractive phase as the wine's serious tannic structure melts away somewhat. (9735 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 2/11/2015 & rated 97 points: R&D sent a list of possible mags for dinner, and I deferred to Domino. After some back & forth discussion with R&D the three settled on this but didn't tell me what it was until it came time to open it. To be honest, I have always preferred the '89, but perhaps tonight would be different. From magnum, decanted shortly before it was served with dinner and followed over the course of a couple of hours. Lovely crimson color with an initial bouquet of tobacco, green/herbal qualities, black currants and barnyard with a scorched earth/burned straw overtone. Medium- to full-bodied with softened tannins and flavors of red fruit, sous bois, barnyard, spice and tobacco. The wine is balanced across the entire palate and lingers on the finish for well over a minute. Over time, floral qualities emerged- violets primarily- and the underlying earthiness stood out more as well. More black fruits than red, with amazing weight, balance and length on the palate and finish. Easily the finest example of this wine I have tasted, and the first time this has, for me, hinted at true greatness. 97-98 pts. (8694 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeffrey Silver on 2/8/2015 & rated 98 points: Wow. Yes simply WOW. This wine is so powerful. It needed 3-4hrs of decanting. I was a clear favorite among our diners. It smells like dark chocolate with cream carmel. The fruit is so big with strawberries, blueberry, and saddle leather. It will linger on for 90 or so min. It will live another 25yrs easily. I have more but want to pick many many more. (8197 views) | |
| Tasted by Rezy13 on 2/1/2015 & rated 95 points: Super Bowl 2015 (Roswell, GA): Dense chocolate core with garnet rim; earth, tart, currant, cherry, orange oil, tobacco, some Brett; fleshy, silky initially, luxurious, grainy tannin comes in later, strong mid-palate, funk, medicinal; very good but not a wine I could drink a ton of because of the lower acid; voted WOTN. (9440 views) | |
| Tasted by Francois Le Mouel on 1/24/2015 & rated 95 points: Looks 10 years older. Animal-like/barnyard, tobacco and spices on the nose. Very fragrant and very long. Beautiful wine. (8382 views) | |
| Tasted by rdsboca on 12/30/2014 & rated 96 points: From magnum: sexy, fleshy with well integrated tannins. Yummy red cherry fruit. Great finish. While this wine is drinking well now with air, it will last another 20 years. (8487 views) | |
| Tasted by tinybubbles on 12/21/2014 & rated 95 points: Coal dust, asphalt, blackberry, rotting leaves, and a hint of marigold on the nose. At moments, surprisingly bright given its dark nature. Flavors of ripe plum, tar, boysenberry, tobacco, and eventually black pepper provide plenty to chew on. Firm tannic presence still here but not at all offensive given the depth of flavors. An excellent but not exceptional experience, this was not one of the best bottles that I have had. (7934 views) | |
| Tasted by justburg on 12/19/2014 & rated 92 points: SS's birthday celebration at Garibaldi. Dark red, close to purple, really looking very young. Deep, rich and intense bouquet of currants, blackberries, tobacco, leather, and over time, this became like a signature Pauillac with cigar box, lots of tobacco, cedar, smoke and pencil lead! There was the sweat, animal notes over an extended period, but nothing unpleasant. There was lovely intensity of fruit on the palate, tannins were round and silky with great structure and complexity. Dark fruits, sweet berries, lots of leather and scorched earth. This was a very balanced wine. Not quite 100 points for me, but brilliant. (7916 views) | |
| Tasted by thomaskeil on 12/14/2014 & rated 93 points: Double decanted to take btl to friends' house for lamb shank dinner (approx 2 hrs of air). Showing brown on edges of core of deep violet red. Was emerging at serving and could have used more time. No Brett/horse on this bottle. My experience was very close to recent notes of others. Complex fruit, lasting secondary flavors, great structure despite resolving tannins. Good match with lamb. For me this lacked an emotive factor which could be partially the result of high expectations. Seems to be in a very good place right now. (7984 views) | |
| Tasted by svdheijden on 12/3/2014 & rated 97 points: Drank together with Montrose 1989 and Cos d'Estournel 1990. Shining as always right from the start. No funky barnyard and brett this time. Full bodied, complex, ripe, dense and concentrated. Very good balance. Huge tannins, but nicely integrated. Perfect balance between sweetness and acidity. Obviously approaching its peak, but it will probably stay there for ages. This is a faultless, utterly attractive, complete, majestic wine and performing every time its cork is pulled. Clearly beating the 1990 Cos, but now on par with its 1989 sibling. (8261 views) | |
| Tasted by jlgnml on 12/1/2014 & rated 100 points: KenK's BDay (Wildfire Chicago il): Perfect. Out of magnum, super powerful on the palate, great long term finish, very clean and bright color. (8657 views) | |
| Tasted by KenK on 12/1/2014 & rated 99 points: Birthday Dinner at Wildfire A real "wow" wine. Huge ripe black fruit dominated aromas with a hint of earthy appeal. Lush creamy ripe black cherry/blackberry dominate. Very fulled bodied with a rich velvety mouth coating texture. Long dense finish. Comes across much younger and merlot dominated as so silky and sexy. 99 points. Thanks KJ (8022 views) | |
| Tasted by mclanew on 11/30/2014 & rated 98 points: Spectacular, full bodied, opulent and majestic wine at its peak. Black fruits, flowers, leather and minerals. Terrific complexity and class. Long long finish. (7484 views) | |
| Tasted by eluebchow on 11/27/2014 & rated 97 points: Thanksgiving Wines (Chapel Hill, NC): A truly stellar wine; the nose is simply mesmerizing, with a melange of blackberries, plums, currants and earth; the palate is very silky, with concentrated red fruits underscored by well-integrated savory notes of roasted meat and tobacco; the finish just keeps sailing along, leaving you contemplating and yearning for the next sip; In its prime right now, but this will continue to be a special bottle for many more years (7935 views) | |
| Tasted by BernieMSY on 11/26/2014 & rated 95 points: Deep, dark and mysterious. Inky black, decent nose. Barnyard and leather nearly overwhelm the entire flavor profile. Ultimately, delicious. (7175 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 10/31/2014 & rated 99 points: It's always a crap shoot with this wine. There are bottles with such overwhelming notes of horse and barnyard, they are not fun to drink. And then, there are the clean bottles that let you know you are in Bordeaux at the top level. This bottle was clean. The intensity of the aromatics, the incredible weight, density and concentration, coupled with ripe, regal, soft tannins and a seamless finish are well worth the price of admission. Still young, but showing its stuff, this is a thrill to taste today and if well stored, your grand children can probably enjoy a bottle in 2090! (9892 views) | |
| Tasted by Capitolhack on 10/26/2014 & rated 95 points: Outstanding wine that has held up very well after 24 years. Cork was barely wet. Leather notes predominate at the nose, with light berry fruits and a leather finish. The sommelier said after tasting, "It tastes like I chewed a belt". (6316 views) | |
| Tasted by pablopilot on 10/22/2014 & rated 99 points: I give it a 99 because I don't believe in perfection. But it's pretty perfect, to me. The smokiness, the glycerine, the sweetness and power without a hint of being cloying or overbearing... It's a wow wine in every sense. (8059 views) | |
| Tasted by 3daywinereview.com on 10/11/2014 & rated 97 points: 1990 Bordeaux Tasting (Kevin's (Minneapolis)): Wine of the year candidate. Decanted 1.5 hours. Intense wine with pepper, red meat, earth, bright fruits and gravel. The palate offers a variety of mineral elements and super long finish. While this is still tannic the flavors are persistent and this should age 30 years. An unbelievable effort!!! (8650 views) | |
| Tasted by galewskj on 10/11/2014 & rated 97 points: Big Bordeaux VIII : 1990 (Kevin's house): Per the host, slow-O for 3 hrs and decanted for 75 minutes; drank 1+ glass over less than an hour, because it was that good. If you want to talk about being well-integrated, this is textbook. Very well-integrated, perfect balance, and I don't use that term lightly. There is perfect balance and elegance here. Fruit is still delicious. Big in the right ways, nimble in the right ways. My favorite from a strong lineup, and frankly it was a pleasant surprise. (8745 views) | |
| Tasted by rocknroller on 10/11/2014 & rated 98 points: Big Bordeaux VIII: 1990 Retrospective with Montrose, LMHB, PB, LP, and more (Rocknroller's (Kevin & Vicki's Place)): Very dark red-purple color with no bricking. Slow-O for 3 hrs and decanted for 75 minutes; drank 1+ glass over 3 hours. WOW, what a nose, incredibly powerful, focused and pure. The fruit is out of this word, a cornucopia of ripe black fruits, cassis, boysenberry, sweet mulberry, floral, leather, fresh tobacco, and a subtle earthiness that evolves gradually in the glass. The palate is a lush, sexy, hedonistic treasure trove of texture and opulent black fruit, pencil lead, tobacco, and minerals that is deeply earthy and slightly savory. The tannins are velvety and tangy and the finish is very, very long, 120s plus. This is a glass that is almost impossible to put down and it screams perfect balance. Seductive and intense, but oh so elegant and suave. This has a very long life ahead of it, and I NEED to revisit it down the road 5 years or so. My and group WOTN in a landslide with 9 of 10 first place votes. 97+ to 98 points. (9080 views) | |
| Tasted by europat55 on 10/10/2014 & rated 97 points: Platinum Tasting - Best of the Bests (Andre and Sabine's House, Mountain View, CA): Extraordinary nose, mushrooms, some brett (A/A+). Amesome palate (A/A+). My #1, Group's #1 (42 pts). Tasted Blind. What a wine!! Probably the best wine I ever had the chance to try! Wow!! (8368 views) | |
| Tasted by WineAggregate on 9/20/2014 & rated 97 points: This wine is close to perfect in balance and age, though it will last quite a while longer. Just the right touch of barnyard (brett) and cedar and balanced with great mature fruit of plums and dry cherry. Some hints of mint too in this sublime wine. (8001 views) | |
| Tasted by aquacongas on 8/19/2014 & rated 96 points: It was the last BX of a great Bx tasting with 28 bottles. I didn't write many notes, but still young, fruity,cedar, pencil, long aftertaste, great mineral backbone, potential for next 10 years at least 96-98 (8670 views) | |
| Tasted by Marc on 8/10/2014 & rated 93 points: Dinner in Normandale (Normandale, Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand): Very ripe and quite un-evolved (for its age). Visually the wine has only made slight concessions to its 24 years and the bouquet is opulent, slightly gamey and has a significant merlot component. Tasted right after the 1990 La Mission Haut Brion, this came across as rather new world and whilst impressive, ever so slightly monolithic at this stage. The intensity and length of the wine are not in question and I certainly hope that with further time in the bottle, this will achieve resolution. If this happens, I would want to score it higher, but for now 93+ points, based on hopeful potential. (8776 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 8/2/2014 & rated 95 points: 1990 Dinner at University Club (Chicago): Another outstanding bottle of this wine. I have had it from many sources and in many places and I am impressed with the consistency. In this context, this certainly was more burly compared to the Margaux and Haut Brion. (9073 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 8/1/2014: tasted blind Very funky, the funk in fact slightly overwhelms the fruit. Savory and nice. Coffee Finish. In contrast to the fundamental decrees of winedom, I'm not seeing this as anything close to a perfect wine. perhaps needs a 24hr decant to show better? (8158 views) | |
| Tasted by cardsandwine on 7/27/2014: Comparable to my previous experience with this wine. It had a compelling earthy bouquet with vibrant fruit. Rich and lush on the palate, it finished with considerable length and elegance. Continues to drink well and should for some time to come. (8088 views) | |
| Tasted by Goldstone on 7/6/2014 & rated 96 points: Sunday Dinner (The Library, Crown Wine Cellars, Hong Kong): Deep impenetrable crimson. Nose is lovely classic Bordeaux ...graphite, horse sweat, some high piano notes: the horse sweat is predominant... and lovely. Palate is absolutely gorgeous: light bodied but very complete ....just perfectly harmonious Bordeaux. Good resonance and reverberance for an extended time. A brilliant wine. To misquote the Rolling Stones, wild sweaty horses ... wouldn't drag me away. A league better than the 1990 Lynch Bages we drank last night. Fantastic. (7982 views) | |
| Tasted by MC on 5/11/2014: After 2-3 hours, similar to my last note, but this definitely needs at least 2 hours in the decanter before enjoying it. A- (9102 views) | |
| Tasted by traill on 5/5/2014: Fantastic (7210 views) | |
| Tasted by MC on 4/19/2014: Decanted 2.5 hours, this was in a great spot. Black cherries, this wine is ripe and lush, yet light on its feet and on the finish you can just barely notice the tannins. Should be around for a while, but easy and fun to drink now. Not a "perfect" Bordeaux for me but certainly a fun wine to drink and great with a meal. A-/A (8989 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 4/13/2014 & rated 94 points: 1990 ANYTHING Dinner (Our house): Very similar to my prior bottles, but this was overshadowed by the 90 Evangile. (9730 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 3/14/2014 & rated 99 points: 100 RP Points plus some extra's (@ Bottles): There is some bottle variation in this wine at this age, but tonight we were so lucky to have a truly great one. Beautiful classical bouquet with soft cassis, luxurious oak and a touch of pleasant barnyard. On the palate beautifully expressive with cassis, pleasant green bell pepper to give the wine a nice little extra bite and freshness, beautiful acidity, sweet spices and soft, beautifully integrated tannin. A perfect bottle can probably last for several decades, but I hardly can imagine the wine will improve… so why wait? 99 for today. (8357 views) | |
| Tasted by jkoenen on 3/14/2014 & rated 99 points: Tasting of 100PP wines (Restaurant Bottles, Sas van Gent): Mindblowingly precise and complex. This stuff left me speachless. Peak drinking now, cruising through its midlife. Insane wine. (11198 views) | |
| Tasted by LWI on 3/6/2014 & rated 91 points: 1990 Bordeaux Horizontal: Blind. Very dark. Sweet fruit, warmish, not the longest, drying finish. (10906 views) | |
| Tasted by subtlet on 2/24/2014 & rated 95 points: 1990 Bordeaux Dinner (Noisette, Portland, OR): Violets, red earth, black cherries, black pepper, and a crisp grilled steak show themselves on the nose. On the palate, this wine is a killer right out of the gate, with a great sense of purity. Wet dark earth supports the whole experience gently from underneath, while violets sit above everything with style. The structure is wonderful. As the mid palate winds down, pure cherry flavors rise up behind everything, and linger long into the finish. Totally engaging. The rise of cherry flavors gets me with every sip. (9331 views) | |
| Tasted by kr522 on 2/22/2014 & rated 98 points: this has always been a great wine but the last time i tried it there was a prickliness to the fruit that interfered with the drinking experience a bit. I'm glad to say there was none of that present this (or any other) time. the bouquet was so powerful you could smell it 5-10 feet away. massive black fruit, coffee, earthiness fills the room. There is a similar power and flavor profile still present in the fruit with a touch of fig and tannin. this wine will age (8847 views) | |
| Tasted by galenico on 2/18/2014 & rated 95 points: BORDEAUX 1990 ALLA CIECA (ENOTECA ROSSORUBINO TORINO): Tutt' altra specie dai primi due. Il cabernet invade tutto: caldo, corposo, naso animale, stalla, poi finale pungente quasi balsamico. In bocca è tanto, tanto... non ti molla mai con un finale lungo di legno suadente. Forse un pò troppa pirazina e un pò troppo vegetale, ma davvero cazzuto! (9266 views) | |
| Tasted by rnellans on 2/16/2014 flawed bottle: corked (8076 views) | |
| Tasted by rnellans on 2/16/2014 & rated 95 points: First bottle corked. Quite a bit of variability in this wine...a couple I have had from the same case are big brett bombs...this one was not. More of an elegant style. Red and dark fruited. Some cedar, chocolate. Soft tannins. Very good fruit on the palate and a long finish. Drinking well. (8366 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 2/14/2014 & rated 100 points: decanted and served immediately at Gin Sai. never disappoints. sensational. (9031 views) | |
| Tasted by gondrik on 1/31/2014 & rated 98 points: This is the second bottle of a case I bought on initial release. Set it vertical for a day and decanted for four hours. There was a small bit of sludge in the last three ounces; enough to make the decant worthwhile. It is big and fruit intense and amazingly light on its feet. The complexity is delightful, but this is very young wine and I expect it to improve with more age. (8377 views) | |
| Tasted by PanosKakaviatos on 1/9/2014 & rated 94 points: Bordeaux matters, along with Burgundy and Champagne and Port and ... (Ripple Restaurant in Washington D.C.): Compared to the 1989, this seems a bit superficial albeit the mid palate was more evidently rich and full bodied. But it lacked the backbone of the 1989 - and likely the ability to age longer. Perhaps the bottle was a touch faulty, as the nose seemed a touch vegetal - I initially got a note of green. But that blew off, taking into account the entire flavor profile. In the end, the wine was very pleasing: rich and savory to be sure. Comparing and contrasting with the 1989 kept bringing the same results however. While the 90 is on one level richer, it is on another level less compelling. (9944 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 1/9/2014 & rated 96 points: Belated holiday dinner - Mostly Burg and Bordeaux (Ripple Restaurant in DC): The last bottle that I had was flirting with perfection. This seems a bit more mature and not as intense, that doesn’t mean it is not intense. Cassis, a hint of red fruits, plum, milk chocolate and cedar. Very good concentration but a bit less concentrated impression than the last bottle, warm round silky palate impression and nicely integrated tannins. A great example of the ripe hedonistic style of the 90 vintage, opulent fruits and round warm silky palate. The best examples of the 90 Montrose can be close to perfect but more like 97 pointer overall, minus very bretty bottles. Although the 89 and 90 are quite different, perhaps the 89 is a better buy in lieu of the current price and consistency. (9761 views) | |
| Tasted by pkatz on 12/24/2013: In my cellar since release. High neck fill. Initial taste was outstanding. I had high hopes. Not leaving well enough alone, I decanted for about 1/2 hour and the wine began to become tannic and the fruit astringent which only seemed to increase the longer it was open. (8773 views) | |
| Tasted by MWiking on 12/20/2013 & rated 97 points: MAn behöver bara stoppa näsan i detta vin för att inse att det är Bordeaux, det luktar grand vin, stall, vinbär, ceder, cigarrlåda och blyerts. Smaken är härligt rökig, tobak, fat, cabfrukt, ceder. magnifikt! (9362 views) | |
| Tasted by FamilyLarsson on 12/19/2013 & rated 98 points: Ett helt magnifikt Bordeauxvin!!! Mörkt, tätt, koncentrerat vin med dofter av läder, höstskog, cigarrlåda, stall, mörk mogen höstfrukt, choklad, blyerts. Det bara fortsätter lager på lager. Man skulle kunna sitta och bara dofta i evigheter. Smaken är väldigt rund och koncentrerad med söt frukt. Väldigt komplext och fylligt med helt perfekt balans och en eftersmak som fortsätter i evigheter. Detta är verkligen ett stort vin!!! (8572 views) | |
| Tasted by Patrik H on 12/19/2013 & rated 96 points: On the nose, Stable, leather, cedar and all the ingrediens that makes this a wonderful Bordeaux. A typical wine that you can sit and just let your nose do all the work. What a beauty. On the palate long with a fantastic balance. Tobacco, chocolate and some nice tones of mint. Oh what a wine! (8756 views) | |
| Tasted by soyhead on 12/19/2013: tasted side by side with the 1989 Montrose nose - dried rose petal, funky mouth - juicy red berries and plums, very fruit forward but still quite tight, creosote, and big tannins. A hundred point Parker wine, and I see why, this fruit is massive and will last forever. I happen to prefer the 1989 in 2013. (8468 views) | |
| Tasted by JMLoree on 11/25/2013 & rated 96 points: Hauled this bottle down to Turks and Caicos where my wife and I celebrated our 5th anniversary with two of our close friends. Given the outstanding experience we had in October with this Montrose it seemed like a good idea. We enjoyed it at Grace's Cottage, an excellent setting. I must say this one was a little less vibrant and complex than our last bottle; however, it was still world class and shared many of the same attributes that I spoke to in October. Maybe it was the Caribbean heat or something was lost in transit. (8714 views) | |
| Tasted by Blair Curtis on 11/22/2013 & rated 96 points: This might have been an odd bottle...but odd in the best possible way. The wine was wild. Definitely some brett here, but adds complexity and authenticity. Bit of sandalwood. Some mint. Deep and intense fruit. The wine shows you something new with every sip, it seems. Quite a trip...and I loved the ride! (9019 views) | |
| Tasted by ricknat1 on 11/19/2013 & rated 95 points: rich, round, balanced, very bog and long, yet elegant. Dark with black fruits mixed with spice and bordering on fat. Very delicious. (8866 views) | |
| Tasted by MattTM on 11/14/2013: Birthday Dinner (Bishop's - Vancouver, BC): Slow ox'd for 6 hours then decanted 30mins before serving. What a nose, showing incredible richness and concentration. One would surely guess younger than this was, showing tons of graphite lead pencil, rich dark black fruits, shoe leather, cassis, cedar, muddled fresh mint, and plenty of clove spice. Delicious and mouth coating on the palate, with plenty more graphite and cedar coming through, along with some rich sweet dark berries, black cherries, leather, cigar box, plenty of spice, and a huge kick of menthol towards the back end. Gripping, rich, concentrated, backed by plenty of acidity and superb balance. Velvety in texture, this is flirting with perfection. The high scores here are certainly justified. It's amazing how youthful this is showing, I can't wait to see where these are headed with some more bottle time. Outstanding + (9334 views) | |
| Tasted by Ex-Ray on 11/9/2013 & rated 100 points: At a tasting we put on for our Couples Cru of 17 present, of eight 1990 Bordeaux (Angelus, Figeac, Beausejour Duffau, La Mission Haut-Brion, Leoville Barton, Pichon Baron, Lynch Bages, Montrose). All wines purchased on release and aged in my cellar. This was the group's favorite. Very dark and totally opaque, with no brown at the edges. It took awhile to open but then showed deep dark cassis, licorice, and oak aromas with complexity. Probably the most concentrated of the wines, along with Beausejour, this had everything perfectly balanced, with a wonderful long aftertaste. This is just entering its maturity, and can be enjoyed, but it would be better to let it sleep another three to five years. Ric (9665 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 10/29/2013 & rated 96 points: Another superb bottle. Love the brightness and power. (9282 views) | |
| Tasted by johnh1001 on 10/20/2013 & rated 96 points: I remember having this for the first time in a cellar in Toulouse. What a powerful wine. In the middle of the herbs and dark fruit it has a brightness and spice that seems almost Burgundian.Some mint every now and then. Long finish with great grip. Wonderful example of St. Estephe. (9072 views) | |
| Tasted by JMLoree on 10/19/2013 & rated 98 points: I have been following this wine since the turn of the last century and have always ranked it as one of my favorite Bordeauxs ever. Now that it has entered its mature stage it is even more rewarding. We gave it a three hour decant during which it evolved beautifully. It sports an abundant perfume of flowers in the glass followed by an eruption of red fruits and fine herbs accompanied by classical saddle and tobacco notes only to end with a long tail, multi-layered finish that must last for at least a minute. A true tour de force from Montrose which we enjoyed with yet another October Cassoulet. N.B. - The drinking window shown beginning in 2020 should be modified to begin now and I'm doubtful that this will still shine in 2040, not that the latter observation will matter to most of us. (8997 views) | |
| Tasted by salil on 10/16/2013 & rated 97 points: An absolute knockout. Incredible aroma - this has it all, layers of developed smoky, walnut, earthy and leathery flavours combining with higher toned herbal and tobacco elements with a core of rich red and dark fruits beneath. There's amazing power and intensity to the flavours, yet at the same time this feels remarkably light and elegant on the palate with great purity and precision to the flavours, and bright acids keeping it incredibly fresh and vibrant. The texture is pure silk, and each sip just goes on and on for minutes. Phenomenal, thanks John. (9580 views) | |
| Tasted by paul on 10/13/2013 & rated 100 points: perfection, nothing more needs to be said (9095 views) | |
| Tasted by Nutty08 on 9/20/2013: HDH '90 vs '00 BDX Comparative Tasting (Chicago, IL - Spiaggia): Maybe a touch less expressive than a prior bottle, but clean and no brett. Similar profile to the Cos, but less roasted, fruit is pushed to the front and a mint note comes through on the nose and palate. Still has considerable tannin and despite the very ripe fleshy fruit, no hints of over ripeness. Elegance and balance are there. On par with the 1st growths for sure. A/A+ (9889 views) | |
| Tasted by 1961Vintage on 9/8/2013 & rated 95 points: Rich and decadent. Still a very young wine...classic notes on the nose...2 hour decant. Massive crushed dried cherry on the palate. Finish lingered for a very long time...great to have wonderful friends with stacked cellars! (9211 views) | |
| Tasted by rgrosz6 on 9/1/2013 & rated 95 points: Tasted this against the 1990 Pichon Baron Longueville. After decanting for two hours, the Montrose is simply overpowering, and very impressive. I prefer drinking the Pichon Baron today, since it reveals much more. Let the Montrose wait at least three more years before opening another bottle. (9223 views) | |
| Tasted by jobestacio13 on 8/7/2013 & rated 99 points: Definitely one of the wines I would love to drink every time I celebrate my winning moments. I have decanted it for three hours before serving it. It has brick red color from the rim, quite intense aromas of dark fruits, licorice and black currants, but it changes after another hour from the glass. Powerful cedary notes, chewy leather and hint of mint and violet flower. Superb balance of acidity, alcohol and tannins with a very fine long finish. Can't wait to open another bottle to serve... (9630 views) | |
| Tasted by Dave Dalluge on 7/24/2013 & rated 97 points: Montose Dinner (89, 90, 95, 96, 99, 00, 01, 05) Plus Others: This was rocking from the moment it was poured. The nose delivers an expressive mixture of red fruit, mineral, dried herbs. The taste is also really impressive, with complex flavors built around a core of concentrated, perfectly ripe fruit. Perfect balance and excellent weight on the palate. The finish is long and extremely satisfying. Thanks (again) for sharing Steve. (10403 views) | |
| Tasted by astrauss on 6/16/2013 & rated 98 points: Dark red. No signs of real aging at all. Some initial funk on the nose. Decanted and than poured into glasses and enjoyed over the next 3 hours. Layered amazingness! On the nose loads of leather, tobacco, cassis, barnyard (not over the top in any way). The palate has amazing concentration of dark cherry and leather. Long long finish. Going strong this was a great bottle of this wine. (10164 views) | |
| Tasted by Ary on 6/8/2013 & rated 99 points: Left Bank Bordeaux from the 1980-s (semi blind) (Amsterdam Wijn Antiquariaat): Dark cherries, ripe berries, some cocos and marijuana! Leather, forest, ink and iodine, such a complex nose! Dense and powerful on the palate, herbaceous and thick dark fruits. Excellent acidity and sweetness in balance. Thick tannins, excellent integration. Holds up well against the Lafite 1989, more masculine than the (feminine and elegant) Lafite as Tex mentioned. A long life ahead. (10340 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 3/11/2013 & rated 99 points: We were lucky. This was a clean bottle that delivered an exotic melange of scents; gravel, incense, creme de cassis, blackberry, barnyard, cedar wood, tobacco, truffle and spice box aromas. Dense, rich and thick, with layers of ripe, dark, tannic fruit that seems to last for close to 50 seconds on your palate. There are no hard edges in this still very young wine. This truly coats your mouth. At close to 22 years of age, it’s starting to open and show signs of maturity. This could easily improve for another 30-40 or 50 years! The wine was produced from a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. (14905 views) | |
| Tasted by WDSteers on 2/17/2013 & rated 99 points: leather, violets, dark berry and cocoa. one of best bordeaux wines ever consumed. Paired with duck in red wine, shallot and parsnips (12158 views) | |
| Tasted by Rezy13 on 2/3/2013 & rated 92 points: Super Bowl 2013 (Cumming, GA): Cloudy and a dark core with 1/2" bricking; sandy, rich, fat, sexy, sweet, soy; some tart fruit on the palate, cranberry, pomegranate, red currant, along with mushrooms and forest floor. I like it, but to me this was not a complete wine. It lacked a little balance as it was very fat. Prior bottle was much better and everyone was disappointed with the showing today. (12485 views) | |
| Tasted by svdheijden on 2/3/2013 & rated 97 points: Opened as backup for Clinet 1989 which seemed spoiled when opened, but recuperated rather well. Well stored bottle, into neck, intense ruby color, showing no age in the color, but some on the rim. Even without sniffing close, the huge brett almost filled the entire room. Even after two hours, strong barnyard nose; with hay and underwood. Below, the power of this monumental wine started to develop. Still very much in its child phase; dark fruit, cassis, tobacco, cedar wood, spicy notes. Hot, rich, dense, concentrated on the palate, with massive layers of black fruit, followed by a truckload of (softening) tannins. My experienced tasting buddy thought it was 2003... This bottle was obviously not fully ready yet. (11791 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 1/18/2013 & rated 99 points: 1990 Bordeaux dinner with Latour, Beausejour Duffau, Montrose and etc (Capital Grille Tysons, VA): This is the most intense, expressive and concentrated wine of the night. Cassis, dark fruits, caramel and bitter chocolate. Intensely sweet and chewy palate, excellent concentration, no noticeable tannins and long finish. Flirting with perfection. Beausejour Duffau. (13237 views) | |
| Tasted by Lype on 1/16/2013 & rated 94 points: Extremely full and rich, burnt plums and liquorice, e a lot of tannins still, requires time in the cellar but this is on its way to grandeur. The second wine La Dame Montrose -90 is more drinkable at this point. (4830 views) | |
| Tasted by DUKEUNC on 12/25/2012 & rated 99 points: Opened Christmas Eve, 2012 with family. Excellent nose. Decanted it and left it for about two hours. It got better and better with each subsequent sip during the breathing process. This is the third of my case I've drunk, and it has gotten better each time. I still have 9 to go; don't think I can wait five years (as suggested below) for my next bottle. It was absolutely outstanding! (12437 views) | |
| Tasted by Kbrumback on 12/21/2012 & rated 98 points: - Brick color with slow forming legs. It's in total harmony with a full body. Smooth texture with a long finish. (10849 views) | |
| Tasted by mxpbuy on 11/22/2012 & rated 92 points: Sampled 11/21/12. Back to Spago for white truffle night. Not liking the remodel on one half of Spago where it's a solid glass wall and all you look at is the ass end of their white wine bottle collection. As for the wine itself, very top of shoulder fill, slightly depressed cork. I was concerned that this bottle had too much leakage, bricking was showing at the edges, but no Brett on the nose or palate. On first opening, the wine was its 100 point self. Beautiful layers of black and blue fruits. Before I could even complete describing my first glass of this glorious wine, it started to fall apart. There indeed was too much air exchange and it quickly turned into a fading but still 92 point wine. Oh well. Will stick with only the good fills from now on. (11469 views) | |
| Tasted by gigmoney on 11/18/2012 & rated 99 points: WOTN between this and a 2005 Clos des Papes. I don't normally give high scores and really this would be 100 points if I believed in that sorta thing. I feel bad for those who have had less than stellar tasting experiences with this wine, as I have yet to experience a single flaw with the 2 out of the 6 from my cellar. For those with impeccable provenance, do yourselves a favor and decant this for at least 90 mins. Our bottle had saturation of the cork about 25% up. Level was into neck. Had with Venison and Beef. Similar notes to those below with a smooth midpalate and finish that lasts forever. I think this wine is just beginning to enter its window of maturity, and may last indefinitely (or so I hope). I'll have to open another in 5 to see its evolution. Really a great expression of how wonderful a St. Estephe can be. If you ever have the chance, please make sure you taste this wine in your life. (11538 views) | |
| Tasted by mnh on 11/15/2012 & rated 99 points: A very youthful expressive wine. Medium red with a little brick. Very clean on the nose with some mineral, wood shavings, pain grille. Super balance with no edges and very elegant long finish. I dont think it was showing it all today. (8749 views) | |
| Tasted by ricknat1 on 11/14/2012 & rated 98 points: This was the surprise of the night for me. Great, powerful, rich 90 that blew away many higher rated wines (11606 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 10/24/2012 & rated 98 points: The perfume rivets your nose to the glass. Powerful scents of Asian spice, tobacco, cassis, smoke, incense, barnyard, gravel, blackberries and cedar get you wound up. The palate is coated with thick layers of juicy, ripe cassis and spice that remain on your mouth for well over 40 seconds! Still young, at 21 years of age, it is finally starting to show its true St. Estephe character. Stunning stuff! Some bottles of this wine display a pronounced horse like quality that ranges from interesting to so strong, it's like Mr. Ed was over for dinner. Other bottles can be much cleaner, with only a touch of barnyard. Fortunately, this bottle was clean. This special wine is only going to improve over the next several decades. (14113 views) | |
| Tasted by Magicalmke on 10/21/2012 & rated 100 points: At my wedding, along with prime rib. A bottle I have owned for ten years. Fill level right up to the top. Cork perfect. Decanted a couple of hours. Nose was a mature claret. Blackberries, cassis, very concentrated. On the palette lots of fruit. Tannins integrated perfectly and everything in balance. Shared with several friends and everyone raved about it. Just the kind if wine that has obvious quality. Could probably handle a few more years in the cellar, but this bottle was just great today. (11521 views) | |
| Tasted by canan on 10/20/2012 & rated 98 points: 100 RP BYO Tasting (Restaurant AOC): Wonderful and expressive nose with plenty of black currants, coffee and a lot of complexity showing leather, manure, lead, pencil shaving. Very very complex and beautiful nose! Black currant shrub on the palate with lots of impressions like coffee and lead. Impressive acidity structure and a very good balance. Long impressive aftertaste just packed with chocolate. A HUGE wine that is still very young. (7754 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 10/19/2012 & rated 96 points: The bouquet is beautifully mature, luxurious and revealing soft juicy cassis. On the palate a great wine as well; cassis still, some sweetness, smoke and sweet spices. A great and complex wine. This bottle was completely ready. (11609 views) | |
| Tasted by WinoRick on 9/29/2012 & rated 94 points: Tasted with a rack of lamb next to the 90 Lynch Bages. My friend liked the Montrose better, I, the Lynch Bages. Complex dark fruits and nice balance, but I thought the wine needed to open. We should have decanted it earlier. All the components are there for a 100 point wine, but we didn't let them show. Wait some time or decant early in the day. (11314 views) | |
| Tasted by canan on 9/22/2012 & rated 100 points: KYD #1.4: Wauw, a super intense perfumed flowered nose. Deep and concentrated dark plums with a touch of vanilla. The nose also has a little blood and iron. Extremely decadent :-) Decadent and intense dark plum palate with a very powerful acidity. Powerful, mature and decadent fruit flavors with a huge structure. Simply a stunning and extreme wine that is simply perfect!! From a 375 ml bottle. (8277 views) | |
| Tasted by jkoenen on 9/22/2012 & rated 94 points: Cos-Montrose Battle (Restaurant Bottles, Sas van Gent): Notes of iron and blood are starting to emerge out this wonderful brew of roasted leg of lamb, flintstone, black currant coulis and tea leaves. Regal length and complexity, but this wine is starting to show it's age... Drink up! 18.5/20 (13165 views) | |
| Tasted by Invinoverytas on 9/19/2012 & rated 98 points: Decanted for about 2 hours. Absolutely beautiful wine. Compared well to 1996 LaTour. (11522 views) | |
| Tasted by rstark on 8/22/2012 & rated 96 points: This wine is really coming into it's own. The fruit has married perfectly with the earthy, barnyard characteristics and the tannins have absorbed the flavors so that they provide a yummy but firm structure. After a couple of hours, an earthy chocolate characteristic developed. I've had quite a few bottles in the past years and there does seem to be some variation (read: levels of brett), as often happens to St Estephes (maybe their typicity leads to that). (12339 views) | |
| Tasted by winesnout on 8/19/2012 & rated 98 points: Wine of the evening among Pichon-Baron 90, La Gaffelière 90 and Haut Batailley 82 (magnum). Decanted for 2 hours, purple with mature rim. Cedar, bark, tobacco and ripe plums. Tannins noticeable but soft and well integrated. Again plums and cedar, mushrooms, soy sauce and typical St. Estephe minerals. A big wine, at the same time elegant with incredible focus. Long finish. A near perfect Bordeaux today with excellent potential for many years. (11951 views) | |
| Tasted by danielk168 on 8/13/2012 & rated 94 points: This bottle is still very young, unlike the last bottle. after two hours. it was very nice but stilltannic, more cellaring recommended. (12244 views) | |
| Tasted by tbabes on 8/11/2012 & rated 100 points: The fill was into the neck and the cork was sound; decanted 1 hour in advance of service -- drank at my birthday party at Fountain Restaurant, Four Seasons. For me, this is a perfect wine. This was tasted blind, and was the WOTN over '82 Pichon Lalande, '82 Haut Brion, '82 Gruaud Larose, '90 Leoville Las Cases and '90 Lynch Bages. 'nuff said (10880 views) | |
| Tasted by danielk168 on 7/20/2012 & rated 95 points: at a very good place now. perfectly balanced, drink up. velvet tannins, very complex. (12496 views) | |
| Tasted by pjaines on 7/8/2012: Bordeaux v Burgundy III; 7/7/2012-7/9/2012 (The Square, London): Hang on a minute - this stuff is 22 years old and it tastes like a barrel sample. Incredibly dark, compact, brooding - fantastic purity of fruit with pencil load, liquorice, black fruit and impressive depth. This needs much longer in bottle to unwind. Brilliantly compact and huge and long. I wonder what this tasted like when it was first released? Massive I would have imagined. (14253 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 6/16/2012 & rated 90 points: 35th Anniversary Party Cellar Tasting; 6/16/2012-6/17/2012 (Rich & Dana's): Deep brick red color. Once again, too much brett; red fruit, floral and underbrush notes with brett overtones (wet hay/horse blanket variety). Red fruit, underbrush, tobacco and roasted herb qualities on the palate. Not much difference on day two- horse blanket aromas dominate, though what fruit is there is dark- plum and currant. (14074 views) | |
| Tasted by Border Boss on 6/13/2012 & rated 97 points: Tasted at the June 2012 IWFSC monthly dinner at The Racquet Club. Served with seared medallion of American bison loin with huckleberry gastrique and cipollini onion ragout. Purchased on release and opened 24 hours before service. Still incredibly youthfull, with a deep purple color that looks like a wine that just went into the bottle. The tannins are big and the acidity is there as well, in good balance. The palate is starting to show dark fruits, leather and cedar. Opening it a day ahead really helped the wine start to show it's greatness. This wine will live another 50 years. Amazing. (13201 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 6/7/2012 & rated 95 points: Acker Merrall BYO (Sepia - Chicago IL): Open several hours before poured. Black cherry and plum aromas, with tobacco, meaty spice. Lots of power, length and density. Still a baby with huge long-term potential. (14372 views) | |
| Tasted by -E- on 6/1/2012 & rated 94 points: Bordeaux Søskenparsmaking (Moss, Norway): Dyp rød med så vidt bruning i kanten. Nydelig, sødmefull, floral parfyme. Frukten virker fremdeles noe hard og primær, bør få mer tid. Konsentrasjonen og intensiteten i denne vinen er helt avsindig. Massiv blir bare forbokstaven, denne vinen er altfor tett til å drikkes nå. Blir spennende å se hva som kan komme ut av dette med tid. La ligge,veldig lenge. 93-95 P (13495 views) | |
| Tasted by LWI on 6/1/2012 & rated 95 points: Bordeaux Siblings (Moss, Norway): A hint of burned wood, powerful, a bully, loads of extraction, some sweetness, long. Again, lots of everything. A close sibling to the 89 tasted alongside. (13964 views) | |
| Tasted by rawlinsclan@gmail.com on 6/1/2012 & rated 100 points: The wine of the night over 61 Haut Brion, 66 Latour and 82 Ducru (13315 views) | |
| Tasted by cortoncharlie on 5/9/2012 & rated 95 points: Another beauty. A high pitched nose of macerated cherries. Massive. Found today's showing a bit "exotic". Still a lovely drink and always delivers. (13262 views) | |
| Tasted by Zinlady on 5/4/2012 & rated 99 points: My one bottle. Had at 1990's tasting with 5 other wines and served it last. Wonderful nose. Great body. Everyone loved it. It really did seem good to drink now. Could detect some mint. But it had all the elements of a classic bordeaux - cedartar. This is a big wine and it showed very well. Had with cheeses - Quick's cheddar, appenzeller, mahon. They went so well with it. Great memory. (13218 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 4/27/2012 & rated 100 points: MNSC (The Principal): decanted for half an hour. absolutely sensational. renders one speechless. can't really ask for more. perfect claret for me. (14662 views) | |
| Tasted by Border Boss on 4/25/2012 & rated 95 points: Montrose Flight - 1982, 1989, 1990, 1995 (Kendall College - Chicago): Most at the dinner considered this a perfect wine, but I wasn't entirely there with that opinion, mostly because of the 1989 sitting next to it. This is a monster of a wine, no doubt. Deep red color with just a hint of age on the rim. The nose was cedar and tobacco. The palate was huge, with big but manageable tannins and an abundance of black fruits coming out. After about an hour in the glass, the slightest bit of astringency started to appear on the palate which is what caused me to rate it down a bit. The wine is still a baby however, so it will come around more with time and hopefully lose that astringency that came out later. Decades of life left. (13807 views) | |
| Tasted by Finare Vinare on 4/25/2012 & rated 97 points: Another tasting, another bottle, different glass (ISO instead of Riedel). Anyway, yet another excellent show. Definitely WOTN among 82, 86 and 90 Lynch-Bages, Las Cases and Montrose. (14417 views) | |
| Tasted by stealthman_1 on 4/7/2012 & rated 99 points: Towering, bold, seamless, complex, amazing every time. My last 3 bottles haven't shown the barnyard earlier bottles did. I miss that component a bit, but other characteristics have arose that make up for it. We worked on this for 2 hours, it started out huge and just put on more weight and became more crushing with each pour. 99 pts. (13644 views) | |
| Tasted by MatthewF on 3/26/2012: Night at the Bulls Game: Popped and poured (unfortunately). Powerful, dense aromatics of black cherry and currant with earth, leather and bitter chocolate notes. Less 'bretty" than other bottles I've had. Full bodied and expansive on the palate. Same flavors as on the nose. Great texture. Lots of power with very long length. Quite a bit of tannin remaining. Delicious, but young. (14027 views) | |
| Tasted by kr522 on 3/25/2012 & rated 95 points: this wine is massively constituted. in contrast to several other 1990's I've tasted recently that show signs of evolving (La Mission, Conseillante, Beausejour, perhaps even Pichon Baron) this wine still feels very primary and powerful. the aromas that come from the glass foreshadow a deep rich palate, with prunes, coffee and oak predominating. The entry is sweet and concentrated black fruits without undue heaviness. It fans out very nicely on the tongue with spice and tannins kicking in, helping overcome a lack of acidity to provide structure and some harmony. Stylistically we're talking deep, sweet spiciness. Unfortunately the tannins turn prickly, particularly in the finish. They blow off with time but not entirely. I haven't had this wine in a few years and this is a characteristic I hadn't previously experienced but I see a few other readers have come across it as well. I don't want to leave the wrong impression because it did not spoil the drinking experience, especially as it faded with time - I suspect (hope) it's something that will resolve itself, as there is plenty of fruit for this wine to last decades (13824 views) | |
| Tasted by astrauss on 3/25/2012 & rated 98 points: Awesome bottle of great wine. Sweet dark fruit on the nose. Very subtle bret and nothing like previous bottles consumed. Very concentrated fruit with great structure and a long glorious finish. A memorable wine! (13689 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 3/25/2012 & rated 97 points: Youthful Bordeauxs at Ruth’s Chris, Tysons including two 100 pointers (Ruth’s Chris, Tysons corner, VA): This is perhaps the most youthful and clean example of the 90 Montrose. No sign of brett, incredibly intense nose of cassis, black fruits, ink, bitter chocolate and a hint of bell pepper that keeps the wine fresh. The fruit expression is ripe, dark and intense yet it may not have achieved the perfect phenolic ripeness just like the 03. Unbelievable intensity and concentration yet the palate is silky and not necessarily unctuous at this stage. The tannin is very well integrated. Impressive wine. (14508 views) | |
| Tasted by pakabear on 3/25/2012 & rated 97 points: This just kept getting better throughout the night. A great example and showing so young. A sweet fruit nose with flowers and some meat. This had impeccable balance and a finish that kept on going. It was up against some stiff competition and finished near the top. (13326 views) | |
| Tasted by Jamvin on 3/13/2012 & rated 99 points: Pretty close to perfect. Still young. Opened up after decanting, about one hour+. (13120 views) | |
| Tasted by Ltim BE on 3/10/2012 & rated 98 points: Simply out of this world. Decanted for about 5 hours and then hard to resist........ pure nectar of the gods. (12858 views) | |
| Tasted by pekingunther on 3/8/2012 & rated 94 points: The dominant aroma early on in this wine was leather. It gradually belnded into the other aromas And flavours and the resulting wine had a very "thick or heavy" feel to it. A sense that it had many many years before its apoge, but just a spectacular drink right now. Other Montorse I have had have been "thinner" and more fruit dominant. This wine is earth and depth. The fruit is there, but not at all dominant, it is very much in the background. What is hard to describe is the essence or feeling of the wine. It was rich, but not in the sesne of blossoming flavours, in the sense of its potential and development. Heavy would be the best single word, but it doesn't do the wine justice. Any way you look at it enjoying this wine is a privelege rather than a pleasure and it is a thinking persons wine, rather than one to just sit and let it come to you and enjoy. (12709 views) | |
| Tasted by Cabmike on 2/24/2012: This is everything that you would want a wine to be. Very velvety and smooth. Tannins do not grab your tongue. (12742 views) | |
| Tasted by dcwino on 2/1/2012 & rated 94 points: This displayed massive ripe dark fruit, impressive concentration and structure. I however noticed decent amount of brett. A couple others didn’t think so. If clean, this should be a high 90 pointer. (13195 views) | |
| Tasted by acidqueen on 1/29/2012 & rated 90 points: Very dark reddish purple. Rich, ripe, dark berries and citrus flavors. Still very tannic. Much richer and riper than a typical Bordeaux, and still very young. A very good wine with food, but not the classic Bordeaux style I love. It may still need time to soften and lose its tannins, so I will wait before opening the rest of my bottles. There was indeed a very very faint hint of Brett, which blew off quickly. Not a flaw. Added later - I corked the second half of the last bottle with some wine preserver gas. I opened this again 3 days later and found the wine significantly better. It had opened up, the tannins were still there but softer, and the flavors were really opening up more. Much more Bordeaux type flavor. This confirmed my initial impression that this wine was just too young to drink now. It will be several years before I think about trying another bottle. (13360 views) | |
| Tasted by Dulcie and Aylwin on 1/28/2012: Acker Merrall and Condit's second auction (Chicago Elysian Hotel): From a relatively modest Pichon Lalande (relative emphasized) to a more considerable Montrose. Fragrant nose of cigar box, perfumed, quite deliciously ethereal, hard to render into words. Ripe berry fruit, I noted "youthful exuberance" - at 22 years. Evidently years left to go. Another standout moment of the day. (9041 views) | |
| Tasted by IWineAlot on 1/28/2012 & rated 94 points: Great nose on this wine. At first I got some barnyard notes, with swirling and time in the glass it lessened and gave way to nice spice, meat and cherries. Beautiful palate of currant, black berries and a lovely spiciness. Well structured wine with a long lingering finish. SS 94 pts. (12431 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 1/28/2012 & rated 95 points: Acker Merrall Second Chicago Auction (Elysian Hotel - Chicago IL): Aromas of leather, tobacco complement black cherry and currant in an very meaty, gamy combination that shows a bit of Brett. Powerful, dense black fruit on the palate with raw, intense spice. Great length. Still a baby. (14109 views) | |
| Tasted by acyso on 1/28/2012 & rated 90 points: Acker auction tasting (Chicago, IL): Slightly fecal aromas on the nose, but definitely identifiable as Bordeaux. On the palate, this is a bit too sweet, with dissipating tannins. A hedonistic wine. Great but not mindblowing. (13089 views) | |
| Tasted by englishman's claret on 1/25/2012 & rated 96 points: 89/90 Bordeaux Retrospective with Hart Davis Hart: Horsey nose, but I was expecting more animal based on previous notes. The fruit here, really rather dark in quality, certainly stood up to the barnyard. Even more convincing on the palate though, picking up some great earthen, clay notes as well. Lovely wine, but still mouth-puckering tannin. Drinking beautifully, but will go for years on this level. Stylistically, this is of course different than the '89, but I'm not sure that qualitatively either outmatches the other. Both excellent. Just different. 4+ to 5- (14193 views) | |
| Tasted by macker100 on 1/20/2012 & rated 99 points: St. Estephe night. Stunning wine that deserves all the accolades. Nose is just divine, with xmas cake, cherries jubilee, menthol, earth, and mint. I sat at the table with a tremendous sort of St. Estephe wines and there was simply no comparison. Palate was pristine, with the smoothest sweet black and red fruits that had a remarkable level of concentration. Great grip with just the right balance of spice and acidity. My only regret was not being able to have side by side with the '89 Montrose, which was corked. To my surprise, the '89 and '90 Cos that we had alongside were distant seconds. (12243 views) | |
| Tasted by Nutty08 on 1/20/2012 & rated 97 points: St. Estephe Night (Home of Mike and Sandra O.): My clear wine of the night, and most of the group agreed. Splash decanted and enjoyed over several hours. No brett or barnyard at all. Expressive flamboyant nose from the initial pour, filled with menthol, spice, exotic ripe currants and plums. Palate was impressive for it’s depth and complexity, carrying the menthol note with impressively concentrated black fruit with a definite liquor-like exotic quality that was so fascinating. On the verge of being overdone and over ripe, but walks back from that line with a balanced, nuanced presentation, with power and elegance. Long long finish adding with cedar spice, mocha, with the menthol note being the last to fade. So young and flamboyant(and tannic), probably not at peak, but drinking so well. Is this where the ’03 will go? Head and tails above the other wines this night. (13260 views) | |
| Tasted by WineAggregate on 1/15/2012 & rated 97 points: An ethereal experience. Layers of tobacco, saddle leather, spice and herbs, and intoxicating aromas of plum, currant, spice and smoke. Wonderfully integrated and balanced. (12223 views) | |
| Tasted by Chainthroer on 1/1/2012 & rated 98 points: New Year's Eve dinner with friends in Scottsdale. Wine decanted. Still a stunning wine. Ditto my past two posting of 8/20/11 and 1/3/11. An intense, fragrant and complex nose. Aromas of black cherry, blackberry, cinnamon, tobacco, forest floor, earth, a little bit of tar, a tinge of iodine, well integrated oak. A smooth and velvety mouth feel. I did not get any tannic feeling on the tongue this time. A very long finish. Everyone seemed to really like the wine. (12500 views) | |
| Tasted by steinersing on 12/27/2011 flawed bottle: Jaan with La Chapelle and HB blanc as highlights (Jaan, Swissotel): Not sure what happened to this wine. I had another one from the same lot a few months ago which was amazing. This bottle yesterday, unfortunately, had massive brett. The body and length was still there, and some hints of the hidden beauty shone through. But sadly, not a successful bottle. (13080 views) | |
| Tasted by pernst on 12/27/2011 & rated 99 points: This is amazing and it is understandable why Parker gave it a score of 100 when it was released. Dark rusty red with legs that climb the side of the glass. It has a distinct cherry and cedar nose with a fruit laden peppery taste followed by a long, lingering leathery finish. The acid is still very evident and bodes well for additional storage. (12717 views) | |
| Tasted by tbabes on 12/19/2011 & rated 100 points: The fill was base neck and the cork (which was stained almost to the top) was sound. Opened about an hour before dinner; no decant. A beautiful purple-ruby color, turning towards garnet at the rim. An extroverted and complex bouquet, offering up intoxicating aromas of cedary black fruits, tree bark, roasted venison, lilly, crushed rocks, and truffle. Medium to full bodied, with great balance, depth and concentration of flavor; quite velvety on the mid-palate, with a long and incredibly focused finish. A monumental wine! (13808 views) | |
| Tasted by mxpbuy on 11/20/2011 & rated 97 points: Sampled 11/19/11. Decanted at home for 2.5 hours - no sediment to speak of. The wine was closed for the first 90 minutes then started to blossom. This was specifically selected for white truffle night at Spago. This was the first bottle of this vintage we had that did not come with a ton of brett. Although the barnyard nose was not missed too much, this bottle (high shoulder fill) seemed to lack the stuffing of bottles we have had in the past which had into neck fills. There was a clear runner of wine along the cork which clearly resulted in some seepage. Although not as powerful in the fruit department is better bottles, there was wonderful and elegant blackberries, black cherries and creme-de-casis on this super silky wine. There were also dominant leather and tobacco notes that really held through the 60 second finish. Not our best bottle, but still a great one and with the white truffle pastas - pure bliss. (13248 views) | |
| Tasted by roquenroell on 11/2/2011 & rated 95 points: Totally enticing! Cassis, mint leaf and cigar/cedar box nose, evolving towards rasp/strawberry and violet. Creamy and very fresh still! This will hold for some time (13528 views) | |
| Tasted by Stefanos T. on 10/23/2011 & rated 97 points: An almost perfect wine. Deep garnet in colour with an intense nose with aromas of cedar, ink, a lactic note (cheese) and with airing plummy fruit. There is amazing freshness and the wine is still youthfull and vibrant. The palate is medium to full bodied with high level of silky tannins, high acidity which balances the concentration of fruit. As far as taste is concerned, the main here is bitterness as main aromas are of cedar, pencil shavings, ink, licorice and chocolate and is extremely food friendly. There is fruit as well, mainly crushed blackberry and plum and also a touch of oak and a whiff of smokiness. The wine combines elegance with power and is many years from becoming fully developed although it is drinking beautifully now. (13050 views) | |
| Tasted by Lombardi on 10/21/2011 & rated 95 points: Blockbuster Bordeaux! I has this stunning concentrated nose that is simply singular. Very rich with notes of roasted meat, dust and earth. FULL-body fleshy with long long finish. This will last another 3 decades! (13050 views) | |
| Tasted by acheng on 10/21/2011 & rated 96 points: Elegance with concomitant power. Leather, black fruit and incense. No hard edges, smooth and beautifully balanced. A clear WOTN among other 100 pointers served tonight. A joy to drink now. (13013 views) | |
| Tasted by BradKNYC on 10/15/2011: Cooking for the Kesslers (and drinking some great wine with them, too!) (My place.): A gorgeous showing and one of the cleanest bottles I've had. There's no brett whatsoever to be found. Huge, dense and bursting with rich black currant and plummy fruit, it doesn't show the dry Port-like character until much later in the evening after it had been opened a while. There's a nice herbal component I had never really detected before. While large-scaled, it's lost its youthful tantrums and is showing a more integrated and softened character than previous bottles. That said, it's got a long life ahead of it and seems to be just entering its peak drinking period as there's just the start of secondary development. A+/A. (13341 views) | |
| Tasted by Alexis A on 10/15/2011 & rated 97 points: A blockbuster. 21 years old but a few decades to go, easily. Very fresh in the glass, amazing concentration. I'd say plum, cassis, red fruits. A hint of wood. Amazing balance and amazing length. Fantastic wine. (13345 views) | |
| Tasted by arnaud.jacopin on 10/4/2011 & rated 98 points: One of the beautifulest wine I ever taste. Perfect colour even is old age with fruity nose and classical Bordeaux cedar and chocolate. In mouth, still very well structured and full of pleasure. If you can try it, don't hesitate. Great moment (9164 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 10/1/2011 & rated 97 points: Dinner at Eric's with Roland/Louisa (Eric's home): a real power house tonight. quite different to last bottle. crying out to be decanted. got better after an hour in decanter. easily another 50 years. (13759 views) | |
| Tasted by lepetitchateau on 9/27/2011 & rated 95 points: A very lovely wine. The nose has a freshness that inspires - classic "pencil shavings" as some would say. On the palate it oozes class while not being a wine that calls attention to its self- it is comfortable being a top student in the back of the class. Sophisticated and enjoyable, it is lovely now, very fresh on the palate too and a good time to open this. (13096 views) | |
| Tasted by taipanli on 9/12/2011 & rated 100 points: Again this wine delivers the goods. Stunningly opulent. Just the right balance of sweetness, acidity, structure, mouthfeel and length. This time I didn't decant and it wasn't lacking in any manner. There is still a freshness to the wine although it shows a certain maturity. I guess 21 years old is how I like them - lol. 50+10+10+20+10=100 (14079 views) | |
| Tasted by Imoollan on 9/5/2011 & rated 98 points: Sublime perfume and texture resolved tannins and mature wine but can wait. No hurry there. No notes... (12888 views) | |
| Tasted by Wine_lvr on 9/1/2011 & rated 99 points: Montrose Vertical Tasting 1989 - 2005 (Work in Progress) (Switzerland): Tasted blind: Dark intensive garnet in color. Nose of sweet mixed berry jam, chocolate and leather. The wine shows an nice lenght, paired with complexity, balance and power, yet at the same time quite elegant. The taste reminds me of red brries and Amarena cherries with hints of pepper. This wine still shows no signs of ageing and reminds me of a blockbuster old-style California cab. A true outstanding wine. Drink now - 2040. (10683 views) | |
| Tasted by Chainthroer on 8/20/2011 & rated 98 points: A little browning on the rim. Reddish garnet color. A wonderful bouquet jumped right out, after popping the cork. Unlike last time on 1/3/11, I decanted the wine very slowly a couple times and waited for the wine to warm from cellar temperature. The intensity of the nose was much better this time. Aromas of black cherry, blackberry, tobacco, forest floor, earth, just a little tar and licorice and again a slight tinge of iodine; toasty oak was apparent, nicely integrated into the wine. A velvet mouth feel, but a very slight tannic feeling on the tongue. A very long finish. A great wine, with elegance galore. Paired nicely with a very slow cooked hanger steak. Of course, the wine was better by itself. (12714 views) | |
| Tasted by chetlee on 7/24/2011 & rated 100 points: Compelling nose. Nice blend of earthy flavors of pencil lead, tobacco and leather with fruit. Great now, but still youthful. (14204 views) | |
| Tasted by Dvogt on 7/18/2011 & rated 99 points: Very smooth, no edges, a whirlwind of flavors including dark cherry, raspberry, vanilla, and a super fine finish. (13373 views) | |
| Tasted by bgreen on 7/3/2011 & rated 100 points: A wonderful full bodied wine. Drank at a dinner party after being decanted for an hour alongside a 96 Lafite and 95 Mouton. The Montrose was the clear winner (14505 views) | |
| Tasted by Johann Von Mastiff on 7/1/2011 & rated 97 points: Sort of like time stood still on this bottle. Still incredibley young. (13513 views) | |
| Tasted by MatthewF on 6/2/2011: Dinner with Friends (Chicago IL): Popped and poured with about a half hour decant. Very powerful aromatics of dark cherry, currant and plum with a savory herb and earth quality. Chocolate notes with leather and cigar. Great intensity of fruit on the palate with huge length. Drinking fantastic, but with big tannins to help provide a long life ahead. Great balance of fruit, acid and minerality. Great stuff. (10027 views) | |
| Tasted by cpdwines on 5/2/2011 & rated 95 points: French classic that held up nicely. (14180 views) | |
| Tasted by tooch on 4/23/2011 & rated 95 points: Older Bordeaux (Chez Glowa - Bethesda, MD): This was popped and slow-ox'd for about 2 hours prior to service. In retrospect, this should have been thrown in a decanter for a couple hours. Drank alongside a selection of Bordeaux from the '60s, '70s, and '80s this wine stood out as a brute. This is truly a monster wine with an explosive nose, dense body, and long finish. The nose exploded with meat, rich plum and cherry with mushrooms and tobacco leaf. Palate was incredibly rich and dense with silky cherry, smoked meats, smokey plums and tobacco. Incredible length on the finish - no question that this will improve for quite some time. No rush here! (15276 views) | |
| Tasted by Faryan on 4/23/2011: Old Bordeaux: as I was assigned the Garcon duty of opening many of the wines, I noted the bouquet of this wine upon opening. It was a powerhouse compared to the delicate aromas wafting out of the more ancient bottles. I did notice a fair amount of wine bleeding all the way to the top of the cork and I only mention this due to the controversial ability to gauge its place amongst its peers. Was this a representative bottle of the Montrose, or was it simply the polar dissonance of the vintage character/age compared to the older more classic vintaged wines? I am still undecided. The wine opens with huge power on the nose, almost port like. Not the overt Brett that many lament bottles of 90 Montrose to contain, it was actually an element held in harmony and quite enhancing in terms of complexity. The spectrum of fruit is more akin to the hot cherry/plum that you would find in hot vintages of Bordeaux (think 03). With more time in the glass, the wine really develops some lovely depth and complexity, and the mouthfeel cools off. The wine clearly needs either a decade of age or some serious decanting to be approachable, unless you’ve been drinking young wine to accompany it (where your palate is at that juncture is crucial imo). Nonetheless, for its relative youth, I was hoping for more nervosity from the wine. I’m not sure if its possible to retain that characteristic in such a hot vintage. Perhaps this is a lifelesson in which vintage Bordeaux I should concentrate my purchasing on (i.e. don’t buy 09!) I would love to revist the wine and the vintage in more depth to settle the score. (15246 views) | |
| Tasted by Grinner on 4/8/2011 & rated 97 points: The 90th Tasting (The Lyon's Tree House): Bought on release (still had the $55 sticker), well stored, perfect cork, decanted 2 hrs before trying. Even better than previous bottles, it has currant, cigar box, more dark berries, and earth on the nose and palate. Great texture and finish. Loads of time. (15177 views) | |
| Tasted by Lord Rayas on 3/25/2011 & rated 99 points: Glorious perfume of leather, tobacco, sweet earth and dark fruits. Would have given perfect score had it lasted a bit longer (last glass showed some decline after 2 hours). I wouldn't decant next bottle. Just let it breathe in the glass. (14975 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 3/22/2011 & rated 99 points: Since the day this Bordeaux wine was released, I have always felt 1989 Montrose the better wine of the dynamic duo. 21 years after the 1990 Montrose was made, my view has suddenly changed. The wine remains a deep ruby color. An intoxicating perfume of smoked meat, tobacco, blackberry, barnyard, gritty earth, spice and cassis pops from the wine as it spills into your glass. This wine is powerful, dense and masculine, as well as refined. There are no hard edges to be found. Layers of flavor float all over your palate, teeth and gums. This stunning wine ends with a long, pure, clean cassis, blackberry and spice sensation that seems to last for close to 50 seconds. The mark of all great wines is the ability to improve with age and time in the glass. 1990 Montrose continued improving in the glass for several hours. The problem with this wine has been the massive wall of tannin and amount of brett many bottles have displayed. This example was a very clean wine and as you can see from the note, the tannins have integrated into the wine. While secondary aromas are clearly developed, this is only now starting to become civilized. As good as this bottle is today, it will be better with 10-20 or even 30 more years of bottle age. (16221 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 3/18/2011 flawed bottle: From magnum :-( Faulty bottle. A bit corked which dominates everything that should be there in a beautiful way. The wine is full bodied with still lots of cassis, but beside the cork there is too much acidity and bitterness and no elegance at all. What a waste; my previous note was in 2010 and I scored the wine 99… (7107 views) | |
| Tasted by cortoncharlie on 2/12/2011 & rated 96 points: This bottle was very powerful and drinking at peak and with many years of evolution still ahead. Needed at least 3 hours of air. Freshest and best bottle of 90 Montrose I've had so far (14674 views) | |
| Tasted by dke on 1/16/2011 & rated 94 points: California vs. Europe (Bordeaux blends) BLIND TASTING: Very deep nose of tobacco and cedar, with some grilled fruit and leather. On the palate, perfectly integrated, smooth, some cedar, earth, fruits and minerals. Savory wine, great acidity and long finish. For me this was clearly the best wine of the tasting. My nose was slightly congested so I couldn't get all the nuances, but this was excellent medium bodied, nicely aged wine and one of the best bordeaux I had so far. I would like to try another bottle with fully opened nostrils (the bottle came from C.M.'s cellar). Guessed Montrose, this tasted clearly different from all other wines, which were in a more new world style. (15268 views) | |
| Tasted by cardsandwine on 1/5/2011: Had this at a tasting of a number of highly rated wines. While I am not a big fan of Bordeaux wines because of Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine was flat out delicious. Full expression of place and wonderful balance and complexity. Very pure on the palate with a lengthy finish. For me, the number 3 wine of the lunch. A wine with soul. (15140 views) | |
| Tasted by Chainthroer on 1/3/2011 & rated 97 points: A New Year's wine with filet mignon. Yellowish-brown at the rim. Dark fruits (black cherry and blackcurrant), tobacco, forest floor,toast, earthy, tar, licorice, a tinge of iodine - complex and balanced. Velvet mouth feel. A very long finish. A great wine, but I have tasted this on past occasions, with others, where it was scored higher. The intensity of the nose seemed just a tad lesser on this one. (14596 views) | |
| Tasted by DHo on 12/28/2010 & rated 100 points: This is perfection. Clear St Estephe minerality evident in a lush expressive quintessential Bordeaux. Extraordinary lengthy finish. Still a young wine with developing tertiary characteristics. Balanced. Powerful. This wine is drinking beautifully even though its peak is decades away. (15913 views) | |
| Tasted by blanquito on 12/24/2010 & rated 96 points: 1990 Bordeaux at Fabio's: At a big 1990 Bordeaux horizontal... My first 1990 Montrose. It did not disappoint. Gorgeous, gorgeous bouquet with 100-pt complexity of soy sauce, hotel-lobby lilies, new patent leather, Christmas, truffle-sweetened cranberries, beef blood, and much more. Zero funk/brett/etc. The palate was sweet, long, resolved and lovely, but again, this is Bordeaux from 20 years-ago, so the palate impression is dry and classic compared to the Post-Rolland world. That all said, and this was one of the best wines I've ever had ever, I found the concentration merely adequate and so, it was a step down from the 1986 Mouton and 1986 Lafite for me-- those '86's were infinitely deep, and as such, more complete wines. Still, easily my #1 WOTN. (11171 views) | |
| Tasted by punter on 12/21/2010 & rated 99 points: Deep, dark color with barnyard, leather and cassis nose on decant. Wine opened beautifully after 15 minutes in the glass. Assorted red and dark fruit is full, deep, rich and powerful yet supple and layered; the tannins round and nearly fully resolved. Broad, front to back power from the start and secondary flavors show with time. Long, deep, complex finish with a really comfortable, satisfying mouth feel. Drinking perfectly now and will last for tens of years. It was delicious 4 years ago and an extraordinary indulgence now. Best Montrose ever? 99 (14835 views) | |
| Tasted by burgcamel on 12/19/2010 & rated 97 points: This is the second bottle I have had in the last few months. It is just entering the drinking window. I see some upside from here. Clearly no hurry on this wine. (14838 views) | |
| Tasted by JBVino on 12/17/2010: a dandy...lived up to expectations. solidly integrated with great balance, acidity, size and mouthfeel and wonderful secondary flavors that just allowed the wine to linger on the palate for an extended time.WOFTN with 90 Chave, 99 Ramonet Montrachet (14229 views) | |
| Tasted by rjlud on 12/4/2010 & rated 98 points: So nice. Blind tasted @ Netherlands Wijnantiquariaat. Sweet, balanced, minerals, classic bordeaux at the pinnacle of life. A lovely wine and one of my favorites. I was thinking I still like the '89 better, but see my notes from the next evening (this was only the Friday tasting... life is rough). While not perfect it is up there flirting with perfection. The 90 and 96 Montrose are right up there at the top of my list of wines to always have in the cellar. Too bad I'm nearly out of both. (15047 views) | |
| Tasted by solace on 12/3/2010 & rated 92 points: not sure if the bottle was flawed, but there was a very stinky nose of toilet bowl and sticky plaster that cast a pall on the nose, that got worse with decanting. (Though I understand the stinky nose disappeared after an entire day of leaving the remainder in the decanter) However if you block the nose and taste the wine, it does not taint the very very good palate. Amazing length of a sweet finish, powerful cassis and sweet purple fruits, silkiest tannins reminiscent of the 03 montrose, touch of alcohol and glycerin that makes the wine even more delicious on the palate. A cover the face and ram the base kind of wine. Hopefully the nose issue can resolved over time or with extended airing. (13866 views) | |
| Tasted by Paul S on 12/3/2010 & rated 95 points: Kelvin's Bachelor's Party (Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Paragon): Tons of good stuff here, but it took a bit of effort trying to pick it up under a heavy cloak of funk that just refused to completely blow off even after a couple of hours. Still though, an excellent wine. Very funky on the nose, with some barnyardy, very animale whiffs - smelt a little like manure at points, with a good hit of band-aid to boot. With plenty of coaxing, all these stinky notes started fading into the background a little, to show rich cassis tones, deep earth notes, some wet leafy undergrowth and a whiff of jaffa orange chocolate. Hard to get past all the funk on the nose though, so I would recommend giving this a splashy decant before serving. The palate was entirely another story. Still clearly in its adolesecence, but oh so good. Tons of power and concentration, with a solid core of sweet berries and cassis just showing reservoirs of depth, but this was wed to lovely purity, impeccable balance and lovely, velvety smooth tannins. On the mid-palate, there was a nice pull of bacon meat and plenty of tobacco smoke, building up into a lovely cigar-like finish, with smoke and incense whirling around. As good a Montrose as I have ever tried, and with a long life ahead of it as well - I would love to try another bottle in 10 years' time. (15794 views) | |
| Tasted by rnellans on 11/28/2010 & rated 92 points: Very dark. Big brett, barnyard and animal nose. Dark fruits, leather with supple tannins. Long sweet finish. You love it or hate it. (14530 views) | |
| Tasted by cct on 11/28/2010 & rated 92 points: Holy brett bomb. At first Band aid brett, then a pile of horse. Leather, and earth. With time much of the brett blew off, leaving an excellent wine. Gaining sweetness and depth of mouthfeel. Rich and deep, supple and powerful. Excellent wine. 92 pts. (14516 views) | |
| Tasted by balassis on 11/27/2010 & rated 99 points: Deep purple with a brownish rim. Wonderfull bouquet with scents of sweet black fruits, leather, mushrooms, ink, graphite and oaky vanilla. Totaly full bodied, with high level of glycerin and alcohol, round tannins, and flavors of liquorice, pepper, tar, dried plums and jammy fruit. The finish lasts about 45 - 50 sec. One of the best Montrose and one of the best Bordeaux I have ever drunk. To enjoy now or the next 15 years! (14838 views) | |
| Tasted by Ary on 11/26/2010 & rated 99 points: AMS Wijnantiquariaat (blind tasting) Bordeaux incl Mouton 81/ 98/ 99 and 2000. What a treat! Homogeneous colour dark red with orange on the rim. Fantastic nose with ripe berries, cherries and cassis. Some iodiom, iron and whiff of mint. Later some menure, so typical of this wine in the earlier tastings. In the mouth rich dark fruits, coffee, chocolate and variety of Autumn tones. Long finish with integrated tannins. Little drying in the end. Very elegant and super complex wine. My WON! (14418 views) | |
| Tasted by Dubie on 11/23/2010 & rated 95 points: My personal WOTN for a blind 1990 red left bank horizontal. Two bottles, one ex-chateau that was my favorite and which I am grading here and another (from US auction) that was 3rd for me (separated by Ch Margaux), that was a 93. (13713 views) | |
| Tasted by kenmmm on 11/14/2010 & rated 98 points: After three hours, this one was incredible. Silky smooth. Licorice, celery, a little toast and nuttiness, plum and cherry with floral notes. I'm not sure how to give a 100 point rating, but I haven't had many Bordeaux's this good. (14070 views) | |
| Tasted by biggie on 11/5/2010 & rated 94 points: Wow - perfect example of mature Bordeaux - very small amount of sediment, no brett, amazing! (14003 views) | |
| Tasted by Miceri on 10/9/2010 & rated 97 points: Saddle leather, horse stable, faible mint; very classic older Bordeaux, very very good (14019 views) | |
| Tasted by Christer Byklum on 10/7/2010 & rated 98 points: The legend again! What a treat! A level fill, ruby with garnet rim. Intense, cassis spuma, blackcurrant leafs, so pure, so outher worldly pure, like is cassis foam, so tender and yet massive. Tea and hint of fine leather, takes a long time to open in the glass, overtones of roses and violets, extremelly complex, some vanilla and even white chocolate. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, great balance, intense and so elegant, needs a lot more time, flirting, seductive and yet secretive and masculine, yet it feels open like a book, intriguing. Wow again. And I liked this bottle better than the last that I found a bit "porty". (13990 views) | |
| Tasted by ldorf on 9/30/2010 & rated 96 points: Not quite the extraordinary "100" RATED I remembered. A much more subtle, aged juice that is still outstanding. Medium bodied nose right up until it reaches your mouth and then it becomes more complete and intense. It is very smooth on the front and middle palet with a fine blend of balanced tanins at the back and a beautiful finish. (13754 views) | |
| Tasted by burgcamel on 9/12/2010 & rated 98 points: I have have tasted this wine several times and this is the first time I thought it was an exceptional wine. It is still a bit primary but it is a great drink now. (13837 views) | |
| Tasted by tacman on 8/13/2010 & rated 94 points: Happy 20th Birthday! (to the wine). Probably at its apex ... don't know that it will get much better. Silky smooth tannin, great fruit (cassis, cherry) and a chocolaty mid-palate. Wonderful 20+ sec finish. (13853 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 7/31/2010 & rated 99 points: Drank this wine at least 3 times before. (I am sure there still is a note missing from 2004; hope I will ever find it.) But by far this bottle had the biggest WOW factor. So complete! In the bouquet a little pleasant barnyard, luxurious oak, cigars, mature cassis, leather, meat etc. etc. All comes back in the taste in perfect harmony with beautiful soft and still powerful tannin. What a juice. What a complexity! Give yourself a treat and open a bottle now! It will not improve, but it can last for many years. (14462 views) | |
| Tasted by SimonG on 7/7/2010: Bryan's Dinner Party Offline (The Ledbury, London): Quick sniff and taste from the other table: Seemed decent, quite a nice spicy nose but a bit under-powered and lacking cf the 82. ***1/2 to **** impression. (14457 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 6/19/2010 & rated 95 points: An Evening of Bordeaux (The Anvil Club, East Dundee, IL): The third or fourth time I have had this wine, and easily the best bottle. While this still displayed some brett, it wasn't as obtrusive as in previous bottles. A powerful wine. Notes of blackberry and cassis, a hint of brett, and perfumed florals. Balanced, with rich dark fruit, tobacco and spice, and leather tones. Long persistent finish. 95+ pts. (14725 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 6/15/2010 & rated 98 points: The levels of fruit in this wine are off the charts! Jammy fruit, toffee, licorice and a slight horsey aroma made for a compelling and complex perfume. Massive layers of fruit fill every nook and cranny of your mouth. But, as gargantuan as it is, it remains perfectly balanced. (9906 views) | |
| Tasted by fclarity on 5/23/2010 & rated 94 points: The purple/red center and red rims of this wine clearly suggested youth and strength. The high intensity nose featured black fruits, coffee, led pencil and a bit of toasty oak. It improved dramatically with air. Given the color, the wine was surprisingly refined with ripe, round tannin. It had excellent acidity and great length. Despite being nice to drink now, this wine is still an infant and is not showing all the complexity the future should hold. I would recommend long aging or extended decanting (if you can't resist). My score should improve given an additional 10 to 20 years of age. (13258 views) | |
| Tasted by WildeMeeuw on 5/23/2010 & rated 99 points: 1990 Château Montrose (Frankrijk, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe) Kleur: Diep donkerrode kleur, bruine rand Aroma / bouquet: Expressief, gebrand donker fruit, animaal / mest-achtig, superchique hout, sigarenblad, tabak, zoethout en vanille. Smaak / Afdronk: Krachtige aanzet, frisse zuren, boordevol tannines, een absolute 'bek vol', sappig, enorm indrukwekkende lengte. Algemeen / potentieel: Complete topwijn met subtiliteit èn kracht. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 14 + Smaak / Afdronk: 20 + Algemeen / potentieel: 10 = 99/100 (13870 views) | |
| Tasted by 60ouvrees on 5/22/2010: Exotic nose that I'm not wild about but style notwithstanding there's no doubting the quality of this wine. (13242 views) | |
| Tasted by MRichman on 5/18/2010: 1990 Left Bank Bordeaux Horizontal: Dense, thick, muscular, brawny, almost impenetrable. Black fruit, dense acid. Unbelievable dense without being over sweet. This will still improve in bottle. Excellent. A (13754 views) | |
| Tasted by rdsboca on 5/5/2010: Nosew a bit closed with some tar.. Dried English garden flowers with cassis and roasted cherries.. Some pureed rasberries with shaved chocolate. a Monster. Elegant with a smooth finish. (13392 views) | |
| Tasted by bigdogflow on 4/17/2010 & rated 96 points: Clive Coates Dinner 2010 (Dashiell House, San Antonio): Tremendous fruit and tons of depth. Taste and finish go forever. This has many more years to go. (14091 views) | |
| Tasted by taipanli on 3/7/2010 & rated 98 points: Consistent notes. This is a stunning wine. Nose full of fruit mixed with leather, truffle. Very typical bottle. Tremendous mouthfill and solid grip. This is a Bordeaux powerhouse showing no signs of letting up anytime soon. 50+10+10+19+9=98 (13929 views) | |
| Tasted by 2loyal on 2/23/2010 & rated 97 points: Absolutely stellar. No one in our group could believe that this was a 20 year-old wine. Beautiful, dark color, classic nose, rich and deep fruit with a long finish. Just wish I had time to decant it longer. This could easily go another 10-20 years at this pace. (14196 views) | |
| Tasted by Mozelrider on 1/24/2010 & rated 98 points: Perfect wine, that's for sure.. (14221 views) | |
| Tasted by taipanli on 1/15/2010 & rated 98 points: First bottle from my numerous Marketplace purchases. This is a stunning wine. Nose full of fruit mixed with leather. Very typical bottle. Tremendous mouthfill and solid grip. This is a Bordeaux powerhouse showing no signs of letting up anytime soon. 50+10+10+19+9=98 (14167 views) | |
| Tasted by rnellans on 1/6/2010 & rated 94 points: Decanted x 3 hours then poured. Nice very dark garnet color, Wow, on the nose a huge brett-bomb! I know there is quite a bit of bottle variation in this wine, as I have had others from the same case that did not have this degree of brett. Several hated the wine, however, I did not. The 'animal' smells seemed to decrease as the evening progressed. Huge structure to the wine with great fruit and mouthfeel. Soft tannins...long, long sweet finish. 95 Harlan edged it out slightly in the tasting. (14294 views) | |
| Tasted by ricknat1 on 12/17/2009 & rated 95 points: Huge, very concentrated, tannins still very present but a powerful wine that can be drunk now and will be better and better later. 95 (12585 views) | |
| Tasted by Rick-again on 12/13/2009 & rated 96 points: the initial nose was terrible.........three of us thought the bottle was bad or the glasses were soapy but thankfully the stink blew off after 10 minutes - the nose probably kept me from thinking more highly of this wine but once I could drink it it was amazing, dark color. Just got beter and better and the nose evolved into a wonderful bordeaux , big structured and lots of layers. One would have thought this was a 6 year old bordeaux. (13888 views) | |
| Tasted by Zinlady on 10/26/2009 & rated 94 points: Very dark wine, Wonderful nose but I did not just love the wine. Had with lamb at Flemings. Not a long finish. I have one bottle in my cellar and I am not sure when it should be drunk but I am thinking I will wait and hope it improves to be the promised 100 points. (14536 views) | |
| Tasted by Zinlady on 10/25/2009 & rated 95 points: Had at a 65th birthday celebration at Flemings with two other 1990 bordeau and lamb chops. It was a bit flat at first however the nose was huge wonderful aromas. Wine came together and had great balance and good body. My only complaint was the finish (14622 views) | |
| Tasted by amred on 10/24/2009 & rated 98 points: This wine has been such an enigma, both for us and based on CT notes. Having not tried it since 2006, we took one to a BYOB dinner at La Belle Vie in Minneapolis. It was close to perfect. This wine has, for most people, including us, been very difficult in early years. One of our early bottles, and those of friends, were extremely harsh, tannic, and some found it (see CT notes) very gamy, horsey, whatever. We opened this and the nose was pure classic Bordeaux from the beginning...not a hint of gaminess. We decanted...the color was just beginning towards brick, but still very solid. On the nose, a classic Bordeaux...lead pencil, graphite, a bit of floral and sweet. In the mouth, a perfectly balanced, smooth, classic aged Bordeaux. Not a bit over the hill, many years to go, but now exceptionally accessible. Lots of mineral, cassis fruit, leather, tobacco, toast/graphite tones, very smooth and that unmistakable really first-rate Bordeaux. Could have asked for nothing more. (14506 views) | |
| Tasted by THA on 10/20/2009 & rated 96 points: Almost port-like in aromas and flavors. Sweet, but not heavy. A true stand-out. (14529 views) | |
| Tasted by ludwigbpm on 10/9/2009 flawed bottle: Un monument sur papier (combien de fois Parker l’a noté 100 points!?) mais qui s’est révélé totalement bretté comme bien d’autres bouteilles des 1990 de ce Château. Nez de band-aid très envahissant, des arômes qui se retrouvent heureusement peu en bouche. On peut déceler le monstre sous les bandages, mais le tout est nu peu gâché. (14048 views) | |
| Tasted by WineAggregate on 10/3/2009 & rated 97 points: Perfect balance, integration and complexity, aromas of tobacco, leather, seamless fruit. Great. (9207 views) | |
| Tasted by Matt Scott on 9/10/2009 flawed bottle: Decanted for Three hours. A cow ranch in a glass. This is a Brett bomb. (9528 views) | |
| Tasted by MatthewF on 9/6/2009: Cindy's 30th Birthday Party (Chicago IL): From Magnum. Decanted for 2 hours before consuming. Very dark color. Bright dark red cherry/berry with cassis and damp earth and leaves on the nose. Some very nice chocolate and cedar notes as well. Outstanding texture on the palate with refreshing acidity and an extremely long finish. A beautiful wine. (14299 views) | |
| Tasted by BradE on 9/4/2009: Light Lumber in Minneapolis: A very good bottle of 90 Montrose. Relatively brett free for this wine, which really allowed the fruit to shine. Always a pleasure. (14263 views) | |
| Tasted by Siggy on 9/3/2009 & rated 97 points: Lumber Comes To Minneapolis (La Belle Vie Lounge, Minneapolis): Third time tasted. Single decanted about two hours. Luscious, intense dark fruit, leather, soy, and smoky meat flavors. Slutty, hedonistic and buttery smooth, with a super-long finish framed by ultra-fine, suave tannins. Another beautifully clean, brett-free bottle. (14672 views) | |
| Tasted by JJL on 8/21/2009 & rated 94 points: This did not get much air time, so it was still a little flat when first served. The bretty nose upon opening was there as usual. Great tannins, but low acidity. You got a little more fruit with each sip, which would have really shown through with more air time, but the bottle was gone before we knew it. (13186 views) | |
| Tasted by MRichman on 8/18/2009: Montrose vertical (Dylan Prime, NYC): Big, full fruit with some acid. A bit sweet and candied. A huge, expansive wine that I think will improve with some more age, is drinking well now, and will last for years and years. A (13657 views) | |
| Tasted by bonedoc on 7/24/2009 & rated 96 points: earthy nose, dark maroon color w/ no hint of brown on the edges of the glass. on the palate, gobs of sweet dark fruits w/ nicely concealed tannins, minerals toward the back palate, and a long finish. i don't see perfection here (RP 100 - i think it lacks the complexity of a perfect scoring wine), but a phenomenal bottle of wine none the less! seems like it's got 10 years if not more left in it. thank you TIGER for sharing this w/ us as we move on to the next chapter of our lives. (13049 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 6/30/2009 & rated 94 points: With its cedar, cassis, tobacco, black fruit and smoke filled nose, caught my attention. Full bodied, concentrated and filled with dense black fruit. The structure was there to age. The wines finish was long. Still young, this is a wine to see what happens to it in the future (9026 views) | |
| Tasted by bon vivant on 6/14/2009: The easiest Bordeaux to sip this evening -Soft and very enjoyable. The 90 Montrose has always had that" Box of Chocolate" syndrome: While this never reached the highs of other bottles sampled over the years, it was a nice example of mature hedonistic St Estephe. Judging by the consumption pattern it was the group's favorite yet I kept being drawn to the more complex 89. (13221 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 5/20/2009 & rated 97 points: Occasional tasting group: Just training our blind tasting skills. (@ PVa): A wine with many faces. At first as my TN of November last year. The next day it seemed to have lost part of its complexity, but it was still developing. Later the juiciness came back and it was as complex as in the beginning. What a great wine! (13283 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 5/14/2009 & rated 96 points: Magnums for Dave (Jean-Georges - New York, NY): From magnum. Massive black cherry and black currant on the nose with exotic spice. Same ripe fruits on the palate with alluring, opulent spice. Incredible fruit concentration and density but still complete balanced throughout. This evolves over a full minutes from something massive and primary into a very sensual, exotic wine. I look forward to revisiting this wine from time-to-time over the next two decades. (11445 views) | |
| Tasted by rstark on 5/9/2009 & rated 95 points: MOPA 100 Point Wine Tasting (Rancho Santa Fe, CA): This one is a brett-bomb. Some people would hate it, but I didn’t mind so much, since there was still some fruit. I’ve had other bottles of this wine where it wasn’t so apparent. Long finish. Saddle leather covered with horse sweat. Giddyup, Girl! (13048 views) | |
| Tasted by la turque on 5/6/2009 & rated 99 points: Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! (13461 views) | |
| Tasted by JJL on 5/2/2009 & rated 91 points: The Big "Four-O": 40+ Wines for 40 Years: And on the 5th time having this bottle, I finally was disappointed. This was not the sweet, slutty, in your face, horsey wine that I had 4 times before. First there was no horse, which is better than too much, but not as good as a little. The texture and body were still there, but the extreme fruit of the vintage was not. Group #4 of the blind tasting. (15969 views) | |
| Tasted by steffenpelz on 5/1/2009: Pre-Nuptial Eve Get Together (Wink Wine Bar): Sensational wine, but not as good as the last bottle. Of course, there's the tell-tale Brett, although this bottle wasn't all that bretty. It was wild and rustic, and powerful on the nose and kept showing something new every few minutes, but this bottle seemed more tannic and maybe a little shut down. Gave up less on the palate than my prior encounter with this wine. Overall, this probably still needs a few more years if it's been stored very cool. Nevertheless, an amazing wine that is in my personal hall of fame and "wines to drink before you die" list. (13075 views) | |
| Tasted by Miceri on 4/25/2009 & rated 98 points: Close to perfection. Incredible nose. Fresh. Clearly ready to drink now but can probably last for at least another 10 years. (12579 views) | |
| Tasted by JJL on 4/11/2009 & rated 96 points: This is the 4th time I have had this wine and all were from different sources and all were consistently great. This is a big sweet, hedonistic, slutty wine. I don't normally use the words fruit bomb and Bordeaux in the same sentence when talking about older Bordeaux wines, but this is an exception. When I decanted it, there was a beautiful sweet cherry perfume. However, on my first sniff from a glass, the cherry was replaced by a little bret. I was concerned after the first hour of decanting because the bret grew bigger, and frankly approached NYC subway urine smell on a Sunday morning, but that was just a temporary phenomenon, and smoke and leather took over the nose for the rest of the night. The palate had a lot of big dark fruits, including blueberry, blackberry, sweet dark cherry and plums. There was also some sweet spices including cinnamon, birch and licorice. The tannins were still big but velvety smooth. The acidity was playing a supporting role, but enough so to help keep the wine refreshing. This must have been a monster when it was younger. I would have liked a little more complexity, especially on the nose, but even still this was a real guilty pleasure. (12329 views) | |
| Tasted by fandj on 4/5/2009 & rated 98 points: Really lovely , classic Bordeaux. This still has many years left. (12907 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 4/2/2009 & rated 97 points: Mouton Madness: SDR's BWE Thursday Night Dinner (Equinox Restaurant, Washington DC): Dark red to rim, though lighting was dim. Really rich forward nose of layered ripe fruit, saddle leather funk (but clean funk), meat and minerals. Very full bodied, mouth coating ripe fruit, richer than expected for a St. Estephe, a little linear at first despite being decanted 3 hours earlier, it continues to open over the coursre of the evening to become much more complex. Long smooth finish. Still young, but fabulous now, this will go for decades. (13698 views) | |
| Tasted by LWI on 3/20/2009 & rated 98 points: Mouton Rothschild versus other first growths and second growths (Oslo): Slight orange rim. Fascinating strong nose, a little barnyard to me, sweetish from the beginning to the end. Developed further complexity through the evening. WOTN. 98p. Group average: 1.1 (13947 views) | |
| Tasted by rmodak on 3/7/2009 & rated 95 points: Decanted just before serving. Violet and cassis aromas leap out of the glass. The mouthfeel is initially chewy with sweet tobacco, chocolate, rare meat, black cherry and charcoal. As this opens, it becomes more silky and linear (in a good way) with a tight coar of graphite and dark fruit. This is extremely fun to drink as each subsequent new pour makes the same transformation. For my taste, this is early peak, with its youthful color and dark fruit profile. The only nit picking distraction is the hint of green herbs that emerges on the nose over time. For some, this may add more complexity. Not a 100 pt bottle for me, but an extremely high quality wine. (12487 views) | |
| Tasted by jlemerond on 3/7/2009 & rated 94 points: Dark ruby, no bricking at rim. Beautiful, brooding nose of t and a, sweet red fruits, and earth. In the mouth, spices, strawberry and earth with mouthcoating tannins and a long finish. beautiful wine. ****/***** (8976 views) | |
| Tasted by la turque on 3/3/2009 & rated 98 points: Winos event chez moi on March 3, 2009. Impressive line-up of wines - theme was Bordeaux style wines rated 95 or better by Robert Parker. In order of favourite to least favourite: 1990 Chateau L'Angelus (my rating - 99), 1990 Chateau Montrose (my rating - 98), 1994 Dominus (my rating - 96), 2003 Chateau Leoville Poyferre (my rating - 95), 1995 Chateau Latour (my rating - 93), 1986 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild (my rating - 91). (12437 views) | |
| Tasted by WildeMeeuw on 2/7/2009 & rated 94 points: 1990 Chateau Montrose () Kleur: Diep donkerrood, oranjebruin randje. Aroma / bouquet: Rijp, kruidig (pepertje). Stallig, leer, animaal. Zwart fruit, beetje jammig. Hout / vanille. Smaak / Afdronk: Aanzet: klein zoetje, frisse zuren, behoorlijk krachtige tannines echter wel prachtig rijp. Algemeen / potentieel: Prachtig glas, gaat nog jaren - zo niet decennia - mee. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 13 + Smaak / Afdronk: 18 + Algemeen / potentieel: 8 = 94/100 (11669 views) | |
| Tasted by BradKNYC on 1/25/2009: Pratt's Bordeaux table and then some: A bit of a polarizing bottle. Some folks at my table had this as their favorite wine of the night. I found it a completely atypical and not so good a showing. Normally, this wine shows a dry port-like character that’s just dense and maybe a little too much in character. I actually usually prefer the ’89 to it, but this wine is never really a slouch. Yet I found this bottle to show a lot of greenness, most especially from the wood tannins. I found precious little fruit here and even very little Brett, which this wine normally exhibits plenty of. There are still some things to like here, but this is unlike any showing I’ve had of this wine. Doesn’t seem like bad storage. Perhaps barrel variation? B+/B. (9646 views) | |
| Tasted by beachbum on 1/20/2009 & rated 97 points: Montrose Vertical Blind balanced open very elegant just lovely. has all the montrose characteristics from before, stones and leaves, smoke and lead pencil the difference is the extra complexity and sweet fruit on the taste, just incredible, the unctous, thick sweetness is dizzying YumYum, I could drink it all day, but when this gets old, it will best all the rest (11707 views) | |
| Tasted by plapla on 12/25/2008 flawed bottle: Vin encore puissant, mais déjà trop madéré. Malgré un décantage une heure avant. Une couleur typique d'une fin de règne, rouge/orange sur les bords, et un nez qui ne trompe pas. Imbuvable. (11502 views) | |
| Tasted by GA on 11/21/2008 & rated 93 points: 11/o8 Concentrated fruit and powerful balanced finish - still young but approachable. 93 pts. (11568 views) | |
| Tasted by Zweder on 11/15/2008 & rated 96 points: Occasional tasting group: Wines with 100 Parker Points. (@ L in Z): Rustic, barnyard and also freshness and black fruits in the bouquet. Very juicy cassis, good tannin, which is mature but also still powerful. Pleasant bitterness. Intense, full bodied and complex wine with a very long finish of ripe cassis flavors. Beautiful balance. Beautiful drinking moment now and for several years to come. (Although I would not wait until the drinking window's 2029 which is entered in CT at this moment) (12416 views) | |
| Tasted by vine20 on 10/21/2008 & rated 94 points: Decanted and open for 2 hours. Red in the center and mahogany on the edge. Strong barnyard and earth nose and taste initially. Very complex and layered dark red fruits. (11502 views) | |
| Tasted by rsepulve on 10/9/2008 & rated 98 points: Plummy, dark fruit, cedar, dirty/earthy. Perfect balance, ripe fruit on palate; clean on the palate unlike the nose. long, almost sweet finish. Still youthful. Given the complexity and balance here I can see why some consider this a perfect wine, but the mild fecal notes on the nose drop it a couple of points for me. (11248 views) | |
| Tasted by KellyW on 10/9/2008 & rated 100 points: Licorice, blackberry and blueberry, a hint of cedar and lead pencil. Perfect balance, excellent delineation, tannin is noticeable but fine and nicely integrated. It is so silky and the perfect balance gives the impression that the wine is light, I can quaff this stuff all day. It is still very primary but just so easy to drink. Compare to the other two in this flight, it is not as concentrated but IMO, easiest to drink. (12329 views) | |
| Tasted by Paul D on 9/12/2008: UK Wine Pages - Chateau Montrose Vertical (Le Colombier, Kensington, London.): Lovely, cedary, expressive nose. Complex, slightly herbal, some tobacco. Classy. Leafy, tobacoey fruit on the palate, yet nicely ripe too. Only medium bodied but classy, with decent acidity and fine tannins on the lenghty finish. ***** (12557 views) | |
| Tasted by Chateaunewf on 8/31/2008 & rated 95 points: Ruby red to the edge with no browning. Reticnt nose. Still youthful with a solid core of structured fruit. A beatiful wine but not quite at peak yet. Huge dark toned fuits of blackberry, cassis and a hint of plum but still cool without over ripeness or excess alcohol. A tad four square as the tannins are not fully resloved. Classic St Estephe rusticity that needs another five years to smooth out. Noticable so following a sublime La Mission HB 1990. A very good wine but wait a few more years. (11606 views) | |
| Tasted by Siggy on 8/29/2008 & rated 99 points: Tasting Group Dinner w/ Kevin Sidders - Steaks & Bordeaux (Our House): Decanted about two hours. Really special, and even better than the bottle I tasted last year. Incredibly rich, yet almost weightless flavors: dark fruit, leather, smoke, meat, earth, spice. There was some horse, too, although this bottle was totally clean and brett-free. Gorgeous structure, with perfect interplay between the fruit, acidity, minerals, and perfectly ripe tannin. Oh-so-smooth in the mouth, with a finish that goes on and on. Improved with air. This wine is incredible and has a long future ahead. My WOTN. (13809 views) | |
| Tasted by Dave Dalluge on 8/29/2008 & rated 98 points: Bordeaux at Siggy's: Double decanted about an hour or so before serving and this was rocking from the moment it was poured. The nose delivered a divine mixture of red fruit, mineral, saddle leather, pepper and floral notes. There was a touch of brett on the nose, but its smells were well integrated and added to the complexity instead of detracting. The taste is unbelievably good, with complex flavors built around a core of concentrated, perfectly ripe fruit. The mouth feel is also special, with perfect balance and excellent weight, yet produces a lithe impression on the palate. The finish is long and extremely satisfying. It's a perfect match for Manlin-style steaks, and an amazingly good wine. Thanks for sharing Steve. (11869 views) | |
| Tasted by jordanj on 7/7/2008 & rated 97 points: Dinner at Carlos' (Carlos'-Highland Park, IL): Wine of night. Barnyard at first but than most blew off. Dark in color and big and mouth coating. Very complex but what really hits you on this wine is that despite its size, the tannins are well resolved and it is incredibly smooth and elegant leaving a wine that is just layer upon layer of tasty goodness. I can understand the 100 point scores on this wine and it remains a relative value. (11349 views) | |
| Tasted by KeithAkers on 7/7/2008 & rated 97 points: Dinner with Friends (Carlos' Resturaunt, Highwood IL): nose: right off the bat you get the Mr Ed horsey smells, but as the wine opened up, it reavealed much more complexity and an insane amount of depth. Very muscular and precise tones of graphite, dark cherry, sour cranberry, chalk, roasted herbs, smoke and toast tones taste: insanely dense and filled with layer upon layer. This is the kind of feel that stops you in your tracks and you just want to enjoy the moment. The tannins are fairly well resolved but the flavors are still fairly primary. Loads of leather, tobbacco, sour cranberry, dark cherry, smoke, and toast unwind in your mouth with each layer providing more complexity overall: this is a stunning wine that still hasnt reached it's peak. The layers just unfold in your mouth and its the layers that make the wine. An amazing supple attack that then leads into a muscular mid palate and finish that doesn't quit. This is an absolutely stupendous wine that lived up to my expectations (12319 views) | |
| Tasted by AllRed on 6/22/2008 & rated 93 points: The Blind Drunks monthly tasting (Chateau Lay): Notes of roasted bell pepper, red fruit and cedar, with a subtle soy quality as well. NIce mix of dark and red fruit flavors on the palate, with cedar and herb tones. Mayb just a bit thin thorugh the finish, but that's really being picky. Excellent overall. 93-94 pts. Guessed '94 Napa Cab. Post-tasting edit: This is the 3rd or 4th time I've had this, and the first time the wine wasn't overwhelmed by brett, and thus the first time I have really enjoyed this wine. (9743 views) | |
| Tasted by astrauss on 3/23/2008 & rated 96 points: needs a good decant. sour cherry on the palate but loads of expresso and funk on the nose. great wine with loads of complexity and concentration. never a dull glass. (11635 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 3/22/2008 & rated 93 points: Martin Weiner Birthday Wine Dinner (NBC Seafood, Monterey Park, California): Great tart currant, roast beef and horseradish nose; lovely, still youthful, tart cassis, plum palate with firm tannins; medium finish 93+ pts. (2172 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 3/15/2008: Seattle Tasting Group 'End of Year Dinner' #5 (Sammamish, WA): A clean nose. The palate is the usual stew of liquefied horse, deep, DEEP wine, weighty, intense, richly fruited, very full in the mouth and strong with both brett and fruit. (12610 views) | |
| Tasted by bwr on 3/11/2008 & rated 92 points: nice dark red, garnet color; unusual pinot like nose of cherry, leather, slight rasperry; cherry, gamy flavors with rapidly softening tannins and long finish. (11588 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 2/5/2008 & rated 96 points: Strong horse tinged aromatics are the first thing a taster will notice. Powerful, dense, thick levels of black fruit, minerals and spice fill your palate. This remains extremely young. Full bodied, dense and concentrated. (9021 views) | |
| Tasted by vijayk416 on 1/19/2008 & rated 96 points: Holy wow. Served at the TWC 4th anniversary. A bit of crazy funk on the nose intermingled with followed by pure cassis, graphite and leather on the palate. In perfect balance with an exceptional finish. My only complaint is that I drank my glass too fast. (12261 views) | |
| Tasted by kstoddard on 1/15/2008 flawed bottle: Dinner with Otto (Backstreet): Corked with lots of brett (12504 views) | |
| Tasted by winefool on 1/8/2008 & rated 96 points: IWFSC 731st Dinner (Les Nomades): This just keeps getting better every time I taste it. Eleven bottles at this dinner, all in perfect shape. Opaque black red color. Incredible nose of black fruit, saddle leather, cedar, pencil, and spice. Incredible rich strucutred black fruit, blood, and coffee on the palate, but starting to round out nicely. One of the best Bordeaux I've had in a long time - spactacular. (12306 views) | |
| Tasted by El Vino on 11/29/2007 flawed bottle: Brett. Hard to get past the nose. (12170 views) | |
| Tasted by mwhite on 11/23/2007 & rated 96 points: Very nice wine. Perfect age. A little bit bitter, maybe I should have let it stand longer. I waited about one hour after decanting. At times it was almost flawless. At times is made my tounge go ouch. Definetly a great wine but maybe should be left open several hours before drinking. Perfect nose. Perfect rust color when pouring. Very little sediment. Great wine!! (12468 views) | |
| Tasted by PVTerroir on 11/18/2007 & rated 92 points: 11/18/2007 Fantastic. Tasted along 1990 Latour and 2000 Silver Oak (AV). Nose was more earthy than the others, not as much oak coming off either. Pencil lead, berries, dark chocolate earth. (9068 views) | |
| Tasted by CorkSniffer on 11/3/2007 & rated 94 points: Tasted at a "pop and pour" dinner, with no opportunity to decant, which I think this could have used, perhaps 20 mins. Right out of the bottle, nose is like a pencil factory surrounded by a horse farm. Some leather, manure and lead. The palate is softer, lighterand more integrated, still plenty of tannins to work off but enough fruit to make them acceptable. Unclear how this will evolve. Fruit is there, but not way out in front; something tells me this wine should be drunk within the next five years. Hopefully the fruit will outlast the tannins as they continue to integrate. (12528 views) | |
| Tasted by Moorese on 10/27/2007 & rated 98 points: My 40th and some notes...Bordeaux, CdP, Quilceda, etc. (Seattle): I’m the second owner of this bottle and I know its provenance. It was kept in a passive cellar from release until a few years ago. As this might suggest, it is a bit more evolved than most notes that I’ve read suggest. I’ve never had this wine before so I was quite nervous about the widely reported brett issue. Nyah. Pretty clean (a whiff…) and just exceptionally powerful. The nose and the attack are almost intrusive (in a pleasant way). Enormous, sweet and completely mouthfilling black cherry fruit leads to a reverberating finish. Stunningly balanced for such a behemoth. Analogies fill the mind. The nitrous of Bordeaux, this reminds me of that gut-wrenching moment in Star Wars as they launch into hyperspace. A clear cut above the other players in this flight and a standout moment in my days of drinking and appreciating wine. (13018 views) | |
| Tasted by fandj on 10/21/2007 & rated 100 points: Wonderful classic bordeaux. We had with an 82 Lafite and an 89 Mouton. The Montrose was the star. Perfect in every way. I am so glad we have more. (13727 views) | |
| Tasted by gorm on 9/28/2007 flawed bottle: Uncorked DK tasting: 1989/1990 Bordeaux (Kenneth): Unfortunately this was corked. You could sense the greatness of the wine through the cork however. (13663 views) | |
| Tasted by winefool on 9/18/2007 & rated 94 points: Patrick Stella dinner with Manlin (Custom House): Again, this Montrose is not nearly as tannic or wound up as I expect it to be. A really nice big rich bordeaux with spices, coffee, and pencil lead notes. Will probably continue to improve, but actually drinking pretty well today. (14023 views) | |
| Tasted by Siggy on 8/7/2007 & rated 97 points: Tasting Group Dinner - Steaks & Montrose (Dave's House): Intense black fruit and charred meat on the nose. A bit more horsey than the 1989, tasted side-by-side, but not overwhelmingly so. Fantastic, multi-layered, rich dark fruit, iron, minerals, and leather. Incredibly silky, suave texture. Endless finish. Amazing stuff. (13554 views) | |
| Tasted by Dave Dalluge on 8/7/2007 & rated 97 points: Another Tuesday Night in Minneapolis (Montrose 82, 86, 89, 90, 95, 01, 03, 04): The nose offered a beatiful blend of dark fruit, mineral, saddle leather, and some floral notes. I re-affirmed my high tolerance for brett by noting that this seemed to be pretty clean and having everyone at the table disagree with me. Upon further review they are correct, there is a pretty strong brett presence here, but I thought it was wll controlled and added to the enjoyment of the wine. The taste displayed awesome fruit concentration, and smooth enjoyable texture, perfect balance, and a long lingering finish. What an amazing wine. (13831 views) | |
| Tasted by BradE on 8/7/2007: A bit of brett, but not overwhelming. Great juice. Drank it in a flight with the 89, which was for my tastes slightly preferred to the 90, but hey, who's complaining. Would drink this anytime with pleasure. (12580 views) | |
| Tasted by buckeye76 on 7/14/2007 & rated 99 points: QUINTESSENTIAL BORDEAUX, EARTHY NOSE WITH LOTS OF BLACK FRUITS, LICORICE, AND LEATHER. FLAVOR LIKE THE NOSE, A VERY COMPLEX WINE WITH A LONG LINGERING FINISH. (5466 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 7/7/2007 & rated 97 points: This comes in two styles and there is no way to know which you're going to get until you pop the cork. Either you find a stable full of horses, or you discover a glint of horsiness. Personally, I prefer the subtle, gentle hint reminiding me of standing in the winners circle at the Kentucky Derby. I got lucky as this bottle was the latter. I got lucky last night too, but that's a different story. Adding complexity to the horse aromas was wonderful layers of cassis, black fruit, herbs and truffles. Huge, massive and concentrated in the mouth. Every nook and cranny of your palate enjoys an ocean of dense, ripe, rich, deep, black fruit. The long finish was a pleasure, very fresh and clean with great follow through from start to finish. Still some tannin to resolve. (9234 views) | |
| Tasted by Russell Faulkner on 7/5/2007 & rated 96 points: Craig and Wendy Collins Visit London (Caldesi): I have been lucky enough to try this four times in the last couple of years, once together with Steve and a bottle of the 1989, fantastic to compare. Darker than the 1970, almost black in the glass, so dense and textural, perhaps lacks a bit of freshness, not heavy but getting there. Sinister. (14089 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 6/29/2007 & rated 93 points: 1990 Vintage France Themed Tasting Dinner (Keith & Donna Goldstein's, San Francisco, California): Dark garnet red color; truffle, dried cherry and dried mushroom nose; intriguing, plush, tart plum, tar, coffee palate, young yet; long finish 93+ pts. (2472 views) | |
| Tasted by psmith on 4/20/2007: Graduation wines (Columbus, OH): My first time with this wine and, yes, it is totally full of brett. Really big for Montrose, with full-bodied ripe red fruits and graphite...once one gets by the sweat and manure. Young wine. A bit unclean for me, like a Bordeaux/Beaucastel blend. OK. (13904 views) | |
| Tasted by Milhous on 4/15/2007: One of the best young bordeaux i've ever tasted. no brett bomb. just layers and layers of flavor. will only get better. (13162 views) | |
| Tasted by winefool on 2/1/2007 & rated 94 points: HDH Comparative Bordeaux Tasting 1989 & 1990 (Casino Club): Full red color with a little softness. Full aroma of red/black fruit and anise. Big forward briar spicy red fruit with good tannic structure, but actually beginning to be approachable. 94+ pts. (14933 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 1/7/2007: Roy Hersh’s Great Seattle Vintage Madeira Tasting (Kaspars Catering, Seattle, WA): "Great!" (see what I mean about my notes?) (4479 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 1/7/2007: Overindulgence after the Madeira (Seattle, WA): As 1990 Montrose goes, this was a very clean example with almost no discernible brett. Lots of flint and mineral, very clean. I love the richness of the palate, just so intense. A great example, thanks Chuck! (14109 views) | |
| Tasted by amred on 12/31/2006 & rated 98 points: This was an extraordinary wine. We had our first bottle 3-4 years ago and it seemed way too soon, even after decanting. Based on other notes in CellarTracker, we decided to try again for NYEve, and als based on notes, we did not decant. The nose just exploded out of the glass with the prototpical bordeaux lead-pencil graphite, but with sweet fruit as well. We got only a hint of this horsey thing...it in no way reminded me of Rhones with their frequent barnyard elemeents in the nose. In the mouth it seemed almost perfect...tannins were very evident but soft and complex flavors of fruit, tobacco, even a bit of mocca to us. While I think it will last for decades, it is frankly drinking extremely well right now. (14122 views) | |
| Tasted by ken on 11/13/2006 & rated 98 points: Fantastic wine. (13843 views) | |
| Tasted by mattiasjansson on 11/4/2006 & rated 96 points: Robert Parker 100-point dinner (Bellavino, Thousand Oaks, CA): There is brett, but the palate is great. Still tannic. (14858 views) | |
| Tasted by Greg Pierce on 9/29/2006: Once again, absolutely awesome in every way. This is, hands down, a 100 point wine -- tasted 4 times with consistent notes. (13774 views) | |
| Tasted by KenK on 8/27/2006 & rated 92 points: Chicago's Best Bordeaux Tasting Ever? (Ken's Home): Similar in quality to the 1989, good dense black fruit with minerals. Not as fruit driven perhaps, but I wrote rich, dense and toasty. I may have under rate this in hindsight. (16237 views) | |
| Tasted by 128 on 8/13/2006: Dinner at home with the wife. Dark berries,earth and a little horse. A touch sweet but otherwise good balance and length. My 10 year old son said it smelled like piss but tasted good soon after the bottle was opened. The wife appeared to like it more than the bottle we had last year. (14612 views) | |
| Tasted by John on 7/9/2006 & rated 98 points: saw this on the wine list at MGM grand at a very cheap price so I new I had to have it. Won a few blackjack hands and had it paid off. WOW is all I can remember as I am posting this a few days later. One of the best wines I have had in a real long time, maybe even the best ever BDX I have had. (14428 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 6/15/2006 & rated 97 points: Was Mr. Ed in the house, or was this bottle only slightly horsy? Well, the horse was in the barn, but he was sleeping as this bottle was not too bretty. Huge, dense and very concentrated. Still relatively primary, this beefy, concentrated, thick, masculine wine demands at least 15-20 more years before it reaches full maturity (9091 views) | |
| Tasted by KellyW on 6/10/2006 & rated 98 points: I am so glad to have a bunch of this left in the cellar. And every one so far has been a 'good' bottle as opposed to the bretty evil twins I have heard stories about. (14323 views) | |
| Tasted by Chuck Miller on 5/29/2006 & rated 96 points: A huge soaring nose, with plenty of brett, but an unbelievable amount of fruit as well. I've had this wine a half dozen times, this being the best. We labeled the decanter 'Mister Ed', but there was no mistaking which wine this was. Drink now to 2020. (14429 views) | |
| Tasted by oenophile59 on 3/26/2006 & rated 92 points: Tasted blind against 1989 Montrose after reading the Spectator Montrose verticle review a few issues ago. My palate tends to match Parker more often than the Wine Spectator but the night these two were tasted I have to admit I thought WS was right on the mark. The 1989 was the star of the two. 1990 Montrose had more earth, in the nose, less fruit driven and taste older and not as big as the 1989. I would have given the 1989 the higher score, plenty of life left in both though. (14500 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 3/14/2006 & rated 95 points: This was horsy. Lots of barnyard scents in this bottle. Upon pouring, a conversation ensued discussing if this smelled more like horseshit or cow pies and the difference between each. Erudite, no. But fun. After the strong barnyard aromas, beefy, dark, spicy fruit notes were apparent. This is a huge, hulking wine than remains tannic and shockingly youthful. (9199 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 2/17/2006 & rated 98 points: More Bordeaux with Leve at Providence (Los Angeles, CA): Hello Mr. Ed! This was as horsey an example of the Montrose as I have ever tasted, but there is so much to love about this amazing wine. Huge, palate coating, just a titanic wine. (16866 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 12/10/2005 & rated 95 points: Tasting, brief note. Incredibly lush, alluring black fruit aromas with great spice. Lots of concentration and power with still assertive tannins. Great now, but I expect this will really stand out from 2015 forward. (9002 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 12/10/2005 & rated 96 points: Seattle Tasting Group 'End of Year Dinner' #3 (Sammamish, WA): This was a serious Mr. Ed wine with big, big notes of horse and game. Some soy sauce and black fruit are also there, and I wrote in my notes that it reminded me of the 1989 Montrose, as, double blind, it was obviously from this producer. The palate was gripping, powerful and extremely tight, and despite the apparent ripe notes on the nose, this seems to emphasize structure more than fruit which is why I assumed this was the 1989. It was a nice showing, but the fruit was less on display than I am used to for this beast of a wine. (16967 views) | |
| Tasted by BradKNYC on 12/7/2005: Superb wines with a superb dinner- Trimbach, Chave, L'Angelus, Montrose, ZH & more. (Applewood): While I’ve had the ’89 a number of times, this was actually the first time I’ve had the ’90. It certainly lived up to its star billing, but I was surprised by how backward and primary it was compared to many ‘90’s I’ve had. The wine is monstrous, massively extracted and as dense as a neutron star, but is by no means monolithic. Its solid iron core is surrounded by layers of dense black fruit, cocoa, grilled meat and sweat. Extremely tannic and drying, but there’s plenty of fruit in the wine, but this wine is really all about the future. Wish I had some in my cellar to watch it evolve as it’s going to be a fun long-term project. A+/A with solid A+ potential. (9582 views) | |
| Tasted by steffenpelz on 12/7/2005 & rated 100 points: 2nd Annual Cellar Treasures Tasting (Long) (Asti Trattoria): My first 100 point wine. And it surely deserved it. Incredibly sexy, seductive nose of game, rustic, almost wild fruit. Cassis, elegant sandal wood. Descriptors really don't do this wine justice. It has raw power that is literally incredible, yet it manages to be light on its feet and elegant at the same time. An awe-inspiring wine that (as crazy as it may sound given my score) will still get better with additional bottle age I think. What a treat. Thanks Greg. (18440 views) | |
| Tasted by winefool on 12/1/2005 & rated 92 points: Nice rich nose. Rich and chewy but young. May improve dramatically with time. 12/05 (13073 views) | |
| Tasted by Dave Dalluge on 9/28/2005: Wine and Dinner with Brad England and Scott Manlin (Brad England's House): Served side-by-side with the 1989 with dinner. This wine was dark red, but lighter than the 1989. This had a classic Montrose nose with some horse/brett showing (although not as much as the 1989). The nose was more diffuse with a lot more going on, but nothing quite as specific. In the mouth this seemed slightly lighter, but still balanced and excellent. This was drinking very well, and at least 2 of the 4 participants preferred this wine over the 1989. (17820 views) | |
| Tasted by JasonD on 9/4/2005 & rated 97 points: Dinner with Jill (Home): Oh my this is a great wine. It was closed for about 2 hours. No sign of bret. Pitch black color that just got darker and more dense with time. Aromas of leather and tobacco do not even hint of what is waiting on the palate. Enormous, massive black fruit, licorice, saddle leather and a bit of salt cote the tongue with just a hint of tannin. Amazing finish that just keeps on going. I would love to try this wine next to the 89 Haut Brion. (16656 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 8/29/2005 & rated 99 points: Tonight I went to see the Mariners blow another game, this time to the Yankees. At least there were a lot of happy New Yorkers in the crowd! I was a little distracted though, as CellarTracker was getting ready to hit a very special milestone, more than 1,000,000 bottles in stock across the more than 7,500 registered users. (Back in June the millionth bottle was added to the system, but users have consumed more than 125,000 from the database, hence the lag to the million 'in stock' milestone.) I actually ran into Jason Goldberger in the 5th inning while the site was teetering at a tantalizing 999,999 bottles, and finally, at 8:25pm, the count bumped to 1,000,001! Anyway, with only beer to celebrate at the game I begged off until I could get home and open something special. I hadn't put a lot of thought to it, but I figured that the wine should be Bordeaux, as that is what I love. Some 2001 Pavie beckoned, but it was already late and I didn't have time for the wine to open. I also wanted something sturdy that would improve overnight in case I didn't finish it up. Ahhh, the 1990 Montrose looked like just the ticket... This was a pop and pour affair (with the remainder into a decanter), but the wine was ready to play from the moment the cork came out. At first pour the nose was horsey but otherwise reticent. The palate though was immediately rewarding, endlessly deep and loaded with rich, black fruit, leather yet all in an amazingly structured package. I love this wine! Ahh, what an hour has done though, as the nose has EXPLODED, now an insane melange of horse, mineral, leather, and loads of spicy cedar. As exotic as the nose is though, it absolutely PALES in comparison to the now unreal palate. I can't believe how ripe this is, teetering towards the New World in its sheer massiveness of fruit expression, yet with such an unmistakeable element of Bordeaux, shit and earth, leather and spice, cinnamon and cedar, man oh man, this just keeps attacking you a minute after you have swallowed with waves of coffee and lightly bitter chocolate, a hint of herbs and some of the sneakiest and most jaw-crushing tannins you will ever meet on a wine. Wowza, a nice way to celebrate! I have had worse bottles of this wine and one better, but this is right there on the balance, a nearly perfect effort. You clearly have to love Brett to handle this wine, but it is amazingly unique, powerful and quirky, a wine that grows on me a bit more each time I have it. Cheers! (16811 views) | |
| Tasted by Russell Faulkner on 5/6/2005: More backward. Violet. Beautifully sweet fruit, damson jam, and the tannin to back it up. Dry port. Menthol. Hugely rich 60 second finish. Vanilla. Developed some brettyness towards end after an hour. Drunk with the 1989, what was very interesting is that after a couple of hours, there was a marked convergence between the two wines, with the fruit sweetening in the 1989. Interesting to see what will become of this pair, perhaps the 1989 will age better, but the 1990 was singing last night. (15686 views) | |
| Tasted by phenricsson on 5/6/2005 & rated 98 points: At home. Decanted for 2 hours. Totally different from 2 years ago. It has emerged from the tunnel. Gorgeous looking: C:88, M:75. Color all the way to rim. Huge nose with jammy black cherries, saddle, tar and a touch or vanilla. On the palate it is thick and viscous with a very long after taste. Sweet black fruit and lots of dark “Rhonish” flavors of saddle, meat, tar and stone. Very impressive - can’t wait for next time we try a bottle. Maybe in another year.... (10418 views) | |
| Tasted by jamiekutch on 4/5/2005 & rated 96 points: 87 Guigal La La's, 90 la Chapelle, 90 Montrose, 89 Palmer, 90 Tertre Rôteboeuf (Montrachet): 1st off – Man - are there a lot of notes on this wine in CellarTracker. Dark opaque purple. The nose started with a touch of stinky horse, leather, earthy and dirt. It shortly blew off. Its one hell of a big wine, almost knocking me over after the Rhone flight. The tannins are massive, thick and mouth coating. The wine almost grabs at you at you and is concentrated beyond belief. Still though it is just a pup and needs lots of time. The Montrose offers a glimpse into its perfect world and its like a sneak preview to an upcoming blockbuster movie. Get your tickets now – this is a winner. (16967 views) | |
| Tasted by hcampana on 3/22/2005 & rated 98 points: The 3 Tenors of Saint Estephe (Calon, Cos & Montrose): 1982, 1990, 1995, 1996 & 2000 (New York City, NY): Wine No. 3 (1990 Montrose) Very dark, opaque ruby wine that was clearly the darkest in the flight. Nose packed with new world fruit, cigar box and a hint of oak. Layer upon layer of blackberries and blueberries in this full bodied, sexy, low acid trophy of a wine. Still has noticeable ripe tannins and an endless finish. This wine was singing tonight and is a testament of how great Bordeaux can be. I, as well as (I think) everyone else picked this as the Montrose. 98 points . This wine got twenty four 1st place votes for the only unanimous WOTF as well as wine of the night. (14439 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 3/19/2005 & rated 100 points: A 98 point dinner at Steve Cramer's (West Seattle, WA, USA): This was my fourth try of this wine in the past 5 months, and this was the taste I was waiting for. The difference was extended decanting which really opened this one up. This sat in a decanter from 11am-3pm and then went back into the bottle to ultimately be served after 10pm. Start beeping and back up the horse baby, as this has to be one of the brettiest wines ever. Horse, leather, smoke with layers and layers of rich, black fruit and spice. The palate is massive with structure, balance and overall weight unlike any other Bordeaux I have ever tasted. There is so much minerality and complexity hiding under the waves of structure and fruit. Amazing! (21584 views) | |
| Tasted by bdenuyl on 3/9/2005: Although still young, it is drinking well now (drank from a half bottle). Rich and deep, with “first growth” breeding. A big wine, more than elegant, but very balanced and sleek. Really excellent (8734 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 2/17/2005 & rated 96 points: This displayed the bretty, horse aroma it’s famous for. Very powerful, probably the most concentrated and backward wine of the night, the 90 Montrose was so dense, you could cut it with a knife. This needs at least another decade before becoming civilized. (9258 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 2/15/2005 & rated 96 points: Bordeaux Legends with Leve at Sona (Los Angeles, CA): It's not a bad four day stretch when you have the 1990 Montrose twice! Like the bottle last Friday at Citronelle, this one was impressive yet also somewhat marred by a massive, nearly overwhelming brett element. This stuff smells, actually reeks, and tastes of horseshit. Interestingly, a bottle enjoyed a few months ago showed no brett?!? Still, with air the remarkable fruit and extract on this rise to the challenge and try to swallow up the horse. Maybe more decanting is required. The grip, power and natural extract here is off the charts, easily the biggest Cabernet-based wine I have ever tasted. (17702 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 2/11/2005 & rated 97 points: Pre-Parker warmup dinner at Citronelle (Washington DC): Hello Mr. Ed, this was INSANELY bretty on the nose and palate and showed HUGE notes of horse. That said, OMFG, the extract, intensity and depth of this wine are off the charts. Well done! (18800 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 1/29/2005 & rated 96 points: HDH Pre-Auction Tasting (Chicago IL): Wine tasting. Powerful black fruit aromas with hints of emerging mushroom. Same black fruit on palate with acid and tannins in great balance already, providing great length and textures all the way through to very long, powerful finish. (11903 views) | |
| Tasted by KellyW on 1/8/2005 & rated 98 points: I tried this three years ago and this wine is even more of a mac-daddy. Restrained opulence. Thick and rich fruit with tannins acting like a thin bitter chocolate covering on a berry liqueur center. Leather and earth. Makes you want to close your eyes with every sip. I was tempted to run home and pull another one out of the cellar. Thank goodness I have more. (16401 views) | |
| Tasted by Tao on 12/27/2004 & rated 99 points: For my record! Dense but in precisely balance! (9365 views) | |
| Tasted by CharlesM on 12/26/2004 & rated 98 points: Two bottles consumed, both double decanted two hours before drinking, second bottle started 45 minutes after the first. With each glass the nose got better and better. Intoxicating scents of incense, bulls blood, cedar and the merest hint of barnyard. The palate was rich, dense, but with notable tannins underneath the body and with a good thread of acidity. After 2 hours of drinking the tannins became very obvious - this is still a baby. This is an incredibly good, but elegant claret, which screams great Bordeaux. Accompanied by roast forerib of Devon beef, aged to perfection and cooked rare to medium rare. (16517 views) | |
| Tasted by CSteefel on 12/15/2004 & rated 97 points: No fading of this wine, it seemed to go from strength to strength, as if drawing power and finesse from some inexhaustible reservoir. On the nose, pure notes of tobacco, horse sweat, and leather beautifully infused with cassis extract that seemed only to intensify with time in the glass. In the mouth, equally compelling power, balance, and structure, again with that sensation that the wine was only tapping part of what it was or could be. One had the impression of sitting over the top of some seething volcano, now showing only that swarm of minor earthquakes in advance of a major eruption. And the long, brooding finish of dark fruit, leather, and incipient minerality seemed to go on for ever—there must be transuranic-series radionuclides that decay away faster than this wine did. In discussions later, some tasters mentioned an almost overripe quality to the wine, comparing it to a southern Rhone—maybe not a completely off target comparison, is this a Beaucastel made with Cabernet? Still, the acid balance and tannins and sheer structure of this wine seemed to more than balance that touch of ripeness or overripeness, so for me, tasting it was unmitigated pleasure. (16085 views) | |
| Tasted by Jason on 10/8/2004 & rated 98 points: Wow. This wine had one of the great noses ever. Those that say you can't drink it because of the brett can ship all their bottles to me. I found blackberry liqueor, horse leather, smoke, minerality, and rosemary. It is an understatement to say the palate is lush and very thick. I find tastes of sweet black and red fruit, rosemary, and spicy tannins. The finish is truly endless. Thank you, Eric. (17978 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 10/8/2004 & rated 98 points: Steak and big reds with the guys (Seattle, WA, USA): OMFG! I took a tiny sip after the initial decant, and this is one of the most dense and powerful wines I have ever tasted. What a remarkable bruiser! We let this air for about two hours and then dipped in. The nose was dense with cranberry, iron, horse (far from overbearing), leather, soy sauce, and loads of black fruit. The palate was massive, enveloping and monolithic with huge layers of black fruit, dense, endlessly deep, and freakishly powerful. This is just so intense, ripe, and layered with waves of sweet fruit covering gravel and gorgeous minerality. The finish is beyond belief, 60 seconds of complexity dance on your palate, and then the mouthfeel and structure continue for about 3 minutes. The closest benchmark I can think of is the 1986 Mouton, and this wine makes that seem puny. I am rating at 98, as this is just so unbelievably primary right now. It is packed with so much, but it could be a decade or more before this even begins to gain focus. Lots of upward potential here. (19165 views) | |
| Tasted by Rani on 10/1/2004 & rated 96 points: Dark purple-ruby with no thinning at all. Fantastic, sexy nose of blackberry, cloves, dark roast coffee and a hint of thyme. A layered, multi-dimensional palate with tongue-coating fruit, bacon, dry herbs, velvet tannins and a long finish. Superb and similar to the one I tasted a month ago. (16415 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff W on 9/2/2004: Vinotas offline. Smooth, concentrated, with waves of fruit and leather. Good acidity and lovely tannins. Very long. dg (15881 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 8/5/2004 & rated 98 points: The 90 Montrose is opaque, with an inky black, purple hue. A slight, horsey aroma blew off in a few moments revealing a powerful perfume of spices, jammy red & black fruit, licorice and cedar and black cherries. This is so dense and thick, you could eat it with a spoon! It's amazingly concentrated! Dense, full bodied with soft tannins that are buried in an ocean of fruit. The almost endless finish is absolutely seamless. This is a huge wine, but not overpowering. It's like an elephant that can dance. (9773 views) | |
| Tasted by Spencer on 6/10/2004 & rated 100 points: New Haven 'Bottle of Pain' Offline. Absolutely stunning Bordeaux. If this is a 'love it or hate it' wine, then you can put me in the former group. Oh, how I wish I had more. (18699 views) | |
| Tasted by Joe Belmaati on 5/20/2004 & rated 94 points: Dark red with a blue hue. Scents of cough medicin. Initially the bouquet of this wine seemed very alcoholic and heavy. In the mouth the wine was incredibly concentrated with stupendous power and mamoth structure. However, I found this wine to be quite low in acid and with no real signs of Bordeaux character to it. To me, this was a very unusual example of Montrose ‘90. On other tries with this wine I have found it to be juicy and fleshy and with a round and warm character to it. Last night it seemed overly powerful. Still, who can complain. (15994 views) | |
| Tasted by Joe Belmaati on 5/19/2004 & rated 98 points: It is no secret that this is one of my favourite wines. This was my first time tasting this, and as I am entering this two year old tasting note, I can still remember the sensation of my first of many encounters with 1990 Montrose. There will be plenty more, that's for sure.. The wine was dark red with a brown rim. Extremely complex bouquet with the classic "elephants cage", barn, whatever you wanna call it. Extremely large bodied, dense, chewy and juicy with ferocious power, tannin, and intensity. Packed with ripe fruit and revealing endless layers of complexity, and a delivery that seemed effortless and thoroughly convincing. Long, delicious aftertaste. 98+ points. (16244 views) | |
| Tasted by Burgundy Al on 5/14/2004 & rated 96 points: Wine tasting. Big black fruit on very, coming across as fresh and energetic. Black cherry, cassis and plum with cocoa and fresh leather. Powerful but fruit, tannins and acid all in harmony. Started showing a fair amount of age after about two hours, but still a sensational wine at that point. (11121 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 4/25/2004 & rated 96 points: On the nose, earth, spicy oak, cassis, truffles, coffee, cuban tobacco and clay. Dense, full bodied wine with very tannic finish. Mountains of black fruit fill every nook and cranny of the palate. 40 second finish. This is a bigger wine than the 89, but IMO, the 89 is almost as good, and 1/3 the money! Blind I guessed Gruaud Larose. Close, but no cigar. The 90 Montrose will outlive everyone at the table. The wine made dramatic improvements after two additional hours in the glass. (9032 views) | |
| Tasted by La Cave d'Argent on 1/17/2004 & rated 92 points: Consumed with beef tenderloin at Ken Johnson's Big Bear cabin. Bottle provided by Ken Johnson. Bright disc. Deep garnet robe with brick rim. Clean nose, showing moderately intense aromas of black currants, brier, scorched earth, smoke and anise. There is additionally a whiff of bret (which carries through to the finish). Full-bodied on the palate, with low-to-medium acidity, big ripe tannins and similar flavors as for the nose. Long, smooth finish. Nice, but not a 100-point wine in my opinion. (9848 views) | |
| Tasted by Joe Belmaati on 10/16/2003 & rated 97 points: Dark red appearance. Smells like cigar box, and boy do I love that! The intense flavours range from cherry liquer to orange-chocolate-truffle and seduce and please. Brutally tannic, large bodied yet contained in an iron fist of a structure. This wine tastes like it can last for 100 years, yet it is a pleasure to drink now. This is my third Montrose 1990 in about two years and it still rules. The finish goes on and on. (16118 views) | |
| Tasted by phenricsson on 1/1/2003 & rated 92 points: Tasted blind at home. Perfect looking wine. C:87, M:75. Color all the way to rim. Nice nose with jammy fruit and some animal/leather. It feels like a sleeping giant - it is clear that it is still in a tunnel, but close to emerge. Try in two more years. (10265 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 7/29/2000: incredible depth, concentration, almost creamy, yet very tight, give it another 5-10 years (9171 views) | |
| Tasted by MikeATL on 6/26/1999: A very polarizing wine, with licorice, candied black fruit, and noticeable oak and an odd hay aroma dominating the nose. It is very sweet, but also quite tannic. Some people liked it a lot, others weren’t so sure, as it has an unusual character. (5343 views) | |
| Tasted by mdefreitas on 9/18/1998 & rated 94 points: Pre Auction Wine Tasting w/ 1994 Harlan (NYC): BIG nose of cassis, herbs, leather and interesting funky scents (in a good way). Nice minerally finish, but I couldn't help noticing a bit of heat on the nose and palate. (11110 views) | |
| Tasted by sdr on 4/1/1997 & rated 88 points: Deep center, orange rim. Very dense. Very good. But certainly no the flair or excitement of a (RMP) 100 point wine. (5577 views) | |
| Tasted by bestdamncab on 7/20/1994 & rated 90 points: 1990 Bordeaux Tasting of 6 Red Wines (Walnut Creek, Ca.): Nose of sweet candy fruit and fruit, nice, simple, fruity taste, los of orange zest on the nose and palate, high acid, faded during the tasting due to poor storage, nice finish. My #4 and Group #5. (3252 views) |
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Château MontroseProducer website – Read more about Chateau MontroseThis was acquired In 1778 as part of the Calon estate, by Etienne Théodore Dumoulin. After his death, his son, (also Etienne Théodore Dumoulin) cleared the vegetation and discovered the soil beneath was gravelly and suitable for the vine. Planting was completed by 1815 with good results. By 1820, Dumoulin had expanded the vineyard and built a small chateau. This vineyard has changed hands many times over the years. New equipment in 1975, and again in 1985, and a new barrel cellar helped sow the seeds for Montrose's renovation, which reached a peak in about 2000 with some excellent wines. The estate and the wines were enjoying a great reputation when, in 2006, it changed hands once more when Martin & Oliver Bouygues bought the vineyard. The vineyard is currently 65 hectares with 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The wines go into oak, 70% new for eighteen months for the Grand Vin Chateau Montrose (typically 19,000 cases per annum). Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico. FranceVins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings 2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest" 2019 vintage reports 2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage." 2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.com BordeauxBordeaux Wine GuideVins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux) History of Bordeaux History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification "2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson "2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman "The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson "2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson "In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon Rimmerman MédocVins du Médoc (Conseil des Vins du Médoc) - Read More about the MedocVdB The eight precisely defined appellations of the whole of the Médoc (from Blanquefort Brook to the north of the Bordeaux built-up area, almost to the Pointe de Grave) may claim the Médoc appellation. But there is also a specific territory in the north of the peninsula which produces exclusively wines with this appellation. In the great majority, the Médocs come from the north of the peninsula. The great individuality of this region is that the number of vines has increased more recently here than elsewhere, apart from a few isolated spots where vines have grown for many years. Today, the size of the small estate has brought about the development of a powerful co-operative movement. Four co-operatives out of five belong to the group called Unimédoc which ensures aging, bottling and marketing a large proportion of their wines. St. EstèpheRead more about St. Estephe and its wines Whereas the first activity recorded in Saint-Estèphe goes back as far as the Middle Bronze Age, the first vines date from the Roman Occupation. But it was the Bordeaux merchants who by aging and selling Saint-Estèphe wines themselves were largely responsible for this appellation's fame. And in the nineteenth century, noted for its prosperity, the great estates of today were created. The movement continues today with the merging of small estates.A land of great wines, Saint-Estèphe is situated almost in the centre of the Médoc, close to the Gironde Estuary. The appellation is equidistant from Bordeaux and the Pointe de Grave. The beds of soil are characterized by their remarkable diversity, the result of their undulating relief and excellent drainage. Quartz and well-rounded pebbles mingled with light, sandy surface soil are found everywhere, giving the wines a distinctive finesse. And the subsoil is made up of the famous Saint-Estèphe limestone, which outcrops on the west of the commune. Tasting Thanks to ideal conditions of climate and geology, Saint-Estèphe wines are characterized by their sturdy qualities and robust constitution. Accordingly, they can be laid down for a very long time while yet preserving their youth and freshness. Distinguished by a subsoil which is more clayey than that in the other communal appellations which lie by the river, the wine here attains a distinctive individuality : a very rich tannic structure, a fine deep red colour and an exceptional backbone with aromas of great finesse. Production conditions (Decree dated September 11, 1936): In order to have the right to the Saint-Estèphe appellation of controlled origin, red wines must: - come from the communes of Saint-Estèphe, "excluding any parcels in that area which are situated on recent alluvium and sand on impermeable subsoils", - satisfy precise production conditions : grape-varieties (Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet-Franc, Carmenère, Merlot Noir, Petit Verdot, Cot or Malbec), minimum of sugar (178 grammes - 6.27 oz. - per litre of must) degree (an acquired 10°5) base yield (45 hectolitres per hectare). |