Chateau Montrose vertical

I’m glad to join this vertical tasting of Chateau Montrose, from vintage 2003 – 2009, conducting by with the new technical director, Nicolas Glumineau (a charming, humble and knowledgeable gentleman). This is simply the most comprehensive, educational tasting to understand the wines of Chateau Montrose.

Montrose has been very consistent year in year out, even a so-called weak vintage 2007 is a lovely wine. The highlight of course is on the last flight: the legendary trio - 2003, 2005 & 2009. Both 2003 & 2005 is stunning but the 2009 is simply out of this world. Time to get some!

• 2004 Château Montrose 88 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 13%
  Beautiful dak ruby red with light purplish rim, not a sign of bricking or brownish. The nose is quite with smoke, pencil lead, tobacco, cedar, ash, blackcurrant, blackberry and touch of spiciness, this is indeed very expressive. High acid entry with good dose of new wood but quickly buffered by sweet dark fruits at the background. A little bit lean but this has lots of power beneath. Light to medium level of fine grained, but a little bit hard tannin for better grip with dark chocolate and roasted coffee bean bitterness toward the long lingering finish with spicy aftertaste. With time, this wine showing more lushness and completeness. Good to drink now and will last at least another decade or more. 88

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• 2006 Château Montrose 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 12.5%
  The aroma profile here is a little bit tighter and darker. Intense aromas of savoury meatiness and mint intermixed with blackberry, tobacco and ink. This has better intensity and concentration than the 2004 with bright acidity and firm but very fine tannin backbone. Overall this is more complete wine that the 2004 with decent depth and scale. This too has very good acid grip and lushness on the long finish with mineral, touch of spiciness, bitter sweet cocoa and dark chocolate. Yet another beautiful wine that is drinking well, though not as well as the 04 now but the material here is more complete and will eventually surpass the 2004 in years to come. 90-92+

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• 2007 Château Montrose 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol ::12.5%
  Bright and delicate on the nose with more direct aromatic, very different compared to the previous bottle. Pencil shaving, red and dark fruits, floral, brown sugar and mineral, not big scale but intense. This is delicious! Good freshness, transparency, sweetness of red and dark fruits for the light lush mouth feel. This has better complexity and concentration than 04 and noticeably silkier tannin. The medium level of silky, firm tannin already integrated well together with the fine acid backbone. Finished is long with mineral, milk chocolate and cocoa aftertaste. Pretty! This still needs several years to reach full maturity. 90-92+

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• 2008 Château Montrose 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 13%
  The nose is tighter with intense spiciness at the background, sweet dark and red fruits in the core accompany by smoke, pencil leads all wrapped in a serious, mocha like package. Full bodied, tannic and structured but very fine and not intrusive at all. Not perfectly polish but this has good roundness with endless layer of sweet dark fruits, tobacco, sandalwood and mineral. I especially like the transparency and freshness of this juice. This is a delicious, well made juice that offers very long finish with finesse. The harmony here is better than the last showing (perhaps from a proper tasting instead of standing with small portion), lovely! 91-93

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• 2009 Château Montrose 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 14%
  Wow wow wow! This is absolutely gorgeous. The finest, most seductive Montrose I have ever had (the best young Bordeaux and definitely one of the best Bordeaux too!), simply off the chart. To emphasize that, this is a complete wine even at this age with incredibly finesse and class and most of us thought this was a better wine than both 2003 & 2005. As expected the nose is still pretty tight but deep and complex: mineral, tobacco, cigar box, sandalwood with underlying sweet dark fruits and violet. Full bodied, incredible depth and complexity bring out by endless layer of succulent sweet dark fruits, cheese, sandalwood, mocca, mineral and tobacco. Everything is in the right place for the best harmony. This is so lush and exotic in the mouth with stunning richness, purity and inner perfume of violet and roses, yet doesn't lack of the freshness, elegance and finesse. The long finish is unreal! I can’t help but ask for more. 96-97+

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• 2005 Château Montrose 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 13%
  I was surprised how expressive the nose was: the aroma is nothing but exotic and complex: tobacco, sandalwood, smoke meat, leather, creme de cassis, blackcurrant liquor, mushroom and floral at the background. Structured, highly intense and powerful but well delineated and refine. This has superb sappiness on the palate with endless layer of sweet dark fruits, mineral and dry extract all wrapped in an ultra fine package. Massive level of tannin here, but the tannin is chewy, sweet along with firm polished structured that will permit it to continue evolve for the next 2decades. The finish was a little bit tight but offer better juiciness and great length when it opened up more. 94-95

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• 2003 Château Montrose 92 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Alcohol :: 13%
  The nose is sweet and seductive the complex aromas of mocha, blackcurrant liquor, perfume violet and lily, graphite, smoke meat and tobacco leaf. 2003 is a really hot year hence some of the wines suffered from high alcohol and lack of freshness. However, this is not the case for Montrose. The 2003 has massive concentration of succulent sweet ripe fruits but has this incredible purity and freshness for the lift and definition. The palate is superb intense, powerful but well rounded and lush. The tannin here is massive but it is sweet and polished that expand across the palate with incredible grip and dimension. The finish is a bit disjointed and turned a little bit softer than 05 & 09 which also display charming sweetness of dark fruits and mocha like aftertaste. This will need decade in the bottle to develop. 92-94+?

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