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 dark red color; slightly restrained bouquet of cassis and other red and dark berries; aristocratic texture well-balanced by a juicy acidity. 91-92/100
8 years since my last bottle. This was late at night but this has come together beautifully. Much more resolved than previously, this has wood spices on the nose and then layered dark fruit on the palate. Excellent freshness. Hard to believe that this was still only 12.5% given the density on the palate. Tannins fully integrated. Good length too. In its peak drinking window. 93-94
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I definitely liked this bottle. First glass PnP at restaurant, the rest of the bottle was cleaned and decanted. Drunk over an 1h or so. This Montrose impresses for its elegance and finesse. Since the first sip you can understand the touch of the grand vin, even tho it’s far from the muscular character we are used to with this boy. Underbrush and tilled Forrest soil with a frame of Dried blackcurrant and raspberries expressing a sense of sandiness. Blind I would never called Montrose but have to say that the sand was present and evident. Driving good minds to the right lido up north of Medoc. What I loved about this bottle is that an hour after lunch - after coffee and a sip of delicious Rhum - I could still perceive the taste of this Montrose coming from my stomach. I’m a good sense. Wired to hear I know but it was actually a very nice feeling. Really enjoyed it.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
PnP but drank over 2hr. Black center with crimson bricked edges.
On open, full of VA, so much so that I thought this was DOA. However, it blew off after 30 min. Mushroom, saddle leather, soy, black soil, touch of concentrated cola on the nose. The palate had bright red cherry, red raspberry, sweet citrus, and a gorgeous medium length finish. Plenty of acid to go the distance, but not sure this gets better.
Paired perfectly with Morgan Ranch wagyu kabobs in a gravy over baked rosemary red potato cakes.
Oh no! on open, 91 after 30 min, 92 after 45 min and held there.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Splash decanted an hour. Very nice wine that drinks fine now but not in the league with the best of Montrose. Not in decline but I would be drinking now even though it is more about the primary blue fruit than anything else. B+/A-
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
drinking well now but can still mature further if kept well. has still a good grip and silky mouthfeel. this bottle not especially fragrant vs what i expected else would rate higher.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
The very last bottle of a case of 12 bought EP. Open for business, well balanced, some very fine grained tannin left, a great bottle. Refined, fruity, complex, and long. In good storage conditions, this will probably last a few more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pretty tight upon opening. Even 2 hours later this was rather shy. Had the typical back fruit with some Smokey highlights. Tannins rather fine and in check to the fruit. Just not quite to maturity. Best to hold and wait for further development. Acidity rather sharp This was a clean bottle.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
9th of 24, opened an hour then decanted 2, perfect cork and level, tannins more apparent at expense of fruit, fine structure and balance as ever, marginal downgrade as not up to best bottles, enough of everything here to bounce back, 10+ years. F+ (18)......probably worth limiting decant to an hour as elegant fruit more apparent on opening.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Verhaltene Nase. braucht etwas Zeit, dunkle Frucht, Gewürze, Rauch, Lakritze. Im Gaumen dicht, straff, gradlinig, knackige Frucht, feinkörniges, noch markantes Tannin, die Säure ist stimmig, die Balance stimmt, knackig, rassig und mit sehr guter Länge im Abgang ist das ein klarer "Geheimtipp" in einem unterschätzten Jahr. Hier kommt noch mehr. Bis 2034+ www.vvwine.ch
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened 3 hours ahead - Red fruit, leather and cedar on the nose - best after a short decant. Nicely integrated palate with red and Cassis fruits, very good structure with some secondary flavors of earth cedar and spice. Ready now but should last several years before decline. 94 points
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Maybe not at the apex but really delicious with a 60 minute decant. I’d quite happily drink these now while acknowledging that a further decade would likely amp up the intensity. Loads of graphite, red and blue fruits, sandalwood and leather. Plenty of heft on the palate but with a streak of acidity to keep everything in line. Drink or hold.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted and enjoyed over an Italian style dinner of stuffed pasta shells. Wine has aged well and still exhibited a very nice aroma. Smooth and flavorful with a nice, somewhat muted, fruity finish. Paired well with our meal.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
10 years after Riesling tasting - 2012 (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Sophienwald Universal Tasted double blind. Clear, deep ruby color. Beautiful left bank BDX nose, cool, spicy and herbaceous. On the palate a beautiful tension, fine, high tannin, lots of fine red fruit, silky texture. Dense and long. Very nice. 92-93
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was delicious, but it was all tertiary notes of forest floor, mushroom, and the like. Tannins completely resolved. Will open another in near future to see if the ageing profile was unique to this bottle or not. Had not opened one since 2018.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 2 hours, still fresh, with scents of graphite, tobacco and raspberry on the nose, lean, balanced, classy and elegant, fine structure, bright acid, flavors include hints of cherry, raspberry, dried herbs, cacao and bay leaf, drinking fine now, still fresh with a long life ahead
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Third time I taste 2001. -First time January 2020: My conclusion was: Outstanding. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94/100 -Second time Aug 2021: This time my rating was not close to that level: Extremely closed. 91/100 -To day: Back on track: A fantastic experience. Tannins under control but still clearly felt on the gums as it should be. Lots of tertiary notes but also primary notes including green bell pepper. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94/100.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
8th of 24, opened 2 hours then decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, back on top form after last dodgy bottle in April 20, starting to show signs of maturity on rim, fine and complex flavours in nose and mouth, quite expansive and notably persistent, fresh and showing 01s' splendid balance, some upside and long life ahead. F+ (18)........I think these 01s, where there's enough volume to the fruit as here and proper tannic underpinning, will surprise the pundits with their longevity!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nice nose of cedar wood, cèpes de Bordeaux, a bit closed still, red cherries... Very concentrated fruit, red and black cherries, nice integrated tannin, lenght of 30 sec.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
See my prior note. Did not improve with time and completely faded by day 2. Overall disappointing especially out of magnum. Will definitely try one of my few 750’s soon
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Out of Magnum stored in my cellar since release. Perfect cork and ullage. Right away classic St Estephe with red fruits and earthiness. Decanted 2.5 hrs and has lost most of its oomph and fruit quite faded. Some barnyard to the nose. Back in bottle for Xmas dinner with friends. Not sure if it shut down or just mature or past mature. Will post a follow up note.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Completely restrained in comparison to the others . Opened with a shake decant two hours before drinking. Forest floor, wet forest, touch of cherries, some herbs, completely restrained, yet elegant in and of itself. Unfortunately with the family palates this finished last and I enjoyed most by myself. Interested to try this again with a proper decant and consumption conditions.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Quick decant before dinner. Good not great wine with slight sourness to fruit but might also reflect only 1-2 hour decant. Red fruits and good acid. I suspect would have been fuller with more time
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Have tasted this vintage three times over the past five years. It is now fully mature and it will stay in this wonderful plateau for another 5-10 years. First glass was pop n pour and then I decanted the rest to enjoy over the course of a two hour dinner. Straight out of the bottle it was incredibly intense containing everything I love about left bank Bordeaux. As time went on, the intensity softened and it evolved into a lovely lady with very round tannins and finesse. To be honest, I preferred it straight out of the bottle, but I also like my Bordeaux to hit me in the face. Delicious mature Montrose!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nice cherry and dark fruit nose with the usual Montrose melange of cedar, oak, spice, leather, but not really asserting itself (at least not yet). Moderately acidic and tannic. Tannins really pronounced on the finish. We'll see where it goes in the future.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
94. 2 hour decant. Not going to skimp on the rating, really enjoyed this classic Bordeaux. Touch of leather, graphite and dried flowers on the nose. Smooth velvety balanced mid palate bursting with blackcherry fruit and a long layered finish. Last bottle. I bought this back in 2008 based on the praise from that Robert Parker group that held blind tastings, remember them?
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Lovely, classic Bordeaux that is mature and drinking nicely now. Doesn't have the depth of the 2000, but the tannins are silky smooth and the balance is fine allowing the fruit to show.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I love Montrose. i think the 1990 is one of the greatest Bordeaux wines ever made. Alas i only have one bottle. In weaker years they tend to still make very acceptable and affordable wines. Whilst this 2001 is not in the class of 2000 or 2003 as its closest siblings it was a monumental effort for the vintage. Some colour development on the edge and a nice brick red with crimson center it is therefore clearly ready to go but will hold at least another 10. It is a little new world in structure and palate and harder to pick as a Bordeaux blind apart from clear Cabernet based fruit. it is rich and sweet and lush in the mouth and would be a superb match with slow cooked lamb. Drink up but no rush. Yummo
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted first time January 2020. Back then i concluded: More rustic than Leoville Las Cases 2004 but nevertheless almost as good as Las Cases. Outstanding. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94
This time my rating was not close to that level: Extremely closed and non complex. It was decanted 2 hours before and the decanter as well as the glasses were swirled for quite some time. It helped a little. The nose opened up a little but still not complex. The palate remained closed. Aromas of violet and too much cedar from the oak (not integrated yet). Lesson learned: Keep in cellar for many years! If you really need a bottle decant it many hours before. I am fully aware that Montrose is wellknown for its rusticity and need for ageing. My 12 wines are from the same OWC - seems like there are huge bottle differences as the former bottle was outstanding even though of course youthful.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
A great bottle from a vintage that is very good but not amazing. Still displays a fairly dark red with tinges of purple coming out of the bottle. We drank undecanted (following advice of other reviews) and it was a good call. On the nose, there are beautiful elements of charcoal, earth, tobacco, and dark fruit. The palate is a bit more austere but well structured with tannin still present and a core backbone of fruit holds up the wine nicely. Typical barnyard elements present the whole way through. My only slight complaint is that after about two hours the fruit faded just a touch, but not enough to detract from the score. Just a terrific expression of Bordeaux, as always.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This 2001 drinks very well right now in its first stage of maturity with expressive tertiary aromas paired with pure sweet fruit. It is not a vintage with a lot of depth but it‘s so much fun and easily drinking on a 93/94 point level these days.
TN: The nose is a bit shy but on the palate the wine sings with layers of red berries, sweet, fresh and pure paired with lots of tobacco, truffles and graphite and gravel minerality. Not so deep but what is there is in HD and ending in a long finish All is embedded in a fine structure with fine tannins a good freshness and airy and slightly creamy texture. Very harmonious and balanced.
Decanting: Not decanted and it was good from the go. No extensive decanting needed.
Glass: Gabriel
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
- Brick color with slow forming legs. It's in total harmony and has flavours of blackberry, black currant, cherry, chocolate and licorice anise with a medium body. Juicy texture with a short finish - Beautiful nose to say the least. Dark raspberries, cherries and licorice. This wine is ready to drink.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Looking at a note from 2007 I felt it was really well made and balanced but the latest bottle tasted a bit too earthy and dirty. Huge concentrated and still very dark but just a bit all over the place. Probably a not great bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
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: Dark and blue berry fruit, lots of herbal layers, both dried and fresh, aging notes only around the edges with a bit of leather and sous-bois. Pretty wild palate, plenty of acidity and mouth-coating tannins. Again a proper decant is definitely needed. In direct comparison with the 1989 next to it this came in second.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Second time with this. Notes are similar to my first experience, except what’s more amplified is that I wish it showed more fruit (missing what I love in older, pre-Parker Napa). This got pretty overwhelmed in the lineup of Bernaudeau and red Burg. As Steven says, “Bored-whoa.”
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Old school. Loved the nose on this. Tobacco, lead, leather, dark red fruit, some cedar. For an 01, it reminded me of some 90s Napa. Doesn't have the smoothness and energy on the palate you might get from a classic Napa, but if you're looking for a Bordeaux stalwart that's drinking nicely, this is it.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep crimson to a garnet edge. An initial pong on the first pour and then bouquet opens to moist earth, button mushroom and truffle, all indicating some evolution. The decanted wine, after 10 minutes, gave a little more pencil shaving, ink and cedarwood. Full-bodied, there is a relatively high acid on entry with a firm texture, lemon, crayon, wet earth and a little fruit in the mid-palate that gives a margin of flesh. The tannins grip hard to a puckering feeling even at 20 years old whilst a distinct savoury, mineral thread runs through the wine. The wine felt a little 1-dimensional and challenging to drink. Quite a hefty wine, and showing some concentration, there is little succour for the palate, and the wine feels somewhat edgy and densely packed with the acid making the wine extremely dry. Old school, with a medium finish, I hoped for a little more.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted 2 hours. Still primary coming up on age 20 but very pleasant Bodeaux that goes well with food and on its own. Dark blue fruits, some earth, but still mostly primary fruit but tannin integrated and drinking well. I do still think it will improve with age but with enough air (ideally 3 hours) this drinks well now. Should do a blind tasting one day with this and the '01 Dominus, Montelena, Monte Bello, and LLC...A-
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I like this a good deal better than many. This bottle was opened 4 hours before serving and decanted 2 hours in advance. While I don’t see this winning a blind tasting among Bordeaux’s best, I can’t imagine how this could be much better at the dinner table. The color is deep ruby - garnet has given way. The nose is classic with sweet cassis, leather, stones and a hint of funk. Not ostentatious but not shy either. You can smell the vineyard dusted in cinnamon and spice. Medium bodied, sweet and resolved. Certainly in secondary development. There is a tannic bite on the finish which portends to many years of future enjoyment. I love this style of wine. (94)
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
62% cab sauv, 36% merlot, 1% cab franc and 1% petit verdot. Black fruits, tobacco. Quite savoury. Opened up nicely over the night. The 2001 Bordeaux are in a sweet spot now. 91/92
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Right after opening the bottle, the wine shows a rather surprising animal note with barnyard character and ham. I gave it just 1 hour in the decanter - and it was perfect: A very ripe and animal nose with a hint of meat sauce, on the palate very very silky with all tannins molten away, but still enough strenght and fruit with a nice raspberry finish. I did not expect much of this one - but I loved it! (After 6 to 8 hours in the decanter it has lost quite a bit of its complexity, so I would not air it for more than 1 hour)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Opened, tasted, and decided it was not going well at all with the dish we had. It was still at cellar temperature, and showing extremely lean. So stoppered and not drunk. It is now day 2, the wine has had some air and is at a good serving temperature of 17-18°. Nice mature complex nose, dark fruit, a bit of menthol and graphite. Soft attack, lean mid-palate lacking plush, taste with quite a bit of tannin about. Long finish. This wine is still rather austere. Not quite sure where this is going, I'll take the risk and wait another year or two for the next one.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Needed several hours to open up. Continues to show a bit more barnyard character compared to other recent vintages. Expressive nose, a bit of flint, smoke, considerable funk. Palate is integrated, mostly soft with some tannin in the background. Moderate fruit notes, seems on the mature “tired” side if anything. Moderate length. Not an exceptional vintage from Montrose.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Concentrated bouquet with dark fruit ripe (brambly and cherry), undergrowth, pencil shavings and tobacco. On the palate, medium-bodied and balanced with the acidity well tamed, tannins integrated and alcohol unremarkable. Good length. Ready in my view but can obviously age further without issues
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Some basic notes. But really just quietly enjoyed drinking this bottle. Garnet in colour. Some blackberries and dried cherries. Medium tannic hit (a touch grainy). Medium acidity. Definitely getting tertiary notes … leather, tobacco, and a touch of savoury on the end. Very nice wine. Maybe was expecting more, but I'm not sure what I wanted more of.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
45th birthday - gollygosh, time runs doesn't it.....
Pours dark and youthful looking. Opaque. Graphite and cassis. A bit of fig. Nothing very haunting though. This aristocrat has his buttons all done up. Higher-toned and zesty aspect. Palate poised between stern and supple. Perhaps verging on the stern. Zingy acids, ripe cassis fruit. Very dry and bitter herb finish. I know it's not Pauillac, but it's very *obviously* not as the direction is the opposite, if that makes sense. Zesty again. Perhaps the dry finish and tannins are a bit clumsy. Perhaps the texture is too much like an iceberg (frigid, unyielding, slightly unfriendly, but certainly stately) Perhaps showing that 2001 was not amazingly ripe. Perhaps a smidgen of alcohol protruding - though this is only 12.5% (why aren't all reds around that???). Perhaps the nose isn't as generous and captivating as it could be. Perhaps it's too young:
Certainly I thought it had more promise 10 years ago, but the fruit has now subsided somewhat, leaving the structure a bit stern. The "mature" notes we want with this aren't there yet, but waiting for them could also risk the fruit simply evaporating.
I paid £50 a few years ago, which feels ok. The £90 now isn't. Go get the Dame de Montrose 2010 ;)
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was a magnum opened 45 minutes prior to serving. It was very approachable with the tannins smoothed out and aromas of blackberries, plums, light smoke and earth.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Back to Riesling County; 8/27/2020-8/31/2020 (Estates at the Nahe and Ruwer, different restaurants at Bad Kreuznach, Niederhausen and Trier): Back in our hotel that evening for dinner, rummaging in their fantastic wine list again, first gone to HB 2005, the waiter couldn't find, and so on, at last I am walking the 8 meter fridge wall and wait, one lonely bottle upstairs, luckily I am 1,94 cm tall, choose this one, pnp, strong fragrance of earth, truffles, black cassis, fine tobacco, no decant, always want to see how a nearly 20 years old bottle will show just after pouring, good grip, tight, but really accessible, rich, elegant flow over the mid palate, some still grainy tannin in the background, but blows off after an hour open, long aftertaste, great bottle tonight, will hold easily another decade in this condition.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (62%), Merlot (34%), Petit Verdot (3%) and Cabernet Franc (1%). 12,5% alcohol. Decanted for 1 hour and drunk over another hour or two. Tasted alongside Calon-Segur 2001 and rather underwhelming Leoville-Barton 2001.
Dark, somewhat translucent blackish-red color with a dried-blood hue. Aromas of ripe blackcurrant, some wizened dark fruits, a little bit of leather, light woody notes of pencil shavings, oaky hints ranging from cedar to almost buttery diacetyl and a touch of ripe red cherry. The wine is dry, moderately evolved and slightly tough on the palate with nuanced, savory flavors of wizened dark fruits, some sour cherry bitterness, a little bit of ripe blackcurrant, light oaky notes of mocha and toasty wood, a hint of sweet pruney fruit and a matured touch of sous-bois. Nicely structured overall feel with the balanced, moderately high acidity and quite firm tannins that still lend a healthy grip to the gums. The finish is ripe, long and somewhat grippy with layered flavors of wizened blackcurrants, some plummy red fruit, a little bit of brooding, slightly chocolatey oak, light woody notes of pencil shavings and a juicy hint of cherries.
A sophisticated and harmonious Montrose that shows quite a bit of ripe, juicy fruit. In a good spot in the sense the wine is starting to show some age, but is nevertheless quite youthful for a wine clocking at 19 years. However, I think the wine could really benefit from further aging, as it really hasn't evolved enough to show real tertiary complexity and the oak still shows quite a bit, albeit not overwhelming anything. Structurally the wine is in a perfect spot, as it retains quite a bit of structure, so it can stand up to even heartier dishes, but has resolved enough to be drinking nicely on its own as well. Stylistically this felt very similar to the 2001 Calon-Segur that was tasted alongside, perhaps showing a bit more resolution and a bit less power. All in all, a fine, classic Bordeaux - more in the style of ripe old-school Bordeaux than "a proper claret" - but perhaps a bit pricey for the quality at 85,20€.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Signature mature left bank aromas sing from the glass. Black cherry, anise, cedar, iron, forest floor, with dusty tannin. Very much St. Estephe. Surprisingly fully mature at 19 years of age, when Montrose typically takes 30 years to come around. Excellent!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This 2001 Montrose was more fragrant standing next to the blockbuster Clos Erasmus Priorat 1996 and Solaia 2011. Interestingly the Montrose 01 appeared slightly green compared with the ultra-ripe Clos Erasmus, though I doubt anyone would notice any green / vegetal note without comparing with the ripe and concentrated Priorat. Tasted blind – Dark and low pitched. We knew one of the three reds were a Solaia, I thought this was it.. (89/100)
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I've seen some variation in this wine over the years; some times a little foursquare, other times a fine example of structure and polish. Fortunately this showing falls in the latter category. This is elegance in a glass: not showy, no sharp edges, a veneered low key mid-palate drying out to long tannins. No doubt this is a food wine, a beef wine. The pairing is mesmeric, and I can only hope my last bottle is boxing in the same ring.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
7th of 24, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level - not a patch on previous bottles, thinner, fruit muted and apparently in decline, earth flavours prominent, drinkable curiously with some pleasure but an outlier out of line with previous bottles, just a suggestion on exit of being lightly corked which may explain matters. on basis of what's in the glass just about G (15).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Just over 7 years since my last TN on this wine. Still a very dark colour, a mere hint of bricking at the edges. Beautiful complex nose with menthol, some spice and fruit - red or black, difficult to say. Fresh attack, some fine grained tannins in the medium-bodied taste and finish. Has evident potential to go further and fully resolve the tannins. A tad dryish on the back end. Definitely a food wine. And you know what: a wine from before the onset of climate change, this is from an average Bordeaux vintage, it is fresh and NOT 14% or more. What a relief!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Finally this wine is where I want ir. I have found it overly acidic and not fully integrated in the last 3 years. But with a 4h decant I now think it has good balance. Not an outstanding vintage but very pleasing combination of spice and fruit on the attack, a very fresh mid palate and decently long finish. Happy I have a few of these.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
To me it’s a typical representative of the 2001 vintage. Very spicy, with spicy aromas and flavors of cinnamon and tart black fruits and berries. Strong structure, mid-to-long finish, but a bit missing on the mid palate, not over-exciting
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted blind. Mid-mature (ca. 15 years was most people's guess) Medoc nose with earthy and forest floor notes. Also here the palate could benefit from some more fruit. On the acidic side.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ready to go, this is starting to drink well with a couple of hours in the decanter. Possessing a deep nose full of red cherry, plum, and vanilla, the palate is well balanced and showing complex notes. The finish is decent, but over tannic and the barrier to a higher rating.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep garnet to mahogany rim. Classic bouquet of damp earth, dried blackcurrant, black plum, wet spices and oak. Medium to full-bodied, this feels brooding, deep and quite tight. Fine fresh acidity with a chewy texture the wine has wonderful depth of fruit and concentration of flavour. Robust but fine tannins that still need plenty of time to resolve. Black fruits, earth, cassis, dried herbs, roasted meat all make for a solid, if a little surly wine. The finish is long. Needs more time in bottle.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
An easy afternoon with close friends; Bordeaux (@ FD): Deep bouquet with red berries, cherries, earth, vanilla and herbs and spices. On the palate firm acidity, herbs and spices, cherries, red and dark berries, fairly sticky tannin still. Juicy wine. Showing some maturity and development, but I think it can easily last another 5+ years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Double decanted about three hours. Fine mid ruby. Lots of elegance, a bit firm. Plenty of red and black berries, sandalwood, a bit of earthiness. Good length. Think this will benefit from more time and open up more. But suspect it would have been more impressive on its own. Still a bit square and tight.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 2 hours Intense but refined bouquet with dark fruit and charcoal although tertiary notes not as developed yet. Delicious in the mouth with more dark fruit, very fine tannins with a hint of bitterness. Mouth-coating but elegant and juicy. Powerful finish. This is good ! Could obviously be kept for years to come but I doubt i will have the discipline to do so.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
In a great spot. Charcoal, animal funk, and currants on the nose. Fine tannins on the palate with black fruit. A bit bitter on transition into the finish but the lushness of the merlot really rounds out the palate. Nice length on the finish. This has integrated very well. More depth than expected for an ‘01.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Lots of mineral and iron, dried herbs, dark fruit. I can feel the power back there, but hasn't blossomed yet. A bit stiff. This is still not ready. Good length. Nice pretty floral element too, a bit buried now but will come out eventually. Drink with red meat after a long decant or wait another 3-5 years for this to start to shine. Will never be a big blockbuster, but I expect this to be a wonderful, structured, well built wine in time.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
We drank 4 bottle One was off Each of the other bottles, all great, was slightly different: talk about bottle variation. One was more ethereal The rest more typical montrose/st estephe
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
1.5 L - Wine is middle mature, still tannins to be softened. Acidity is delivering a nice mouth feel. Fruits are dark, cherry plum, also tobacco and a note of leather.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I will not rate this. In my view this wine has been in a difficult phase for years (tannic for sure, and I think also a bit unbalanced with too much acidity). However I saw several notes (Papies in particular who I think has terrific judgement) in the last few months that indicated that perhaps it was opening up. Not so for this bottle. The one we tried was exactly the same as 2-3 years ago. I had double decanted it in the morning and let it slow-ox over the day, but that made no impression on it whatsoever. A bit "gritty" and still very much on the acidic side (albeit superb on the nose). To be sure that my palate just was not off, I tasted it on day 2 against its 1996 sibling, which was terrific, so if my palate is flawed it at least is not more than usually so. I worry a little that here will not be enough fruit in there to ever get it in balance. Possibly they tried to make a bigger wine than the vintage allowed (maybe inspired by their effort the year before). On the other hand, the early tasting notes of this wine were unanimously positive, and that is generally a very good indicator of how it will end up, so I will wait and not touch my remaining bottles for a few more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for a good hour. Montrose dependable quality, understated elegance and excitement. Minerality, good fruit, nice secondary touches, classic feel of St Estephe. A touch on the thinner side of ripeness and does give a dry feeling at times but the wine is super solid and for lovers of classic Bordeaux like us will do the trick. Solid 92-93
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
I have to admit, the 2001 Chateau Montrose is the biggest surprise of the year so far, not only it entered the earlier phase of maturity, but also it opens itself to the nature of its aristocracy, stunning me in every possible way! It evolves in such a gracious pace and of course with dignity! Once you uncork the bottle, you immediately sense the majestic nose, black fruits dominated along with a hint of sweetness, have to take a few moments to sense all the alluring and yet subtle aromas! It is still very dark ruby in colour, palate is sweet and full, the structure is well and present! As I said earlier, in the early phase of maturity, will definitely improve and refine in the coming years, hope to revisit again in five years time! Pure and very well made and a bit old-school which I adore!
6th of 24, pnp, perfect cork and level, on plateau of early maturity, attractive, but needs to fill and round out which I would expect to happen over the next 5 years before entering a long prime drinking period. Whether it will match the grace and sheer delight of the outstanding Rausan S 90 on same night I doubt, but nonetheless F+ (18).
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Weekly tasting group RWP #290: Bordeaux Vertical and Horizontal (@ VD): Beautiful bouquet with clearly cabernet (bell pepper) impressions. Luxurious oak, cedar, autumn impressions and some mint. On the palate firm acidity, some red currants and other red as well as dark berries, earth, beautiful acidity and slightly sticky tannin. A lot of deposit in the bottle. 93+
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
On the nose, very earthy, black fruits, some cassis, and cedar. Very classic in the mouth, restrained but with the flavors on the nose blending together with good acidity behind it. Medium-long finish. Loved it with dinner x 2.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Furugulv, frukt-tobakk, lær, og dyp rødlig plomme. Tobakks toner møter deg i munn, etterfulgt av saftig frukt og en ettersmak med ekstra gear. Noe brå i midtpartiet. Vinens alder og friske struktur fornemmer følelsen av å sitte behagelig, men ikke slakt.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
With J&J at 67PM. This had a 2 hour decant and it benefitted greatly from that. There was a graphite character that reminded me of a red graves, but more prominent was beautiful dark fruit. Tannins seemed to come back a bit at the end of the bottle, but this is drinking very nicely with a proper decant. Seems set for a good 10 years of drinking.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Herbs, tobacco, an impression of wood, red fruit, still has power, relatively light-coloured. Rather classic bordeaux-profile, but a bit of atypical unfriendly acidity creeping through and somewhat disturbing the full picture.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Elegant nose with strawberry, tobacco and spices. In the mouth spices, red fruits, red berries, the fruit is showing a cool vintage, lacking a bit of matter, the acidity is very prominent and almost unlike Bordeaux, long aftertaste, good wine but not the best vintage ever for Montrose
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Restrained on the nose, dark fruit, spices, tobacco. On the palate spicy and fresh, again quite tight and grippy. Ripe but powerful tannins. Very good length. Needs time. 91-92+
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
This wine has sat in my cellar for 5 years since my last taste. Don't ask me why. This is from a Coravin taste, so I did not benefit from a full decant. There is still a lot fruit, but all rounded out with a woodsy, earthy tone that is indicative of older bordeaux. Dark fruit, graphite, spice. The tannins are still very much in place, so it has the chops to go longer. But, it's drinking very well now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
still too young. opening before 2018 would be a waste of money and time, even if this montrose was bought at a relatively modest price (about $ 60). the one I opened was kind of lean, with pronounced acid and tannin levels. but I think (and hope) there's more hidden fruit behind it. I'll open another one in 2019. right now it's quite enjoyable (with meals), but not enough for this name . . . . .
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted 1 hour before drinking, to accompany rack of lamb. A sublime Bordeaux, the first impression is that it is still very young and would keep for probably 10-20 years. Despite that, it opened up quickly and provided the Bordeaux lovers at our table with a real treat. Excellent berry fruit, hedgerow, tannins perfect, length good, earthy and leathery. A real treat to drink.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
From Coravin. This is still too young and feels a bit one-dimensional as a result. Tannins are very present and it has yet to come into balance with the acidity too pronounced. I hope that the fruit will last the distance. It's still enjoyable but I will wait a few years before I try it again.
A month later I uncorked the bottle and drank it over three days. Best on the third, the tannins are still very much there but the balance with the fruit improved. Also, the pronounced acidity mellowed into a spicy impression, pretty nice in fact. Raise rating to 92
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dense opaque ruby/red color, red rim, surprisingly youthful looking. The nose shows a greater level of maturity and integration. Bottle age, Cabernet essence, blue fruit, clove, and plum are just a few of the nuances, along with hints of leather and vanilla. A lovely fresh nose overall. On the palate, this is a classic style claret - cassis, leather, lead pencil, dried thyme. It is complex and tasty, although it lacks a bit of weight compared to some other Montrose vintages. Very good Bordeaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Not decanted. Consumed over 2 nights. Still young. The first night a bit too much acidity. Second night more in balance. I guess this needs 2-3 more years in the cellar. 91+ pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very dark garnet, clear meniscus. Again the Old World style is what I notice first. Nice nose of mushroom and light herb. Black fruit at first in the mouth, but also cedar, cigar box, and herb. Tannins are noticeable on the finish. Comes across as very balanced.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beautiful and huge nose of cedar and cigar box, lead pencil, very black fruit... Still a wall of tannin, but smoothing with 2-3 hours of aeration. There is a good structure underneath, nice concentration and roasted meat finish. Great Montrose!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
In an excellent place right now. Classic Bordeaux, showing beautiful secondary notes while maintaining some nice ripe dark fruit. Impeccably balanced and overall delicious wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very youthful and fruit forward at this point in its life. Red and black fruits with a some bright acidity, but not too many of the secondary flavors showing themselves at this point.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Meaty, animal, pleasantly complex Montrose barnyard nose. Slight bricking on the edges, but still firm tannins and punchy acidity. Secondary brambly aromas, cedar, and some Pauillac cigarbox starting to come out. Just entering its prime drinking window, so no rush to consume and it should drink well for at least another 15 years. A bargain from an auction at less than $70.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
No formal notes taken. I decanted the wine for two hours around noon, poured it back into the bottle and brought it along for dinner at Elmar’s house, to drink it alongside his 2003. The wine was medium ruby in colour and offered cherry, blackberry, earthy notes, tobacco, spice, a touch of liquorice and mild ethereal notes on the nose and palate, with smooth, well-integrated tannin, lively acidity and very good length of the pleasantly dry finish. This balanced, medium-bodied Bordeaux went over the palate smoothly and very easily, yet had solid depth and substance, and paired well with a variety of food. An elegant, very drinkable expression of Bordeaux!
Compared with the 2003 that followed, both wines shared the earthiness and a mild liquorice note on the backend, but this 2001 was lighter on the palate, more drinkable and as opposed to the 2003 ready to drink now (with a solid decant), whereas the 2003 was the more concentrated wine of the two, had a darker fruit profile and will be much longer-lived, but clearly needs another seven to ten years in the cellar before entering into its optimal drinking window.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Complejo, se notan los años, carne fresca, pimientas, fruta roja bien reducida, pimienton. Buena paleta, muy conjuntado con un toque de pimiento verde reconocible.
La boca aun es algo dura, taninos, bien para comer. Buena profundidad y largura, con frescura que se agradece
Nos fuimos a un Margaux del 2000. Not too bad.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I've had several underwhelming experiences with Montrose but this was quite nice. We popped, decanted, poured, and consumed over four hours. It began with a lot of cedar and earth on the nose. Soon a lot of cherry came out and eventually the wine came into its own with lots of gentle tannins in balance. Drinking well right now with room for improvement.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Christmas Eve, drank after a 95 Pontet Canet to finish the evening. This one a birth year vintage for my youngest daughter Poured through a vinituri and drank over 2.5 hours. This was tight when first opened, not showing much for about 45 minutes...
Dark core garnet color, no real signs of age. Great nose of dark fruits, oak, savory/game notes. Palate of blackberry, plums, red currant, violets. Elegant mouthfeel, rich through the mid palate. Finishes medium/long.
My notes reflect experience after the wine started to show, really about 90 minutes in. We hadn't planned on a second bottle so this didn't get the decant it should have had. Very reticent when first opened, expressive and youthful once it starts to show. This is a gorgeous wine, aged nicely, drinking well now with many years ahead of it. A healthy decant is a MUST with this wine! It was continuing to improve 2 hours in, last sips were the best. Score goes higher in time 94+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Celebrating at the Montage Laguna Beach; 12/16/2016-12/19/2016 (Laguna Beach, CA): From a bottle purchased upon release and cellared under ideal conditions, this deep red/garnet wine (a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc) was decanted and serially sampled over the ensuing 12 hours. Not yielding much initially, it unfolds after six hours in decanter to become something special. Black currants, Bing cherries, graphite, violets and tobacco reside in a medium-bodied, freshly acidic frame. The alcohol (12.5%) is seamless and the tannins, while substantial, are very fine-grained. Dense on the mid-palate and lengthy on the back end, this is an elegant Montrose that is early in its drinking window. Enjoy it over the next decade. Drink now-2026.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 1 hour, nice cedary, dark fruits and some smoky aroma. Medium to long finish. Does have what it takes to continue to evolve, but very nice as it is now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
4th of 24, pnp, perfect cork and level, as my previous notes (6/15 and 11/14), notably concentrated for the vintage, if anything tightening and less expressive on palate than when last drunk, still a baby. Should improve on current F+ (18).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tiefes Rubinrot, sehr dunkler Kern. Tolle, schwarzbeerige Nase - plus einer Note nach rotem, reifem Spitzpaprika und Pfeffer. Am Gaumen schon offen. In einem sehr frühen Stadium offen. Opulente, süsse und dichte Frucht nach Waldbeeren, schwarzen Johannisbeeren und Herzkirschen. Etwas Honig. Ein Wahnsinnsfinale, der Wein bleibt einfach präsent, mit Bilderbuchmineralik.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Evolving and pronounced nose of black fruits (cassis) , blueberry liqueur, vanilla and tobacco.
Medium plus body and still plenty of tannin and acidity after 12 years or so in the bottle. Tastes like the essence of cabernet sauvignon- black fruit, tobacco and vanilla. The finish is definitely long.
The old saying is that "there are no great wines, only great bottles" and this one was great!. Drink now or age "indefinitely" in a cold cellar.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux Wimps (La Trompette, Chiswick): Deep ruby, narrow pale rim. Quite closed, youthful, blackcurrant. Medium/full, attractive blackcurrant fruit, tannins not overly firm but this is still quite tight. Leave. **(**)
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nose unripe plums, cedar, chocolate, fresh fruity acidity, almond, marcipan, rasberries, on the palate elegant, fine, a bit juicy, condensed nose aromas, in the finish long plums, harmonic, fantastic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A great wine with amazing purity, depth, and concentration. Still very young, but it is showing better after 2 hours in the decanter. Black fruits, licorice, iron, beef blood, and minerals dominate. Still has some baby fat on it with the tannin. Could use 5 more years for the secondary characteristics to become more pronounced. '94 Opus which we consumed side by side was showing better tonight.
Mørke bær, hint av stall som blåser bort, mandel, søtlig tobakk. God balanse, nydelig syre, kjølig i munn. Lekker tanninstruktur. Rød frukt kommer med luft.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Monthly Tuesday group #006: Bordeaux 2001 versus 2002 (By VD): Exclusive and beautiful bouquet with a lot of refinement; dark forest fruits, sweet spices, cedar, minerals, some leather, smoke and luxurious oak as well as a pleasant bit of barnyard. On the palate powerful and ripe dark berries, salty and sweet licorice, graphite, chocolate, smoke, some pleasant bell pepper and well integrated vanilla from the oak. Beautiful acidity and tannin. Everything is perfectly integrated. Overall a complex, refined and luxurious wine which is in its maturity stage now and will stay on this level until 2020 at least. Great wine!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
First of the case. Decanted 30 minutes and drunk over two hours. This is ripe, round, concentrated and with integrated tannins. It will likely hold and improve but right now it is about the primary and not secondary characteristics so for me only very good but not great. A-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beautifully aromatic. Pencil lead and blackberry aromas. Tightly wound, but opened somewhat over a couple of hours. Pretty austere in its ripeness and fruit. Was overshadowed by a riper, richer California Cabernet tonight.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Weekly tasting group #195; St. Estephe (@ VD): Beautiful and classical bouquet, a bit dusty, but also creamy red and dark berries, beautiful oak and cedar. On the palate red and dark forest fruits, a touch of bell pepper, laurel, coffee, a beautiful dose of oak which is nicely integrated, beautiful acidity as well as a slight and pleasant touch of sweetness. Juicy acidity and round, still slightly sticky tannin. The wine is in its young maturity stage now and will still be great around 2020.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Seemed to have a little brett bloom, as it was way more funky than expected and had an acidic metallic edge to the palate which I would not consider typical for Montrose. Still had very nice fruit underneath so we did consume the bottle, but didnt have the depth or complexity I would expect from this producer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Was curious to retry the 01 Montrose after more than 2 years. Perfect cork. Poured into decanter and drank over 3h. A transparent but still fairly dark garnet. Initially this wine seems surprisingly expressive and showing much more dark berries and fruit than I recall from the last bottle but with some air the wine becomes much tighter wound, with earthy notes, sous bois and some potato chips. Medium tannins appear with even more air. Medium plus finish. This certainly has depth but I would not open for another 2+ years or so and hope this still opens up a bit more. Not sure I see the 95 point wine here that Neal Martin does, but certainly 92 with another point or perhaps even two upside once it fully opens up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
First bottle from this case was stripped - I guess lightly corked. This 2nd was much better. Just starting to drink, lovely black currants and berries, good purity, tannins still in evidence, but fine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2nd of 24, decanted an hour, as note of November 14 with earth/hot brick notes more evident, again impressive depth of fruit, long life ahead. Fine plus (18/20).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I appear to be in the minority here but to me this wine is out of balance with too much acid and too little fruit. Loads of graphite and some earthiness and spice. Day two about like day one.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still quite tannic though very expressive. Expressive nose of pencil, mocha, smoke and game. Palate is quite fine and narrow, with a dark plummy character. Moderate leathery finish with a little funk. Still needs a little time to integrate the wood notes, but otherwise the fruit is showing some early maturity. Should be a good, not great Montrose that will start to drink well soon.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
31 Vintages of Château Montrose: 1928-2010; 5/2/2015-5/3/2015: Lots of power here as well. Montrose must have handled the 2001 in an admirable way because the fruit is just perfectly ripe. Quite big acid, linear wine. However, the complexity is not there (yet). Drinkable, but better to wait 10-20 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordal chez RPB (Margaux, Cheval Blanc, Lafite...) (Vessy): Après la série double aveugle, nous avons encore bu cette bouteille, après passage en carafe. Jolie couleur groseille foncé, brillant. Nez sur les arômes de cassis, de havane. Belle bouche avec beaucoup de matière, dense. La finale est longue avec des tanins encore râpeux, signe que le vin n'est pas encore tout à fait prêt. Lui donner 3 à 5 ans.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The dark purple profile tells you that this gem is still young, but it's really drinking quite nicely now. With 1+ hours decant, aromatics of gravel, cassis, floral, cedar and cigar wrapper came out sweetly. Medium body, rich palate with dark fruits and forest notes. Not the grandest Montrose you'd expect, but the beautiful blend of elegance and masculinity will leave you satisfied. A real nice Bordeaux, and it certainly will improve some more with additional time in the cellar.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
The Wine Night at Bellevue Wine Storage - Part 1 (Bellevue, WA): Fresh and tasty bordeaux that unfortunately was blown away by the richer and riper wines of the evening. This is still showing quite a bit of tannin along with fresh currant acidity. Overall a nice complex bottle of Bordeaux that probably needs another 5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2 hour decant. Never really opened up. Very lean and acidic. No charm whereas 2002 Sociando Mallet last night was delightful in its restrained richness.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still quite restrained, nice structure, gravel, leather, coffee, nice sweet blackcurrant, a little thin finish. Decanted and left for a couple hours. I guess would develop more with time but not one that seemed particularly built for the long run
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Stereotypical Bordeaux, loaded with earth, tobacco, leather. Took a couple hours to really open up and definitely not past its peak. Probably not even at it. Last glass had a nice bit of chocolate on the finish as well. Nicely balanced. Will wait a couple years before trying again.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Never been dispointed with Montrose! Probably one of the best wines on the market and personnaly find it better than Cos d'Estournel... The nose is reconizable to the estate, the tannins are balanced and finale is up to it's expectation. Surprisingly, I believe it's not yet at it's peak and should be a real bomb in the next 3-4 years! Just Love Montrose
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
1st of 24, decanted 3 hours, perfect fill - deepish garnet, purple rim; primary, blackcurrant, dark plums, touch of graphite and earth, fresh not baked; fullish, long and complex, high quality, complexity developing as opened in glass, lovely balance and energy of fruit largely hiding not quite resolved fine grain tannins, a baby yet. Should merit higher than current fine plus (18/20).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2001 Bordeaux plus Rhones, Burgs and More: More approachable than I expected, with plenty of dark fruit, anise, and a little earthiness and ample, but well-integrated tannin.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for an hour. Nose was relatively closed and whilst displaying some nice secondary flavours, I was somewhat underwhelmed by this (and therefore disappointed). Would have preferred to have opened this when younger.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
From half bottle from a single batch so with all the question marks that come along. Definitely not a pnp wine. Needed like 1.5hrs to develop, shed the acidic side and show a good nose. Still the palate remained sharp and difficult and this was not the wine we expected. We hope its a bottle issue as we do have a full on case sleeping IB somewhere near Basingstoke... no rating today.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Judgement of Chicago (Nomi): Tasted blind. Nose was clean, with a little metal and black licorice. Flavors were very similar to the Heitz, though a little more acidic than the others. By far the best French wine of the tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
tannic beast....still incredibly dark and dense...not a ton on the nose. Decanted and with that some fruit and elements beyond cedar start to emerge...would have thought even Montrose would be more open given age and vintage...need to open this early next time to see
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Un nez complexe, cèdre, poivron rouge, tomates séchées, ketchup. Un vin encore jeune, mais ouvert, viril, il s'affiche plus en structure que sur le fruit. Un vin qui se révèle pleinement à table, noble et imposant, droit, la finale surprend par sa finesse. Il n'est pas charmeur mais montre une belle profondeur. 91 pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another Saturday at Knightsbridge - mostly blind (Northbrook, IL): Tasted double blind. Black, fleshy fruit with firm tannic structure that was somewhat unwelcoming today. Lots of power matched with lots of tannins. Needs lots of time. Probably not a Bordeaux for me.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
30 minute decant and then followed over at least 4 hours - very little change during that time. The nose is amazing. The palate is slightly austere but friendlier than many Bordeaux. Like many, it is intellectually satisfying but not very tasty.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
New Years 2013 at Kevin's (Minneapolis, MN): Outstanding showing with funk, raspberries, forest floor, gravel and coffee beans. The nose was a top five of 2013. Palate while not as good added a cigar component and had a medium finish. Should age five plus years but honestly why wait when it is this good now.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
New Years Eve Celebration Offline (Rocknroller's (Kevin & Vicki's Place)): Very dark purple color. Decanted for 45 minutes. Drank 2 glasses over 3 hours. This has a great nose that mesmerizes you with the first whiff. There is ample floral perfume, with cedar box, crème de cassis, boysenberry and leather. The palate is quite nice too, medium full body, elegant, cassis, dark berries, graphite, cigar box, and minerals. The tannins seem round and integrated already. I thought this showed very, very well with the nose being the star, and a palate that that is quite good too. Classic Bordeaux. I think this has probably hit its stride, though it may improve somewhat. 92+pts to 93pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
In the nose very complex, very difficult to separate aromas, red and black berries, floral, spring forest floor, licorice, dark cherries. On the palate all the aromas from the nose. Finish long elegant, more cherries, fine, extremely complex. Great wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux 2001 Blind Tasting (+ two 2000s): Shiny cherry red. In the nose, this rich, but has great finesse, "power without weight", lots of depth and elegance. Fragrant, light and dark with lots of Graphite and cedar wood. Awesome. On the palate, it's complete, young, great acidity, a lot freshness, it's very direct. Grip, substance, elegance, everything there. Very long and minerality driven finish. Young, but truly great.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted in a lineup of '82 Talbot, '90 Ormes de Pez, and an '05 Fleur Cardinale I found this to be the least interesting of the flight. It's very even right now, nothing stood out to me in its flavor profile, though it does sport an incredibly sleek and polished texture with good freshness. I'd wait 5-10+ years on these.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Scoring is truly based on the current drinking experience, but no doubt this wine has very good potential and should provide pleasant drinking experience in the years to come, when it's ready. The claret still appears to be quite youthful, dark, opaque in color. Very tight, and not yielding much, even with almost 3 hours of decanting. In between some intervals, you get notes of cream, vanilla, red cherry, tea leaf, tobacco. On the palate, very balanced structure with spot on acidity and some fruity juicy taste. Will keep the other bottles in the cellar and try again in three years or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Montose Dinner (89, 90, 95, 96, 99, 00, 01, 05) Plus Others: Two bottles opened (sorry Lonny), both popped and poured. The nose offers an impressive blend of dark fruit and mineral with just a hint of oak. The taste is even more impressive, with dark fruit, mineral, smoke and herbs. Great balance and showing really well right now. Great finish. Drink or hold; this should be spectacular for many, many years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
nesen gir snev av modning mot lær, aske og ren stall, fortsatt strålende primærfrukt mot solbær. Svært mineralsk nese, mot knust gråstein. I munnen svært fyldig vin, med fyldige røde og syrlige bær. Dette holdes oppe av en flott syre. Mangler litt eleganse, noe som blir tydeligere med luft. 91p. Dag to, så er jeg fortsatt på at dette er en endimensjonal vin. Masse mocca og fyldig moden frukt. Grei syre, men mangler litt friskhet. Er for all del godt, men blir litt kjedelig. Ville nok barbert 5 poeng dag nr 2.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Served blind. Guessed bdx, but my producer offerings were Poyferre, Las Cases, Lalande. This was primarily due to its more modern profile, especially on the nose. This is going to be a great wine. I rate it above the '96 vintage. Nose even had elements of the stellar '90, with dense black fruit, cedar, leather, and floral notes. Palate very smooth bursting with sweet red and black fruits. Finish is still primary, with drying tannins as a younger Montrose will give you.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wine of the 2001 Vintage at Matt B's House (New Canaan, CT): Super dark all the way to the rim. On the nose was bretty with tons of tight black fruit, black licorice, and a strange but enjoyable burnt eraser aroma. Silky and elegant across the palette but also immensely powerful, complex, and long. Balanced.
This was my favorite of the night. Tied for first place in the group vote (2 x 1st and 2 x 3rd) with the 2001 Serpico.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
VEO tasting - Moselle, Saar and Ruwer (Restaurant Bolenius, Amsterdam): Lovely nose, deep, dark and masculine, good ripe fruit, rich spicy oak, hint of toast; on the palate a nice weight and balance, very solid but on the dry side in the tannins; good length. Attractive nose, lacks charm and some stuffing on the palate. A very generous impromptu gesture from Frits after an evening of Riesling...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for about 2h. Still a dark garnet, sweet dark fruit, liquorice, earth, fresh herbs, a touch of oak. Good acidity giving it freshness. Fine tannins, medium+ finish. This wine really has a fantastic balance and a very precisely drawn palate. Interesting to see that one does not have to go back to 1980s/1990s to find outstanding Bdx with moderate alcohol levels, this has 12.5% but definitively not missing on fruit or concentration. Out of the Bdx I have had over the last 12 months, the 01 Montrose and the 95 Pape Clement were the two wines I have been most looking forward to revisit. While they are very different wines, and neither will wow you immediately, they share this outstanding balance and precision that makes them an absolute joy to drink. Even better now than last year: 93-94
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark colour. Commanding taste following very pure nose; austere yet elegant. Cistercian wine. Profound? Maybe not, but this untamed beast has not yet said its last words. Drink if you like'm youngish, or keep without worries for many years yet.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Double decanted immediately back into bottle. Initial whiffs of horse dung, promising! Really lovely and still primary, it is slender and elegant. Licorice, forest floor, fresh berries. It gets a slight upgrade with food, the acid/tannin balance is so spot on that different dishes provide little pops of flavor. Lots of evolution left in this one. (93-95).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark purple, dark fruits. Coming together very nicely. Oak and tannin just about resolved. Still tight, in need of 5 years. Very classy wine. Excellent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Weekly tasting group #058; Bordeaux left bank 2001, 2002 and 2003. (@ VD): Beautiful and classical bouquet with dark forest fruits and luxurious oak. Same on the palate with good cassis and other dark berries, a touch of sweetness and some not unpleasant bell pepper, sweet spices, minerals and graphite. A firm amount of acidity and bitterness and good, still powerful tannin. A beautiful and focused wine which is in its early maturity stage now. No problem cellaring this until 2020+.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still very young, primary and tannic- but this has great fruit and minerality and really lovely texture... Probably five years away from coming completely together this wine is loaded with potential- I really love Montrose stylistically; while this is no monster, it's finesse and texture make it a real winner... After last night's wines (a cab and a Grenache) whose sweetness made them undrinkable, this was more than refreshing- it was reaffirming...p.s. bought a couple of years after release at $53 per bottle- a pretty good deal-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Klassisk doft av mörk frukt, tobak och körsbär. Har börjat öppna upp och bjuder på bra smakintensitet med avtagande tanniner och mogen frukt. Bra längd och klart att dricka.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep garnet color with touch of bricking on the meniscus. Nose of earth, dark fruit, red licorice, truffle. The palate replicates the nose, complemented with a beautiful acidic balance and still enough tannic structure to keep it interesting and beautiful. The fruit is bright, but a decade of aging blankets the wine with classic woody left bank personality.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nose: sweet and delicate aroma of marshmallow, red and black fruits and some mushrooms. Taste: excellent mouthful of round yet strong enough sensations. Fruit is dominant, but earthy and animal flavours are also very perceptible. Marshmallow, licorice, even some anise. Finely balanced. Could possibly stay bottled for another 3-5 years. The finish is hot and a little dry.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Restrained nose, dark fruits, a little chunky with somewhat grainy tannins, but good balance makes for a nice finish. This has the fresh balance of the 2001...but somehow just doesnt come together as well as the many other 01's im fond of.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beautiful and classical bouquet with cassis, graphite, sweet spices, tobacco, cedar etc. Same on the palate. Beautiful acidity and friendly, soft tannin. Very elegant and round and a great pleasure already. Young maturity stage now, no problem keeping this another 5 - 8+ years.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Poured half of bottle into decanter and followed over 5h. Medium garnet. A fine and complex nose with initially a bit of cedar, a bouquet of mainly dark fruit, flowers, earth, sous-bois and a bit of barnyard. Medium body and very fine but still dense tannin structure. A fairly long but subtle finish. This wine changes with time in the glass (at some point in time I had sour cream potato chips on the nose..) but does never really "opens up" and I wonder whether it ever will. With the exception of even softer tannins and an even darker fruit profile, the rest of bottle on day 2 was pretty much unchanged, so not sure whether another 5 years will see a major "improvement" here. It's a wine to sip and demands attention as it speaks in "sotto voce". 91-92
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Showed very well. Burnt earth, crushed rocks, dark fruit and violets compose this elegant palate. Should have a long life ahead of it - the tannins were certainly there and even with air they were still a bit gritty for my tastes. Love Montrose's style...great combination of earthiness and dark fruit.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
taste: full bodied with rough and coarse tannins along with medium acidity. Certainly shows off it's youth, but has some great tones of cassis, tobacco, cedar, and dark red cherries. Very good depth underneath the tannins right now.
overall: Still quite young. It's class is starting to show, but this could easily use another 5 years. This does have the power that one expects from montrose, but it isn't that large scaled of a wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Still a bit early on this one, could use some more time in bottle. Good contrast next to the 1966 tasted next to it. Coffee, tar, meaty, cassis, blackberry. Very structured palate. 92+ today, with great potential to improve.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Mixed Bag, Mostly Bordeaux in KW (Chris' House): Decanted for sediment, served immediately, and followed over the next 4 hours. Still a deep inky purple in the glass, showing quite a contrast to the '66. With some coaxing, we could see that this was darker on the fruit spectrum, with suggestions of blackberries and blackcurrants, mineral, graphite, and light floral and leather notes. On the palate, black fruits, graphite and earth, showing decent structure, with moderate tannin and acidity. Finish is moderate. Unfortunately, this wasn't all that giving at the moment, as it never really opened up over the course of the evening. A bit of a disappointment given the pedigree, however, there appears to be a lot of potential upside here. If I had any of these, I would tuck them away for another 5 years before giving it another try.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wonderfully expressive nose of maturing fruit reigned back with a reticence on the palate that really needs another 10 years to strut its stuff. Right now this is quite tightly wound up and the acidity is quite high but there are layers of complexity just under the surface. I think this could be rather tasty given more time in the cellar. Very good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
33rd Austin Wine Salon - Bordeaux (Max's Underground): Completely shut down. Black fruit, lead pencil shavings, earth, and beeswax. Just in an awkward state at the moment. The pieces are there, but it hasn't all come together yet. I would say it needs 5 more years at least before it's in the early drinking window. For me, it's a wine to taste starting in about 2020.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very complex nose, cassis, leather, tobacco, earthiness, cocoa bean, green walnuts, spices. Medium body, lots of dusty tannin, high, vital acidity. Flavours are quite mouthfil and produce nice length. In the aftertaste it shows some astringency and sourness, making me think, that the tannins and adids are still not well-integrated. Anyway nice and tight wine, with further potential to develop.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
For me, this wine at 10 years old is in it's optimal drinking window. Neither too old and tired nor too young and wound up. The nose exhibits a really nice note of pencil shavings combined with some black fruit and initially just a touch of grass clippings. Very well balanced on the palate with good acidity up front that gives way to some red berry and plum flavors with a medium bodied texture and nicely integrated tannins on the finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Fete de Bordeaux (Centro, Toronto): Has a resinous nose compared to the '96. Generous acid. Difficult when young but I really lean toward the Montrose style when they get a little age on them.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Stone, tobacco, blackberry, minerality, lead pencil and spicy, red and black plum flavors are easy to find. This is not the most concentrated vintage for Montrose, yet there is still refined tannins to resolve. From an assemblage of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, this mineral driven, St. Estephe wine wants another 3-5 years before entering prime time drinking.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 3 hours and drank over an evening. Still lots of primary fruit but getting some tertiary notes already. Really enjoyable given it's youth - will try again in a couple of years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Sipped 1st half of bottle through Carpaccio app and Osso Bucco entree. Nose of saddle leather, cassis and cedar. Palate not giving much up other than some green pepper on a medium body. Tannins still a bit course. Corked and will revisit tomorrow night. Enjoyable but still too young to rate. Will surely show better after a day or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Full bodied, rich dark purple, a cherry bomb nose that invites, black currant and cassis with earth and tannins that grip and need more time, but are not unpleasant. Decant and take your time if you are drinking now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Back, Back in the USofA (StrEat Restaurant, Austin, Texas): Clear winner of the flight: tops in one group, second in another. A rich and lively dark red wine with whiffs of the barnyard and the pencil box, dried rose, baking spice and dill/green fern. Austere cassis and dark cherry notes with bright acidity, medium tannins and a tea like finish. A few tasters found it unimpressive for a Ch. Montrose, but others liked it immensely and noted it was out of place with the California fruit-driven cabs. This wine was included in the flight because it sold new for less than the California wines, and seemed (and indeed is) a better value, and had a low Parker score compared to the flight's highly rated Cal cabs.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Pop and pour with a beef tenderloin dinner. I don't typically do that, but the first wines were gone! Still performed well. Nice hints of woodsy tones layered on blackberries, cassis. Nice finish that is balanced. Tannins are relaxing to provide a smooth mouth feel to it. Overall, an elegant bordeaux just starting to show it's stuff. Glad I have more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted three hours before dinner with lamb and wild rice. Earthy, spice nose with classic terroir on the nose. The wine started off a little thin but after three hours had opened up and was showing its stuff. Oak, spices, dark fuit, touch of pencil lead. The wine has relaxed and offered a smooth mouthfeel with moderate finish. Tannins are softening. Nice balanced acidity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Slightly forced short decant through some fine grade coffee paper. Lovely deep but bright ruby colour. Nose is slightly shy initially but soon opens to a very round and fruity splash of colour - blackcurrant pastilles and a little 2b pencil. Christmas spice on the palate and nicely ripe rather than overdone. Still quite tight after short decant but breeding and balance evident. Drunk direcly after a 2003 Ornellaia this shows more breeding but less exuberance perhaps. Very fresh with good acidity. Finish is just a litte tight at present but will doubtless open up in glass/decanter. Approchable but with plenty mileage left in the tank. Call it heresy but I prefer this to the 2000. Compelling wine. From now if you have plenty but room to evolve for another 8-10 at least I would imagine. Interestingly the profile here is surprisingly close to the Ornellaia.
EDIT : +48 hours decanted. Real juicy red fruit profile now with a lot of zingy acidity. No hint of over-ripeness in this Montrose by any means. Beautifully made, and a kicker for the terroir. Unlike a few of the "bigger" vintages of Montrose this can't be mistaken for a St Julien or Pauillac and in my opinion so much the better for it. Excellent wine, should drink very nicely through 2025.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Cabernet Sauvignon night: Starting to show some age, but only just. Nose took a while to get going in the glass, but offering up classic St Estephe cassis mixed with cedar, leadpencil, wood and so on. Very nice. Palate extraordinarily smooth and balanced. Wow. Lovely. Decent length. A beatiful and civilised wine, not a powerhouse.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
PW205 Wines of the World - Lesson 2 (Bordeaux) (Plumpton College, East Sussex, UK): Another classic Bordeaux (but unlike the rich, jammy Batailley, this seemed a more classic, older style) with more notes of cedar and pencil shavings as well as green peppers with luscious red fruit and ripe tannins that make it beautiful drinking now. However, I'm sure this will last for another decade at least. I'm a little disappointed that I did not have time to make a full and detailed tasting note! However, this is more of your roast-lamb-classic-Bordeaux in comparison to richer, jammier Parker influenced styles that are increasingly common. ****
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted 2 hours. Opened as I have quite a few bottles and felt like a rich wine on a typically awful wet and cold English October day.
Very deep, thick and lively colour. Great density, flavours in retreat. Chewy edge. Full, dense, sturdy spread over the palate of lots of ripe fruit and tannins but overall an impressively silky texture despite the massive concentration.Could probably do with another few years and will no doubt last another ten at least. 12.5% abv Excellent
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
BdX 01/04 (Oslo): Sweet and deep dark berry fruit, that still has something civilized; good intensity throughout the taste curve until the middle, then it tails off a bit too quickly. Later in the evening it grew and the curve became more complete. Fresh and intense.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ruby/purple color, with a nice bouquet of smoke, cherries and some spice/earth. The wine has nice acidity and really good, soft fruit. Tannins have mellowed considerably and it is drinking nicely now. The finish is smooth but not exceptionally long. Expect this to improve some with age but it can be drunk up now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I couldn't be more delighted with this. I just picked up a case for 58 quid a bottle. It easily outclassed a 2001 Palmer I tried the other night which cost double that. This is a coherent wine, no green steaks, and hits all the classic St Estephe notes on the nose and the palate. Just a little mature at the rim, but I'm sure this has years to go.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A nice, classic nose that kept interest all through the bottle. Good palate also, I was surprised how open it was. Clearly some improvement is ahead, but very nice now. A good showing.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
mature rim, medium tears/ good intense nose, cedar, habano, licorice, red currant and spice/ silky, dry palate, more classic flavours/ long and very dry finish/ 12.5%/ excellent classic claret with true class. Note after time in the glass this wine got better and better!.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2001 Bordeaux (Lavandou): The third time I’ve had this wine in about a year and it seems to be a bit more open for business than prior. Has a real nice subtle sense of pose, with some bright red fruit, earthiness, graphite/lead pencil and hints of saddle. With more time, the fruit begins to really emerge and the pitch of the red fruit begins to magnify. While it is indeed bright at this phase, I’d be willing to wager that in time, it will add heft and weight and will really round out into a beautiful wine. I’m a fan of the upside of this wine, as well as the Calon. 93+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
very nice. nose of dark fruit, lots of earth, flowers, and spice. soft in the mouth, but tannin still present to resolve yet. seemed to lack the depth of concentration of the better vintages, but this was quite pleasing none the less. i really enjoy this chateau.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bordeaux, Italy and a Burg in Minneapolis: Top five wine of the vintage? Wonderful wine and drinking well right now with cherry, gravel, spices and floral notes. Good acid profile and still medium tannins. Medium and concentrated on the finish and super balanced wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Old World Reds at Edina CC (Edina Country Club, MN): Nose: Very floral and almost perfume-like aromas and some mineral. Very seductive nose! Palate: Good balance of acid and red fruits. Nice clean, velvety finish. Tied for WOTN with the '04' Pontet-Canet for BDX.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Only Bordeaux at the wine club event. Very dense with prominent tannins. Nose was muted, needed decanting. After some time, aromas of smoke, black olives, and minerals arose. Deep cherry rosewood, stones, and leather notes with some cleansing acidity. A very layered and classic Montrose that really stood out versus California and Washington Cabs at table. Will no doubt deliver in a few years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Boerne Wine Club - Cab/Chardonnay (Scenic Loop Cafe, San Antonio, TX): The only bdx really stood out in this lineup with 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, and the rest Petite Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Aromatic barnyard/funky nose with cassis, cherry and cedar. Acidic palate, with cherry fruit, firm tannins though not drying, and wonderful length with mocha, touch of tar, and tart cherry. Great balance and complexity and retains a refreshing character despite the tannins. Surprisingly approachable as this was not decanted, but certainly is just entering it's drinking window and should last another 10yrs. I have high hopes for my bottles.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Regular dinner group (@ EM): Beautiful bouquet with barnyard and liquorice. Juicy cassis and luxurious oak. Still very youthful. Double decanted several hours before drinking it is already a great pleasure, but keeping it another 5 - 8+ years might be rewarding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Color: Medium purple Nose: Herbs, raspberries, pencil lead, Taste: Concentrated with grit along with raspberries, black cherry, tobacco, earth Finish: Medium and very elegant Evaluation: This is a great wine 94 points
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Not shining at all! Rather Closed but got a lot of potential to the upside! Dense. Dark ruby in color! Dark fruits dominate the palate, rather one dimension at this moment!! Will it show it's real face in 10 years time?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Sweet dark fruit, lush and full. Classic mix of smoke, leather, spices are well integrated in the midpalette and stays with you through the finish. Reminds me a lot of the 04 version which also is classically styled and with perfect level of ripeness. Obviously young still, but the full tannins are round and sweet.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted blind, decanted prior to tasting. Clear, opaque ruby to a light ruby rim, with moderate intensity and appears more youthful than aged though rim variation is apparent. On the nose, wine shows beautiful amarena cherry, blackcurrant, clove, cocoa powder, cigar box, green sous bois, cedar and cigar box notes. Healthy, moderate + intensity and again appears more youthful than aged. On the palate, wine was moderate intensity with structured tannins, moderate- acids and low + alcohol. Black currant mingles with olive, green bell pepper, pencil shavings, gravel and light potpourri notes. Wonderful wine, well integrated still a bit sharp on the tannins but showing well now, will most definitely develop. Most of the group though this right bank Saint Emilion. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, $67 wholesale.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Double decanted for 2 hours. Very good nose with black fruit, spices and oak. On the palate, it is quite powerful and concentrate. A lot of tannins but a little bit rustic now. May require much longer cellaring.
At the BBR Fine wine winter tasting - Great body. This is a big wine for sure and will age well. However still very closed with no nose at all. Would like to try it in 5yrs but at 55£ a bottle i dont think this is value for money.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Double decanted for 4 hours; classic Bordeaux nose of cedar, earth, with spices- on the elegant side on the palate. I had this with an Amarone, so I'm unsure of how much fruit is present compared to to the ripe and relatively dense Amarone. Will hold and re-taste a year from now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very dark color, very complex but smooth, well integrated tannins. Blackberry, leather, some mineral, some earth and mushroom, even a hint of meat The wine evolved nicely over time, but stayed subtle and old world in style. A great pleasure to drink.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This opaque purple Motrose offers layers of currants, wild cherries, forest floor and mushrooms. Silky texture and juicy tannins. Very impressive vintage, a real amazing St Estephe near to perfection. To pair with lamb leg in the oven.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ripe, sweet, rich, beautiful, viscous, velvety royal purple, aromas of cherry and currant, this is a full bodied sleeper of the vintage. Usually Montrose is brooding and the tannins need fifteen years to soften and integrate. Not so here! Smooth, balanced and so drinkable now and for another two decades. The value of 2001.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Montrose Vertical Blind note as mature as others, but still shows the classic montrose stones, smoke tobacco and dark fruit I think it will best the 98 for sure, it has the concentration and volume, almost I think, of the 95 green right now I like this wine
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very dark, almost black colour. Austere classic lead pencil nose, with black fruit (dark cherries, blackberries) in the background. Intense taste, still pretty closed, with wel-integrated tannins and good acidity. Long aftertaste with some fine-grained tannins. Not yet completely ready, but getting there. A bottle that will never be joyfull, but always "classic", austere and intense. A winter wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Quite a bit of bottle stink already already, which in time blew off to reveal a complex nose of green pepper, paprika, pencil lead, leather and currant. Some truffle notes showed prominently from time to time. Exceedingly elegant on the palate, very pure and refined, with lots of class in the finish. I really enjoyed the velvet tannin in this wine, as it was a significant change from the few wines tasted before. Would buy again if I could find at a reasonable price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Caroline Wine Shop - Bordeaux 2001 to 2005 (Carolines Wine Shop): Deep garnet to plum colour that is inky. A slightly lifted VA along with marmite, earth and some graphite. A rich, slightly sinewy entry, brooding with a thick texture of wet clay accompanied by firm tannins. I picked up apple skin, bruised somewhat, along with some black plum and crushed stones. It lacks concentration and feels a little one-dimensional. Mid-length. Score: 89
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2001 Bordeaux Dinner (Bethesda, MD): opened 5 hours prior to arrival and Audouzed. This was the only wine that really needed more air as it came out of the gates thin and a bit disjointed. Nice notes of earth, light barnyard, blackberry and game. Palate began thin and the tannins seemed invisible until after the dinner, I revisited the remnants of the bottle with Dave and found it had fleshed out very properly with nice thick blaccurrant, mocha and game notes. I wish we had decanted this guy so it would show better, but it was clearly outclassed by its counterparts. 89FW at first, 92+GW after
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Really liked this bottle, very approachable for such a young wine, elegant more than complex and wonderfully silky/creamy texture, leaves your palate dry wanting more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
St. Louis Saturday Group -- 2000 v 2001 Bordeaux Tasting (Jim Dove's home): Quite a big wine. Very aromatic -- a bit oaky with some licorice and a light green note mixing with dark berry fruit. I found some green wood tannins on this wine that I didn't much care for and scored it a couple of points lower than anyone else, so, the noted score reflects the higher consensus. Consistent with the EWS tasting, a very good showing for most tasters. RANK: 6 Vintage: 2000.22
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank with the Mrs. and friends over a nice French dinner. Dark purple, notes of black fruit and mineral. Not the blood, iron and animal experience I had with an older ('90) La Dame -- which is kind of what I was hoping for here! Nice and powerful nonetheless. This was better than the Richard Perry 02 Cab we had with the first course.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasting Group Dinner - Steaks & Montrose (Dave's House): The nose shows smoke, black cherries, and coffee. On the palate, this is quite charming. Not a powerhouse like the 89 or 90, obviously, but a nicely minerally, medium-weight wine. Dark cherries, coffee, and minerals with ripe tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another Tuesday Night in Minneapolis (Montrose 82, 86, 89, 90, 95, 01, 03, 04): Decanted about 12 hours before serving. The nose offers an impressive blend of dark fruit and mineral with a touch of oak/vanilla. The taste is equally impressive. Concentrated dark fruit with mineral, grilled meat, and earth. Fiercely tannic. Great finish. This needs many years in the cellar to show at peak.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Much less open than the last bottle, this took several hours of air to show much of anything. When it did open a bit, it was clear that this was some impressive Cabernet dominated juice, with partly integrated oak, cassis, tobacco and soil notes. Fine tannins are prominent when tasted, but this wine has good volume and an impressive finish. A lot of potential with some bottle age.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Surprisingly expressive aromas of ripe cassis, tobacco, cedar, underbrush, and finely crushed rock. In the mouth, the crisp acidity and very fine tannins really draw out the intense flavors that coat the palate. Not a deep powerhouse like the very best vintages of Montrose, still this has some of the brightness and delineation and sheer intensity of flavor that I find in the 1989 and the 1996. A strong showing for this young but aristocratic wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Wonderful! This at time outshowed the 03. This showed better integration than the 03 and was very well rounded. Deep dark color, Dark cherry, smoke and black licorice aromas with with a thick palate and sweet tannins. Balanced
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very dark ruby color. A bit mute on the palate. After getting some air, it was clear that this bottle was TCA affected in view of the cardboard notes on the finish. But the TCA concentration was sufficiently low for the plastic bag trick. After that, it improved quite a bit (although still not 100% perfect). Very complex wine, but seems to close down. Still one of my favorite left bank BDX of the 2001 vintages, especially considering the price. But I fear it will close down soon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark garnet to the rim in color. Nose shows cassis, cedar, tobacco, and leather. On the palate this wine is still very young. Cassis is met immediately by a hard Bordeaux backbone of oak and tannin. Tobacco and smoke also play into the palate. This spent two hours in a decanter and definitely opened up over that time, but it still needs at least a few years to show its best. Lots of stuffing, however, reveals that it should develop well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2001 Bordeaux (Virginia): Tasted along with about a dozen other 2001s, so forgive the short TN... Big, slightly dusty tannins. Black fruit. Fairly old-school in style. A bit lean compared to the '01 Cos d'Estournel (see TN)tasted along side it, though still balanced and quite impressive. One of the better wines of the tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
In a word: WOW! I know that Montrose is on a string in recent vintages, but this 2001 was far better than expected. Dark ruby color (but not purple black as some other, more modern wines). Right after opening, the nose was a bit unformed, but a little sip already confirmed what was to come after decanting... After 2 hours in the decanter, this wine really blossomed. This is not a modern, fruity wine. It sported already a rather complex nose, with a melange of dark fruits, tobacco, truffels, wood spice - very deep and exciting. BTW, I haven't detected any of the barnyard aromas Montrose is (was) known for in recent vintages of this wine. In the mouth, the wine is full-bodied, almost chewy, but nevertheless retains its sense of elegance (for a St. Estephe). The tannins spread over the entire palate and release wave after wave of dark fruits, spice and licorice. Surprisingly low in acidity, but not at all flabby, which seems to make it already approachable. Nevertheless I feel that this wine will soon shut down hard and only emerge after several years. In sum, a fantastic expression of ripe cabernet and a great Bordeaux from this underhyped vintage. I had only two bottles, but now I will need to look for more! Drink 2010 to 2030
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
3/2/2024 - Fatty Cat wrote: 92 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 dark red color; slightly restrained bouquet of cassis and other red and dark berries; aristocratic texture well-balanced by a juicy acidity. 91-92/100
Vintages of flight I:
1992 - 1998 - 2001 - 2003 - 2009 - 2010 - 2012
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/5/2023 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 93 Points
8 years since my last bottle. This was late at night but this has come together beautifully. Much more resolved than previously, this has wood spices on the nose and then layered dark fruit on the palate. Excellent freshness. Hard to believe that this was still only 12.5% given the density on the palate. Tannins fully integrated. Good length too. In its peak drinking window. 93-94
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/18/2023 - Alessandro DC Likes this wine: 93 Points
I definitely liked this bottle. First glass PnP at restaurant, the rest of the bottle was cleaned and decanted. Drunk over an 1h or so.
This Montrose impresses for its elegance and finesse. Since the first sip you can understand the touch of the grand vin, even tho it’s far from the muscular character we are used to with this boy.
Underbrush and tilled Forrest soil with a frame of Dried blackcurrant and raspberries expressing a sense of sandiness. Blind I would never called Montrose but have to say that the sand was present and evident. Driving good minds to the right lido up north of Medoc.
What I loved about this bottle is that an hour after lunch - after coffee and a sip of delicious Rhum - I could still perceive the taste of this Montrose coming from my stomach. I’m a good sense. Wired to hear I know but it was actually a very nice feeling.
Really enjoyed it.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/8/2023 - Geaux Tigers Likes this wine: 92 Points
PnP but drank over 2hr. Black center with crimson bricked edges.
On open, full of VA, so much so that I thought this was DOA. However, it blew off after 30 min. Mushroom, saddle leather, soy, black soil, touch of concentrated cola on the nose. The palate had bright red cherry, red raspberry, sweet citrus, and a gorgeous medium length finish. Plenty of acid to go the distance, but not sure this gets better.
Paired perfectly with Morgan Ranch wagyu kabobs in a gravy over baked rosemary red potato cakes.
Oh no! on open, 91 after 30 min, 92 after 45 min and held there.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2023 - MC wrote:
Splash decanted an hour. Very nice wine that drinks fine now but not in the league with the best of Montrose. Not in decline but I would be drinking now even though it is more about the primary blue fruit than anything else. B+/A-
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/31/2023 - hitechnomad Likes this wine: 92 Points
drinking well now but can still mature further if kept well. has still a good grip and silky mouthfeel. this bottle not especially fragrant vs what i expected else would rate higher.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/25/2023 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com Likes this wine: 91 Points
The very last bottle of a case of 12 bought EP. Open for business, well balanced, some very fine grained tannin left, a great bottle. Refined, fruity, complex, and long. In good storage conditions, this will probably last a few more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/25/2023 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pretty tight upon opening. Even 2 hours later this was rather shy. Had the typical back fruit with some Smokey highlights. Tannins rather fine and in check to the fruit. Just not quite to maturity. Best to hold and wait for further development. Acidity rather sharp
This was a clean bottle.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/2/2023 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
9th of 24, opened an hour then decanted 2, perfect cork and level, tannins more apparent at expense of fruit, fine structure and balance as ever, marginal downgrade as not up to best bottles, enough of everything here to bounce back, 10+ years. F+ (18)......probably worth limiting decant to an hour as elegant fruit more apparent on opening.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/9/2023 - vvWine.ch wrote: 93 Points
Verhaltene Nase. braucht etwas Zeit, dunkle Frucht, Gewürze, Rauch, Lakritze. Im Gaumen dicht, straff, gradlinig, knackige Frucht, feinkörniges, noch markantes Tannin, die Säure ist stimmig, die Balance stimmt, knackig, rassig und mit sehr guter Länge im Abgang ist das ein klarer "Geheimtipp" in einem unterschätzten Jahr. Hier kommt noch mehr. Bis 2034+ www.vvwine.ch
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2022 - sastewart wrote: 94 Points
Opened 3 hours ahead - Red fruit, leather and cedar on the nose - best after a short decant. Nicely integrated palate with red and Cassis fruits, very good structure with some secondary flavors of earth cedar and spice. Ready now but should last several years before decline. 94 points
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/6/2022 - PJRONeill wrote: 93 Points
Maybe not at the apex but really delicious with a 60 minute decant. I’d quite happily drink these now while acknowledging that a further decade would likely amp up the intensity. Loads of graphite, red and blue fruits, sandalwood and leather. Plenty of heft on the palate but with a streak of acidity to keep everything in line. Drink or hold.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2022 - jtonglet Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted and enjoyed over an Italian style dinner of stuffed pasta shells. Wine has aged well and still exhibited a very nice aroma. Smooth and flavorful with a nice, somewhat muted, fruity finish. Paired well with our meal.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/3/2022 - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Likes this wine: 95 Points
At a wine bar. Popped and poured, and *poof* it disappeared in what seemed to be 30 minutes. I never get tired of this wine.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/11/2022 - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Likes this wine: 95 Points
Popped and poured, and guzzled over the next 1.5 hours. Bumping this up a point from my last tasting. In the prime drinking window and deeelish.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/10/2022 - lolo66 wrote:
very nice and had a balanced feel to it. Tasty, but was outshone by the Robert Mondavi 90 Reserve and others.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/7/2022 - NoTrollingerPlease Likes this wine: 93 Points
10 years after Riesling tasting - 2012 (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Sophienwald Universal
Tasted double blind. Clear, deep ruby color. Beautiful left bank BDX nose, cool, spicy and herbaceous. On the palate a beautiful tension, fine, high tannin, lots of fine red fruit, silky texture. Dense and long. Very nice. 92-93
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/28/2022 - skifree wrote: 93 Points
This was delicious, but it was all tertiary notes of forest floor, mushroom, and the like. Tannins completely resolved. Will open another in near future to see if the ageing profile was unique to this bottle or not. Had not opened one since 2018.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/24/2022 - whits Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted for 2 hours, still fresh, with scents of graphite, tobacco and raspberry on the nose, lean, balanced, classy and elegant, fine structure, bright acid, flavors include hints of cherry, raspberry, dried herbs, cacao and bay leaf, drinking fine now, still fresh with a long life ahead
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/16/2022 - Kim Gerner wrote: 94 Points
Third time I taste 2001.
-First time January 2020: My conclusion was: Outstanding. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94/100
-Second time Aug 2021: This time my rating was not close to that level: Extremely closed. 91/100
-To day: Back on track: A fantastic experience. Tannins under control but still clearly felt on the gums as it should be. Lots of tertiary notes but also primary notes including green bell pepper. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94/100.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/11/2022 - swade wrote: 93 Points
This wine is in a good place. Round in the mouth. Black currants and earth. The cedar has faded out. Delicious. 93
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/3/2022 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com Likes this wine: 91 Points
Lean but fragrant, top drinking. Can stay around longer, but tannins almost fully absorbed, so why wait ? Good bottle !
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/31/2022 - liber Likes this wine: 94 Points
8th of 24, opened 2 hours then decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, back on top form after last dodgy bottle in April 20, starting to show signs of maturity on rim, fine and complex flavours in nose and mouth, quite expansive and notably persistent, fresh and showing 01s' splendid balance, some upside and long life ahead. F+ (18)........I think these 01s, where there's enough volume to the fruit as here and proper tannic underpinning, will surprise the pundits with their longevity!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/22/2022 - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Popped and poured at a restaurant. Perfect bottle and cellared well.
Drinking beautifully now, but will also hold for several more years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/22/2022 - SonnyChiba wrote: 95 Points
Absolutely gorgeous wine. Borderline first growth quality.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/16/2022 - Philippe_C wrote: 94 Points
Nice nose of cedar wood, cèpes de Bordeaux, a bit closed still, red cherries... Very concentrated fruit, red and black cherries, nice integrated tannin, lenght of 30 sec.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/26/2021 - eyesnwine wrote:
See my prior note. Did not improve with time and completely faded by day 2. Overall disappointing especially out of magnum. Will definitely try one of my few 750’s soon
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2021 - eyesnwine Likes this wine: 89 Points
Out of Magnum stored in my cellar since release. Perfect cork and ullage. Right away classic St Estephe with red fruits and earthiness. Decanted 2.5 hrs and has lost most of its oomph and fruit quite faded. Some barnyard to the nose.
Back in bottle for Xmas dinner with friends. Not sure if it shut down or just mature or past mature. Will post a follow up note.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/25/2021 - Geaux Tigers wrote: 92 Points
Completely restrained in comparison to the others . Opened with a shake decant two hours before drinking. Forest floor, wet forest, touch of cherries, some herbs, completely restrained, yet elegant in and of itself. Unfortunately with the family palates this finished last and I enjoyed most by myself. Interested to try this again with a proper decant and consumption conditions.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2021 - Mr T wrote:
Quick decant before dinner.
Good not great wine with slight sourness to fruit but might also reflect only 1-2 hour decant. Red fruits and good acid. I suspect would have been fuller with more time
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/21/2021 - awever Likes this wine: 93 Points
Sehr gut, aber nicht groß, rote Johannisbeeren, dürfte noch mehr Schmelz haben
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/8/2021 - CHarder Likes this wine: 93 Points
Really nice classic claret. Close to maturity. Smooth and lovely after 2hr decant.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/15/2021 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Have tasted this vintage three times over the past five years. It is now fully mature and it will stay in this wonderful plateau for another 5-10 years. First glass was pop n pour and then I decanted the rest to enjoy over the course of a two hour dinner. Straight out of the bottle it was incredibly intense containing everything I love about left bank Bordeaux. As time went on, the intensity softened and it evolved into a lovely lady with very round tannins and finesse. To be honest, I preferred it straight out of the bottle, but I also like my Bordeaux to hit me in the face. Delicious mature Montrose!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/1/2021 - Geoff Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice cherry and dark fruit nose with the usual Montrose melange of cedar, oak, spice, leather, but not really asserting itself (at least not yet). Moderately acidic and tannic. Tannins really pronounced on the finish. We'll see where it goes in the future.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/20/2021 - Arcturus wrote: 94 Points
94. 2 hour decant. Not going to skimp on the rating, really enjoyed this classic Bordeaux. Touch of leather, graphite and dried flowers on the nose. Smooth velvety balanced mid palate bursting with blackcherry fruit and a long layered finish. Last bottle. I bought this back in 2008 based on the praise from that Robert Parker group that held blind tastings, remember them?
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/20/2021 - wineordeath Likes this wine: 91 Points
Lovely, classic Bordeaux that is mature and drinking nicely now. Doesn't have the depth of the 2000, but the tannins are silky smooth and the balance is fine allowing the fruit to show.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/18/2021 - yodamark Likes this wine: 95 Points
I love Montrose. i think the 1990 is one of the greatest Bordeaux wines ever made. Alas i only have one bottle. In weaker years they tend to still make very acceptable and affordable wines. Whilst this 2001 is not in the class of 2000 or 2003 as its closest siblings it was a monumental effort for the vintage. Some colour development on the edge and a nice brick red with crimson center it is therefore clearly ready to go but will hold at least another 10. It is a little new world in structure and palate and harder to pick as a Bordeaux blind apart from clear Cabernet based fruit. it is rich and sweet and lush in the mouth and would be a superb match with slow cooked lamb. Drink up but no rush. Yummo
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/3/2021 - Kim Gerner wrote: 91 Points
Tasted first time January 2020. Back then i concluded: More rustic than Leoville Las Cases 2004 but nevertheless almost as good as Las Cases. Outstanding. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing. 94
This time my rating was not close to that level: Extremely closed and non complex. It was decanted 2 hours before and the decanter as well as the glasses were swirled for quite some time. It helped a little. The nose opened up a little but still not complex. The palate remained closed. Aromas of violet and too much cedar from the oak (not integrated yet). Lesson learned: Keep in cellar for many years! If you really need a bottle decant it many hours before. I am fully aware that Montrose is wellknown for its rusticity and need for ageing. My 12 wines are from the same OWC - seems like there are huge bottle differences as the former bottle was outstanding even though of course youthful.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2021 - hrazdiiv wrote: 93 Points
A great bottle from a vintage that is very good but not amazing. Still displays a fairly dark red with tinges of purple coming out of the bottle. We drank undecanted (following advice of other reviews) and it was a good call. On the nose, there are beautiful elements of charcoal, earth, tobacco, and dark fruit. The palate is a bit more austere but well structured with tannin still present and a core backbone of fruit holds up the wine nicely. Typical barnyard elements present the whole way through. My only slight complaint is that after about two hours the fruit faded just a touch, but not enough to detract from the score. Just a terrific expression of Bordeaux, as always.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/17/2021 - Bugiman wrote: 95 Points
Perfekte Flasche, wunderbare Nase, schöne tertiäre Noten, wunderbarer Abgang.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/15/2021 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points
This 2001 drinks very well right now in its first stage of maturity with expressive tertiary aromas paired with pure sweet fruit. It is not a vintage with a lot of depth but it‘s so much fun and easily drinking on a 93/94 point level these days.
TN: The nose is a bit shy but on the palate the wine sings with layers of red berries, sweet, fresh and pure paired with lots of tobacco, truffles and graphite and gravel minerality. Not so deep but what is there is in HD and ending in a long finish All is embedded in a fine structure with fine tannins a good freshness and airy and slightly creamy texture. Very harmonious and balanced.
Decanting: Not decanted and it was good from the go. No extensive decanting needed.
Glass: Gabriel
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/7/2021 - Marc S wrote: 94 Points
- Brick color with slow forming legs. It's in total harmony and has flavours of blackberry, black currant, cherry, chocolate and licorice anise with a medium body. Juicy texture with a short finish - Beautiful nose to say the least. Dark raspberries, cherries and licorice. This wine is ready to drink.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/5/2021 - Loathesome wrote: 88 Points
Looking at a note from 2007 I felt it was really well made and balanced but the latest bottle tasted a bit too earthy and dirty. Huge concentrated and still very dark but just a bit all over the place. Probably a not great bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/2/2021 - sirpat00 wrote: 94 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:
Dark and blue berry fruit, lots of herbal layers, both dried and fresh, aging notes only around the edges with a bit of leather and sous-bois. Pretty wild palate, plenty of acidity and mouth-coating tannins. Again a proper decant is definitely needed. In direct comparison with the 1989 next to it this came in second.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/20/2021 - MJReb wrote: 94 Points
Wonderful ripe St. Estèphe, tobacco, soil and dark berries, very good length, drinking well but has still a lot of years ahead.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/30/2021 - Satoshi Nakamoto wrote: 90 Points
Second time with this. Notes are similar to my first experience, except what’s more amplified is that I wish it showed more fruit (missing what I love in older, pre-Parker Napa). This got pretty overwhelmed in the lineup of Bernaudeau and red Burg. As Steven says, “Bored-whoa.”
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/22/2021 - Bugiman wrote: 97 Points
Great wine, in a perfect drinking window now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/16/2021 - Satoshi Nakamoto Likes this wine: 91 Points
Old school. Loved the nose on this. Tobacco, lead, leather, dark red fruit, some cedar. For an 01, it reminded me of some 90s Napa. Doesn't have the smoothness and energy on the palate you might get from a classic Napa, but if you're looking for a Bordeaux stalwart that's drinking nicely, this is it.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/9/2021 - rikipedia Likes this wine: 91 Points
Deep crimson to a garnet edge. An initial pong on the first pour and then bouquet opens to moist earth, button mushroom and truffle, all indicating some evolution. The decanted wine, after 10 minutes, gave a little more pencil shaving, ink and cedarwood.
Full-bodied, there is a relatively high acid on entry with a firm texture, lemon, crayon, wet earth and a little fruit in the mid-palate that gives a margin of flesh. The tannins grip hard to a puckering feeling even at 20 years old whilst a distinct savoury, mineral thread runs through the wine. The wine felt a little 1-dimensional and challenging to drink. Quite a hefty wine, and showing some concentration, there is little succour for the palate, and the wine feels somewhat edgy and densely packed with the acid making the wine extremely dry. Old school, with a medium finish, I hoped for a little more.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/28/2021 - MC wrote:
Decanted 90 minutes. My previous notes hold but this hit the spot tonight. Very enjoyable. A-
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/19/2021 - adnorthup Likes this wine:
4 hour decant. Phenomenal right now but no signs of turning any corners. Fine to open if you have multiple, otherwise hold.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/6/2021 - MC wrote:
Decanted 2 hours. Still primary coming up on age 20 but very pleasant Bodeaux that goes well with food and on its own. Dark blue fruits, some earth, but still mostly primary fruit but tannin integrated and drinking well. I do still think it will improve with age but with enough air (ideally 3 hours) this drinks well now. Should do a blind tasting one day with this and the '01 Dominus, Montelena, Monte Bello, and LLC...A-
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/13/2021 - dbkitc wrote: 94 Points
I like this a good deal better than many. This bottle was opened 4 hours before serving and decanted 2 hours in advance. While I don’t see this winning a blind tasting among Bordeaux’s best, I can’t imagine how this could be much better at the dinner table. The color is deep ruby - garnet has given way. The nose is classic with sweet cassis, leather, stones and a hint of funk. Not ostentatious but not shy either. You can smell the vineyard dusted in cinnamon and spice. Medium bodied, sweet and resolved. Certainly in secondary development. There is a tannic bite on the finish which portends to many years of future enjoyment. I love this style of wine. (94)
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/22/2021 - dnnk88 Likes this wine: 91 Points
62% cab sauv, 36% merlot, 1% cab franc and 1% petit verdot. Black fruits, tobacco. Quite savoury. Opened up nicely over the night. The 2001 Bordeaux are in a sweet spot now. 91/92
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/17/2021 - Château Merci-Beaucoup Likes this wine: 94 Points
Right after opening the bottle, the wine shows a rather surprising animal note with barnyard character and ham. I gave it just 1 hour in the decanter - and it was perfect: A very ripe and animal nose with a hint of meat sauce, on the palate very very silky with all tannins molten away, but still enough strenght and fruit with a nice raspberry finish. I did not expect much of this one - but I loved it! (After 6 to 8 hours in the decanter it has lost quite a bit of its complexity, so I would not air it for more than 1 hour)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/3/2021 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
Opened, tasted, and decided it was not going well at all with the dish we had. It was still at cellar temperature, and showing extremely lean. So stoppered and not drunk. It is now day 2, the wine has had some air and is at a good serving temperature of 17-18°. Nice mature complex nose, dark fruit, a bit of menthol and graphite. Soft attack, lean mid-palate lacking plush, taste with quite a bit of tannin about. Long finish. This wine is still rather austere. Not quite sure where this is going, I'll take the risk and wait another year or two for the next one.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/25/2020 - Mario17 wrote: flawed
Bouchon!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/6/2020 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Needed several hours to open up. Continues to show a bit more barnyard character compared to other recent vintages. Expressive nose, a bit of flint, smoke, considerable funk. Palate is integrated, mostly soft with some tannin in the background. Moderate fruit notes, seems on the mature “tired” side if anything. Moderate length. Not an exceptional vintage from Montrose.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2020 - tmagsmaken wrote: 93 Points
Concentrated bouquet with dark fruit ripe (brambly and cherry), undergrowth, pencil shavings and tobacco. On the palate, medium-bodied and balanced with the acidity well tamed, tannins integrated and alcohol unremarkable. Good length. Ready in my view but can obviously age further without issues
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/4/2020 - OttawaB Likes this wine: 92 Points
Some basic notes. But really just quietly enjoyed drinking this bottle. Garnet in colour. Some blackberries and dried cherries. Medium tannic hit (a touch grainy). Medium acidity. Definitely getting tertiary notes … leather, tobacco, and a touch of savoury on the end. Very nice wine. Maybe was expecting more, but I'm not sure what I wanted more of.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2020 - Rob-Rah Likes this wine: 92 Points
45th birthday - gollygosh, time runs doesn't it.....
Pours dark and youthful looking. Opaque. Graphite and cassis. A bit of fig. Nothing very haunting though. This aristocrat has his buttons all done up. Higher-toned and zesty aspect. Palate poised between stern and supple. Perhaps verging on the stern. Zingy acids, ripe cassis fruit. Very dry and bitter herb finish. I know it's not Pauillac, but it's very *obviously* not as the direction is the opposite, if that makes sense. Zesty again. Perhaps the dry finish and tannins are a bit clumsy. Perhaps the texture is too much like an iceberg (frigid, unyielding, slightly unfriendly, but certainly stately) Perhaps showing that 2001 was not amazingly ripe. Perhaps a smidgen of alcohol protruding - though this is only 12.5% (why aren't all reds around that???). Perhaps the nose isn't as generous and captivating as it could be. Perhaps it's too young:
Certainly I thought it had more promise 10 years ago, but the fruit has now subsided somewhat, leaving the structure a bit stern. The "mature" notes we want with this aren't there yet, but waiting for them could also risk the fruit simply evaporating.
I paid £50 a few years ago, which feels ok. The £90 now isn't. Go get the Dame de Montrose 2010 ;)
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/8/2020 - doug374 wrote: 93 Points
This was a magnum opened 45 minutes prior to serving. It was very approachable with the tannins smoothed out and aromas of blackberries, plums, light smoke and earth.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/3/2020 - Vancouver Likes this wine: 93 Points
Classic St Estephe- drinking very well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/30/2020 - fc1910 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Back to Riesling County; 8/27/2020-8/31/2020 (Estates at the Nahe and Ruwer, different restaurants at Bad Kreuznach, Niederhausen and Trier): Back in our hotel that evening for dinner,
rummaging in their fantastic wine list again,
first gone to HB 2005, the waiter couldn't find, and so on, at last I am walking the 8 meter fridge wall and wait, one lonely bottle upstairs, luckily I am 1,94 cm tall, choose this one, pnp,
strong fragrance of earth, truffles, black cassis, fine tobacco,
no decant, always want to see how a nearly 20 years old bottle will show just after pouring, good grip, tight, but really accessible, rich, elegant flow over the mid palate, some still grainy tannin in the background, but blows off after an hour open, long aftertaste, great bottle tonight, will hold easily another decade in this condition.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/23/2020 - forceberry wrote: 92 Points
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (62%), Merlot (34%), Petit Verdot (3%) and Cabernet Franc (1%). 12,5% alcohol. Decanted for 1 hour and drunk over another hour or two. Tasted alongside Calon-Segur 2001 and rather underwhelming Leoville-Barton 2001.
Dark, somewhat translucent blackish-red color with a dried-blood hue. Aromas of ripe blackcurrant, some wizened dark fruits, a little bit of leather, light woody notes of pencil shavings, oaky hints ranging from cedar to almost buttery diacetyl and a touch of ripe red cherry. The wine is dry, moderately evolved and slightly tough on the palate with nuanced, savory flavors of wizened dark fruits, some sour cherry bitterness, a little bit of ripe blackcurrant, light oaky notes of mocha and toasty wood, a hint of sweet pruney fruit and a matured touch of sous-bois. Nicely structured overall feel with the balanced, moderately high acidity and quite firm tannins that still lend a healthy grip to the gums. The finish is ripe, long and somewhat grippy with layered flavors of wizened blackcurrants, some plummy red fruit, a little bit of brooding, slightly chocolatey oak, light woody notes of pencil shavings and a juicy hint of cherries.
A sophisticated and harmonious Montrose that shows quite a bit of ripe, juicy fruit. In a good spot in the sense the wine is starting to show some age, but is nevertheless quite youthful for a wine clocking at 19 years. However, I think the wine could really benefit from further aging, as it really hasn't evolved enough to show real tertiary complexity and the oak still shows quite a bit, albeit not overwhelming anything. Structurally the wine is in a perfect spot, as it retains quite a bit of structure, so it can stand up to even heartier dishes, but has resolved enough to be drinking nicely on its own as well. Stylistically this felt very similar to the 2001 Calon-Segur that was tasted alongside, perhaps showing a bit more resolution and a bit less power. All in all, a fine, classic Bordeaux - more in the style of ripe old-school Bordeaux than "a proper claret" - but perhaps a bit pricey for the quality at 85,20€.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/4/2020 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Signature mature left bank aromas sing from the glass. Black cherry, anise, cedar, iron, forest floor, with dusty tannin. Very much St. Estephe. Surprisingly fully mature at 19 years of age, when Montrose typically takes 30 years to come around. Excellent!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2020 - Jammy Wine wrote: 89 Points
This 2001 Montrose was more fragrant standing next to the blockbuster Clos Erasmus Priorat 1996 and Solaia 2011. Interestingly the Montrose 01 appeared slightly green compared with the ultra-ripe Clos Erasmus, though I doubt anyone would notice any green / vegetal note without comparing with the ripe and concentrated Priorat. Tasted blind – Dark and low pitched. We knew one of the three reds were a Solaia, I thought this was it.. (89/100)
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/2/2020 - chibaken wrote: 93 Points
I've seen some variation in this wine over the years; some times a little foursquare, other times a fine example of structure and polish. Fortunately this showing falls in the latter category. This is elegance in a glass: not showy, no sharp edges, a veneered low key mid-palate drying out to long tannins. No doubt this is a food wine, a beef wine. The pairing is mesmeric, and I can only hope my last bottle is boxing in the same ring.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/25/2020 - liber wrote: 85 Points
7th of 24, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level - not a patch on previous bottles, thinner, fruit muted and apparently in decline, earth flavours prominent, drinkable curiously with some pleasure but an outlier out of line with previous bottles, just a suggestion on exit of being lightly corked which may explain matters. on basis of what's in the glass just about G (15).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/14/2020 - Ivin wrote:
Still tannic and thin. Fruit is very reserved. I think the oak overwhelmed the fruit.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/3/2020 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com wrote:
Just over 7 years since my last TN on this wine. Still a very dark colour, a mere hint of bricking at the edges. Beautiful complex nose with menthol, some spice and fruit - red or black, difficult to say. Fresh attack, some fine grained tannins in the medium-bodied taste and finish. Has evident potential to go further and fully resolve the tannins. A tad dryish on the back end. Definitely a food wine. And you know what: a wine from before the onset of climate change, this is from an average Bordeaux vintage, it is fresh and NOT 14% or more. What a relief!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/30/2020 - MrBrege wrote: 93 Points
Finally this wine is where I want ir. I have found it overly acidic and not fully integrated in the last 3 years. But with a 4h decant I now think it has good balance. Not an outstanding vintage but very pleasing combination of spice and fruit on the attack, a very fresh mid palate and decently long finish. Happy I have a few of these.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/6/2020 - martin_e Likes this wine: 91 Points
To me it’s a typical representative of the 2001 vintage. Very spicy, with spicy aromas and flavors of cinnamon and tart black fruits and berries. Strong structure, mid-to-long finish, but a bit missing on the mid palate, not over-exciting
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/4/2020 - Collector1855 wrote: 93 Points
Tasted blind. Mid-mature (ca. 15 years was most people's guess) Medoc nose with earthy and forest floor notes. Also here the palate could benefit from some more fruit. On the acidic side.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/1/2020 - danckie Likes this wine: 94 Points
No formal notes by i do wanna point out that this wine is a very happy place. Perfectly aged, still plenty of fruit an sooo elegant. Smashing stuff!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/20/2020 - djhammond Likes this wine: 93 Points
Ready to go, this is starting to drink well with a couple of hours in the decanter. Possessing a deep nose full of red cherry, plum, and vanilla, the palate is well balanced and showing complex notes. The finish is decent, but over tannic and the barrier to a higher rating.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/15/2020 - awever Likes this wine: 95 Points
Nearly perfect, very very classic, not a Parker wine, Drink over the next 20 years
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/18/2020 - Kim Gerner wrote: 94 Points
Wine tasting dinner - Domaine Leflaive and Bordeaux (At home): More rustic than Leoville Las Cases 2004 but nevertheless almost as good as Las Cases. Outstanding. Can definitely drink now but has potential for many years of further ageing
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/29/2019 - rikipedia Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep garnet to mahogany rim.
Classic bouquet of damp earth, dried blackcurrant, black plum, wet spices and oak.
Medium to full-bodied, this feels brooding, deep and quite tight. Fine fresh acidity with a chewy texture the wine has wonderful depth of fruit and concentration of flavour. Robust but fine tannins that still need plenty of time to resolve. Black fruits, earth, cassis, dried herbs, roasted meat all make for a solid, if a little surly wine. The finish is long. Needs more time in bottle.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/8/2019 - CHarder wrote: 93 Points
This is starting to come together. Plenty of life in this though. Will still improve I think over next years and keep easily for 10.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/9/2019 - Zweder wrote: 94 Points
An easy afternoon with close friends; Bordeaux (@ FD): Deep bouquet with red berries, cherries, earth, vanilla and herbs and spices. On the palate firm acidity, herbs and spices, cherries, red and dark berries, fairly sticky tannin still. Juicy wine. Showing some maturity and development, but I think it can easily last another 5+ years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/8/2019 - bellabo Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very pleasant after quick decant. Tart cherry, earth and plum. Nice ruby color. Paired nicely with wild mushroom soup.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/19/2019 - cannym Likes this wine: 92 Points
Double decanted about three hours. Fine mid ruby. Lots of elegance, a bit firm. Plenty of red and black berries, sandalwood, a bit of earthiness. Good length. Think this will benefit from more time and open up more. But suspect it would have been more impressive on its own. Still a bit square and tight.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/14/2019 - tmagsmaken Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for 2 hours
Intense but refined bouquet with dark fruit and charcoal although tertiary notes not as developed yet.
Delicious in the mouth with more dark fruit, very fine tannins with a hint of bitterness. Mouth-coating but elegant and juicy. Powerful finish.
This is good ! Could obviously be kept for years to come but I doubt i will have the discipline to do so.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/17/2019 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 94 Points
In a great spot. Charcoal, animal funk, and currants on the nose. Fine tannins on the palate with black fruit. A bit bitter on transition into the finish but the lushness of the merlot really rounds out the palate. Nice length on the finish. This has integrated very well. More depth than expected for an ‘01.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/19/2019 - SonnyChiba wrote: 95 Points
Wonderful wine. Would never get sick of drinking this one. I’d say this will continue to drink well for quite some time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/7/2019 - MRichman wrote:
Lots of mineral and iron, dried herbs, dark fruit. I can feel the power back there, but hasn't blossomed yet. A bit stiff. This is still not ready. Good length. Nice pretty floral element too, a bit buried now but will come out eventually. Drink with red meat after a long decant or wait another 3-5 years for this to start to shine. Will never be a big blockbuster, but I expect this to be a wonderful, structured, well built wine in time.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/5/2019 - Levantine wrote:
We drank 4 bottle
One was off
Each of the other bottles, all great, was slightly different: talk about bottle variation.
One was more ethereal
The rest more typical montrose/st estephe
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/9/2019 - SonnyChiba wrote: 95 Points
Phenomenal wine! Absolutely love where this is at right now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/1/2018 - doug374 Likes this wine: 93 Points
1.5 L - Wine is middle mature, still tannins to be softened. Acidity is delivering a nice mouth feel. Fruits are dark, cherry plum, also tobacco and a note of leather.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/24/2018 - MrBrege wrote:
I will not rate this. In my view this wine has been in a difficult phase for years (tannic for sure, and I think also a bit unbalanced with too much acidity). However I saw several notes (Papies in particular who I think has terrific judgement) in the last few months that indicated that perhaps it was opening up. Not so for this bottle. The one we tried was exactly the same as 2-3 years ago. I had double decanted it in the morning and let it slow-ox over the day, but that made no impression on it whatsoever. A bit "gritty" and still very much on the acidic side (albeit superb on the nose). To be sure that my palate just was not off, I tasted it on day 2 against its 1996 sibling, which was terrific, so if my palate is flawed it at least is not more than usually so. I worry a little that here will not be enough fruit in there to ever get it in balance. Possibly they tried to make a bigger wine than the vintage allowed (maybe inspired by their effort the year before). On the other hand, the early tasting notes of this wine were unanimously positive, and that is generally a very good indicator of how it will end up, so I will wait and not touch my remaining bottles for a few more years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/9/2018 - Papies wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for a good hour.
Montrose dependable quality, understated elegance and excitement. Minerality, good fruit, nice secondary touches, classic feel of St Estephe. A touch on the thinner side of ripeness and does give a dry feeling at times but the wine is super solid and for lovers of classic Bordeaux like us will do the trick. Solid 92-93
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/18/2018 - Tao wrote: 96 Points
I have to admit, the 2001 Chateau Montrose is the biggest surprise of the year so far, not only it entered the earlier phase of maturity, but also it opens itself to the nature of its aristocracy, stunning me in every possible way! It evolves in such a gracious pace and of course with dignity! Once you uncork the bottle, you immediately sense the majestic nose, black fruits dominated along with a hint of sweetness, have to take a few moments to sense all the alluring and yet subtle aromas! It is still very dark ruby in colour, palate is sweet and full, the structure is well and present! As I said earlier, in the early phase of maturity, will definitely improve and refine in the coming years, hope to revisit again in five years time! Pure and very well made and a bit old-school which I adore!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (1)
10/7/2018 - swade wrote: 93 Points
Nary a sign of age. Deeply colored. Cedar and loam aromas. Classic entry. Dry currants, lead pencil, slate and a wash of fine tannins. Miles to go. 93
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/4/2018 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
6th of 24, pnp, perfect cork and level, on plateau of early maturity, attractive, but needs to fill and round out which I would expect to happen over the next 5 years before entering a long prime drinking period. Whether it will match the grace and sheer delight of the outstanding Rausan S 90 on same night I doubt, but nonetheless F+ (18).
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/11/2018 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Weekly tasting group RWP #290: Bordeaux Vertical and Horizontal (@ VD): Beautiful bouquet with clearly cabernet (bell pepper) impressions. Luxurious oak, cedar, autumn impressions and some mint. On the palate firm acidity, some red currants and other red as well as dark berries, earth, beautiful acidity and slightly sticky tannin. A lot of deposit in the bottle. 93+
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/9/2018 - skifree wrote: 93 Points
On the nose, very earthy, black fruits, some cassis, and cedar. Very classic in the mouth, restrained but with the flavors on the nose blending together with good acidity behind it. Medium-long finish. Loved it with dinner x 2.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/6/2018 - ove_stammrud wrote:
Furugulv, frukt-tobakk, lær, og dyp rødlig plomme. Tobakks toner møter deg i munn, etterfulgt av saftig frukt og en ettersmak med ekstra gear. Noe brå i midtpartiet. Vinens alder og friske struktur fornemmer følelsen av å sitte behagelig, men ikke slakt.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/6/2018 - SimonS wrote: 93 Points
With J&J at 67PM. This had a 2 hour decant and it benefitted greatly from that. There was a graphite character that reminded me of a red graves, but more prominent was beautiful dark fruit. Tannins seemed to come back a bit at the end of the bottle, but this is drinking very nicely with a proper decant. Seems set for a good 10 years of drinking.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/24/2018 - Vinogan(s) wrote: 92 Points
Herbs, tobacco, an impression of wood, red fruit, still has power, relatively light-coloured. Rather classic bordeaux-profile, but a bit of atypical unfriendly acidity creeping through and somewhat disturbing the full picture.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/24/2018 - Kris G wrote: 92 Points
Elegant nose with strawberry, tobacco and spices. In the mouth spices, red fruits, red berries, the fruit is showing a cool vintage, lacking a bit of matter, the acidity is very prominent and almost unlike Bordeaux, long aftertaste, good wine but not the best vintage ever for Montrose
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/21/2018 - rossi.wine wrote: 92 Points
Restrained on the nose, dark fruit, spices, tobacco. On the palate spicy and fresh, again quite tight and grippy. Ripe but powerful tannins. Very good length. Needs time. 91-92+
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/11/2018 - Bugiman wrote: 96 Points
Absolutely gorgeous wine. Perfect to drink now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/18/2018 - chibaken wrote: 90 Points
4 hour decant. Great nose, not giving much on the palate, tannins fine and integrated. Very old school. The Leoville Barton from same year is better
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/27/2018 - DonWinspear Likes this wine: 91 Points
This wine has sat in my cellar for 5 years since my last taste. Don't ask me why. This is from a Coravin taste, so I did not benefit from a full decant. There is still a lot fruit, but all rounded out with a woodsy, earthy tone that is indicative of older bordeaux. Dark fruit, graphite, spice. The tannins are still very much in place, so it has the chops to go longer. But, it's drinking very well now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/27/2017 - Geoff Likes this wine: 92 Points
Needed air time. Opened well in the glass, with beautiful nuanced secondary changes, dark fruit and firm tannins. Still young.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/19/2017 - winebargainchaser wrote: 92 Points
still too young. opening before 2018 would be a waste of money and time, even if this montrose was bought at a relatively modest price (about $ 60). the one I opened was kind of lean, with pronounced acid and tannin levels. but I think (and hope) there's more hidden fruit behind it. I'll open another one in 2019. right now it's quite enjoyable (with meals), but not enough for this name . . . . .
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/16/2017 - Keith Cooper Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted 1 hour before drinking, to accompany rack of lamb. A sublime Bordeaux, the first impression is that it is still very young and would keep for probably 10-20 years. Despite that, it opened up quickly and provided the Bordeaux lovers at our table with a real treat. Excellent berry fruit, hedgerow, tannins perfect, length good, earthy and leathery. A real treat to drink.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/9/2017 - MrBrege wrote: 92 Points
From Coravin. This is still too young and feels a bit one-dimensional as a result. Tannins are very present and it has yet to come into balance with the acidity too pronounced. I hope that the fruit will last the distance. It's still enjoyable but I will wait a few years before I try it again.
A month later I uncorked the bottle and drank it over three days. Best on the third, the tannins are still very much there but the balance with the fruit improved. Also, the pronounced acidity mellowed into a spicy impression, pretty nice in fact. Raise rating to 92
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/5/2017 - Helenachuck Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dense opaque ruby/red color, red rim, surprisingly youthful looking. The nose shows a greater level of maturity and integration. Bottle age, Cabernet essence, blue fruit, clove, and plum are just a few of the nuances, along with hints of leather and vanilla. A lovely fresh nose overall. On the palate, this is a classic style claret - cassis, leather, lead pencil, dried thyme. It is complex and tasty, although it lacks a bit of weight compared to some other Montrose vintages. Very good Bordeaux.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/3/2017 - Romol Likes this wine: 91 Points
Not decanted. Consumed over 2 nights. Still young. The first night a bit too much acidity. Second night more in balance. I guess this needs 2-3 more years in the cellar. 91+ pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/24/2017 - skifree wrote: 93 Points
Very dark garnet, clear meniscus. Again the Old World style is what I notice first. Nice nose of mushroom and light herb. Black fruit at first in the mouth, but also cedar, cigar box, and herb. Tannins are noticeable on the finish. Comes across as very balanced.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/23/2017 - Philippe_C wrote: 95 Points
Beautiful and huge nose of cedar and cigar box, lead pencil, very black fruit... Still a wall of tannin, but smoothing with 2-3 hours of aeration. There is a good structure underneath, nice concentration and roasted meat finish. Great Montrose!
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/14/2017 - SonnyChiba wrote: 94 Points
In an excellent place right now. Classic Bordeaux, showing beautiful secondary notes while maintaining some nice ripe dark fruit. Impeccably balanced and overall delicious wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/1/2017 - Mr T wrote:
Decanted by mistake when I asked for Sauternes. Hard to explain. That said, still very good
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (1)
3/8/2017 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very well balanced, with currant, a bit of licorice, nice acidity and ample but fine tannin.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2017 - retired_and_roving Likes this wine:
Very youthful and fruit forward at this point in its life. Red and black fruits with a some bright acidity, but not too many of the secondary flavors showing themselves at this point.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/17/2017 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Tampa Spring Break (the second); 2/17/2017-2/19/2017 (Various spots (homes, Mis en Place, Capital Grille)): This was the point in the night where my handwriting becomes a bit less legible and the conversation picks up. Generally though found this wine to be very young still (I guess esp next to a '90 Cos served alongside). It was a bit gamey in flavor. A bit tight. But interesting wine.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/6/2017 - bordeaux_bro Likes this wine: 93 Points
Meaty, animal, pleasantly complex Montrose barnyard nose. Slight bricking on the edges, but still firm tannins and punchy acidity. Secondary brambly aromas, cedar, and some Pauillac cigarbox starting to come out. Just entering its prime drinking window, so no rush to consume and it should drink well for at least another 15 years. A bargain from an auction at less than $70.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2017 - PSPatrick wrote: 91 Points
No formal notes taken. I decanted the wine for two hours around noon, poured it back into the bottle and brought it along for dinner at Elmar’s house, to drink it alongside his 2003. The wine was medium ruby in colour and offered cherry, blackberry, earthy notes, tobacco, spice, a touch of liquorice and mild ethereal notes on the nose and palate, with smooth, well-integrated tannin, lively acidity and very good length of the pleasantly dry finish. This balanced, medium-bodied Bordeaux went over the palate smoothly and very easily, yet had solid depth and substance, and paired well with a variety of food. An elegant, very drinkable expression of Bordeaux!
Compared with the 2003 that followed, both wines shared the earthiness and a mild liquorice note on the backend, but this 2001 was lighter on the palate, more drinkable and as opposed to the 2003 ready to drink now (with a solid decant), whereas the 2003 was the more concentrated wine of the two, had a darker fruit profile and will be much longer-lived, but clearly needs another seven to ten years in the cellar before entering into its optimal drinking window.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/19/2017 - JimmyBubbles Likes this wine: 92 Points
Sacado a ciegas en Vila Viniteca.
Complejo, se notan los años, carne fresca, pimientas, fruta roja bien reducida, pimienton. Buena paleta, muy conjuntado con un toque de pimiento verde reconocible.
La boca aun es algo dura, taninos, bien para comer. Buena profundidad y largura, con frescura que se agradece
Nos fuimos a un Margaux del 2000. Not too bad.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/13/2017 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
5th of 24, decanted 90 minutes, perfect level and cork, back on form expressive and lovely, still primary but lovely weight and balance. F+ (18).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/7/2017 - guido23 wrote: 92 Points
I've had several underwhelming experiences with Montrose but this was quite nice. We popped, decanted, poured, and consumed over four hours. It began with a lot of cedar and earth on the nose. Soon a lot of cherry came out and eventually the wine came into its own with lots of gentle tannins in balance. Drinking well right now with room for improvement.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2016 - walkerjfw wrote: 94 Points
Christmas Eve, drank after a 95 Pontet Canet to finish the evening. This one a birth year vintage for my youngest daughter Poured through a vinituri and drank over 2.5 hours. This was tight when first opened, not showing much for about 45 minutes...
Dark core garnet color, no real signs of age. Great nose of dark fruits, oak, savory/game notes. Palate of blackberry, plums, red currant, violets. Elegant mouthfeel, rich through the mid palate. Finishes medium/long.
My notes reflect experience after the wine started to show, really about 90 minutes in. We hadn't planned on a second bottle so this didn't get the decant it should have had. Very reticent when first opened, expressive and youthful once it starts to show. This is a gorgeous wine, aged nicely, drinking well now with many years ahead of it. A healthy decant is a MUST with this wine! It was continuing to improve 2 hours in, last sips were the best. Score goes higher in time 94+
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/17/2016 - La Cave d'Argent Likes this wine: 94 Points
Celebrating at the Montage Laguna Beach; 12/16/2016-12/19/2016 (Laguna Beach, CA): From a bottle purchased upon release and cellared under ideal conditions, this deep red/garnet wine (a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc) was decanted and serially sampled over the ensuing 12 hours. Not yielding much initially, it unfolds after six hours in decanter to become something special. Black currants, Bing cherries, graphite, violets and tobacco reside in a medium-bodied, freshly acidic frame. The alcohol (12.5%) is seamless and the tannins, while substantial, are very fine-grained. Dense on the mid-palate and lengthy on the back end, this is an elegant Montrose that is early in its drinking window. Enjoy it over the next decade. Drink now-2026.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/17/2016 - laralh wrote: 92 Points
Solbær, kirsebær, cedertre, litt lær og hint av jordbær. Fyldig, sømløs, lang. Har litt å gå på mhp. kompleksitet og konsentrasjon. Flott vin.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/20/2016 - wkphang wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for 1 hour, nice cedary, dark fruits and some smoky aroma.
Medium to long finish.
Does have what it takes to continue to evolve, but very nice as it is now.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/23/2016 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
4th of 24, pnp, perfect cork and level, as my previous notes (6/15 and 11/14), notably concentrated for the vintage, if anything tightening and less expressive on palate than when last drunk, still a baby. Should improve on current F+ (18).
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2016 - EMAZurich Likes this wine: 94 Points
Tiefes Rubinrot, sehr dunkler Kern. Tolle, schwarzbeerige Nase - plus einer Note nach rotem, reifem Spitzpaprika und Pfeffer.
Am Gaumen schon offen. In einem sehr frühen Stadium offen. Opulente, süsse und dichte Frucht nach Waldbeeren, schwarzen Johannisbeeren und Herzkirschen. Etwas Honig. Ein Wahnsinnsfinale, der Wein bleibt einfach präsent, mit Bilderbuchmineralik.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/10/2016 - Vancouver wrote: 95 Points
Deep ruby color with some lightening at the rim.
Evolving and pronounced nose of black fruits (cassis) , blueberry liqueur, vanilla and tobacco.
Medium plus body and still plenty of tannin and acidity after 12 years or so in the bottle. Tastes like the essence of cabernet sauvignon- black fruit, tobacco and vanilla. The finish is definitely long.
The old saying is that "there are no great wines, only great bottles" and this one was great!. Drink now or age "indefinitely" in a cold cellar.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/13/2016 - birdiefour wrote:
Mocool
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/24/2016 - RayOB Likes this wine: 94 Points
The Judgement of Paris (67 Pall Mall): Complex rich deep nose and palate. Lovely.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/29/2016 - Paul D wrote:
Bordeaux Wimps (La Trompette, Chiswick): Deep ruby, narrow pale rim. Quite closed, youthful, blackcurrant. Medium/full, attractive blackcurrant fruit, tannins not overly firm but this is still quite tight. Leave. **(**)
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/25/2016 - GFischer wrote: 93 Points
Nose unripe plums, cedar, chocolate, fresh fruity acidity, almond, marcipan, rasberries, on the palate elegant, fine, a bit juicy, condensed nose aromas, in the finish long plums, harmonic, fantastic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/23/2016 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A great wine with amazing purity, depth, and concentration. Still very young, but it is showing better after 2 hours in the decanter. Black fruits, licorice, iron, beef blood, and minerals dominate. Still has some baby fat on it with the tannin. Could use 5 more years for the secondary characteristics to become more pronounced. '94 Opus which we consumed side by side was showing better tonight.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (1)
3/13/2016 - obmoen wrote: 93 Points
Mørke bær, hint av stall som blåser bort, mandel, søtlig tobakk. God balanse, nydelig syre, kjølig i munn. Lekker tanninstruktur. Rød frukt kommer med luft.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/11/2016 - Alex H wrote: 89 Points
Exotic black spiced fruits of nutmeg, star anise and touch of cocoa powder on the finish. Still dark brooding and moreish with dark violets.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/16/2016 - Zweder wrote: 94 Points
Monthly Tuesday group #006: Bordeaux 2001 versus 2002 (By VD): Exclusive and beautiful bouquet with a lot of refinement; dark forest fruits, sweet spices, cedar, minerals, some leather, smoke and luxurious oak as well as a pleasant bit of barnyard. On the palate powerful and ripe dark berries, salty and sweet licorice, graphite, chocolate, smoke, some pleasant bell pepper and well integrated vanilla from the oak. Beautiful acidity and tannin. Everything is perfectly integrated. Overall a complex, refined and luxurious wine which is in its maturity stage now and will stay on this level until 2020 at least. Great wine!
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/18/2016 - MC wrote:
First of the case. Decanted 30 minutes and drunk over two hours. This is ripe, round, concentrated and with integrated tannins. It will likely hold and improve but right now it is about the primary and not secondary characteristics so for me only very good but not great. A-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/14/2016 - Yagil wrote: 93 Points
Special dinner - post Oct-2015 Bordeaux wine tour (at Ety & Hanan Shahaf, Lehavim): Dark red black
Dark ripe fruits tertiary aroma
Full bodied, excellent
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2016 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 89 Points
Beautifully aromatic. Pencil lead and blackberry aromas. Tightly wound, but opened somewhat over a couple of hours. Pretty austere in its ripeness and fruit. Was overshadowed by a riper, richer California Cabernet tonight.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2015 - mark1961 wrote: 91 Points
really excellent best after 1 .5 hours. WIth AP and RG
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/7/2015 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Weekly tasting group #195; St. Estephe (@ VD): Beautiful and classical bouquet, a bit dusty, but also creamy red and dark berries, beautiful oak and cedar. On the palate red and dark forest fruits, a touch of bell pepper, laurel, coffee, a beautiful dose of oak which is nicely integrated, beautiful acidity as well as a slight and pleasant touch of sweetness. Juicy acidity and round, still slightly sticky tannin. The wine is in its young maturity stage now and will still be great around 2020.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/28/2015 - Nutty08 wrote: flawed
Seemed to have a little brett bloom, as it was way more funky than expected and had an acidic metallic edge to the palate which I would not consider typical for Montrose. Still had very nice fruit underneath so we did consume the bottle, but didnt have the depth or complexity I would expect from this producer.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/7/2015 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 92 Points
Was curious to retry the 01 Montrose after more than 2 years. Perfect cork. Poured into decanter and drank over 3h. A transparent but still fairly dark garnet. Initially this wine seems surprisingly expressive and showing much more dark berries and fruit than I recall from the last bottle but with some air the wine becomes much tighter wound, with earthy notes, sous bois and some potato chips. Medium tannins appear with even more air. Medium plus finish. This certainly has depth but I would not open for another 2+ years or so and hope this still opens up a bit more. Not sure I see the 95 point wine here that Neal Martin does, but certainly 92 with another point or perhaps even two upside once it fully opens up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/26/2015 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Do not disturb. Completely shut down.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/12/2015 - SimonS wrote: 93 Points
First bottle from this case was stripped - I guess lightly corked. This 2nd was much better. Just starting to drink, lovely black currants and berries, good purity, tannins still in evidence, but fine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/28/2015 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
2nd of 24, decanted an hour, as note of November 14 with earth/hot brick notes more evident, again impressive depth of fruit, long life ahead. Fine plus (18/20).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/18/2015 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 89 Points
I appear to be in the minority here but to me this wine is out of balance with too much acid and too little fruit. Loads of graphite and some earthiness and spice. Day two about like day one.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2015 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still quite tannic though very expressive. Expressive nose of pencil, mocha, smoke and game. Palate is quite fine and narrow, with a dark plummy character. Moderate leathery finish with a little funk. Still needs a little time to integrate the wood notes, but otherwise the fruit is showing some early maturity. Should be a good, not great Montrose that will start to drink well soon.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/3/2015 - LWI wrote: 93 Points
31 Vintages of Château Montrose: 1928-2010; 5/2/2015-5/3/2015: Lots of power here as well. Montrose must have handled the 2001 in an admirable way because the fruit is just perfectly ripe. Quite big acid, linear wine. However, the complexity is not there (yet). Drinkable, but better to wait 10-20 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/17/2015 - Ericsson wrote: 91 Points
Bordal chez RPB (Margaux, Cheval Blanc, Lafite...) (Vessy): Après la série double aveugle, nous avons encore bu cette bouteille, après passage en carafe.
Jolie couleur groseille foncé, brillant. Nez sur les arômes de cassis, de havane. Belle bouche avec beaucoup de matière, dense.
La finale est longue avec des tanins encore râpeux, signe que le vin n'est pas encore tout à fait prêt. Lui donner 3 à 5 ans.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/22/2015 - Cheungtp Likes this wine: 93 Points
The dark purple profile tells you that this gem is still young, but it's really drinking quite nicely now. With 1+ hours decant, aromatics of gravel, cassis, floral, cedar and cigar wrapper came out sweetly. Medium body, rich palate with dark fruits and forest notes. Not the grandest Montrose you'd expect, but the beautiful blend of elegance and masculinity will leave you satisfied. A real nice Bordeaux, and it certainly will improve some more with additional time in the cellar.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/27/2015 - thebonnydooner wrote: 92 Points
The Wine Night at Bellevue Wine Storage - Part 1 (Bellevue, WA): Fresh and tasty bordeaux that unfortunately was blown away by the richer and riper wines of the evening. This is still showing quite a bit of tannin along with fresh currant acidity. Overall a nice complex bottle of Bordeaux that probably needs another 5 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/26/2015 - Ivin wrote: 89 Points
2 hour decant. Never really opened up. Very lean and acidic. No charm whereas 2002 Sociando Mallet last night was delightful in its restrained richness.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/16/2015 - leecon Likes this wine:
Still quite restrained, nice structure, gravel, leather, coffee, nice sweet blackcurrant, a little thin finish. Decanted and left for a couple hours. I guess would develop more with time but not one that seemed particularly built for the long run
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2014 - fhmesq wrote: 92 Points
Stereotypical Bordeaux, loaded with earth, tobacco, leather. Took a couple hours to really open up and definitely not past its peak. Probably not even at it. Last glass had a nice bit of chocolate on the finish as well. Nicely balanced. Will wait a couple years before trying again.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2014 - ecrogers Likes this wine: 92 Points
Never been dispointed with Montrose! Probably one of the best wines on the market and personnaly find it better than Cos d'Estournel... The nose is reconizable to the estate, the tannins are balanced and finale is up to it's expectation. Surprisingly, I believe it's not yet at it's peak and should be a real bomb in the next 3-4 years! Just Love Montrose
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/24/2014 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
1st of 24, decanted 3 hours, perfect fill - deepish garnet, purple rim; primary, blackcurrant, dark plums, touch of graphite and earth, fresh not baked; fullish, long and complex, high quality, complexity developing as opened in glass, lovely balance and energy of fruit largely hiding not quite resolved fine grain tannins, a baby yet. Should merit higher than current fine plus (18/20).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/25/2014 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 92 Points
2001 Bordeaux plus Rhones, Burgs and More: More approachable than I expected, with plenty of dark fruit, anise, and a little earthiness and ample, but well-integrated tannin.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/25/2014 - Ianjaig wrote: 89 Points
Decanted for an hour. Nose was relatively closed and whilst displaying some nice secondary flavours, I was somewhat underwhelmed by this (and therefore disappointed). Would have preferred to have opened this when younger.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/21/2014 - spillwine wrote: 91 Points
Décanté 2 heures, délicieux jus de fruit, peu de puissance
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/12/2014 - Papies wrote:
From half bottle from a single batch so with all the question marks that come along.
Definitely not a pnp wine. Needed like 1.5hrs to develop, shed the acidic side and show a good nose. Still the palate remained sharp and difficult and this was not the wine we expected. We hope its a bottle issue as we do have a full on case sleeping IB somewhere near Basingstoke... no rating today.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/2/2014 - bablues wrote: 97 Points
Judgement of Chicago (Nomi): Tasted blind. Nose was clean, with a little metal and black licorice. Flavors were very similar to the Heitz, though a little more acidic than the others. By far the best French wine of the tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/29/2014 - rjbr Likes this wine: 93 Points
drank it together with a 1995 Calon Segur , this one seemed more rounded and ready to drink
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/6/2014 - Mr T wrote:
tannic beast....still incredibly dark and dense...not a ton on the nose. Decanted and with that some fruit and elements beyond cedar start to emerge...would have thought even Montrose would be more open given age and vintage...need to open this early next time to see
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
1/26/2014 - d'Artagnan wrote: 91 Points
Un nez complexe, cèdre, poivron rouge, tomates séchées, ketchup.
Un vin encore jeune, mais ouvert, viril, il s'affiche plus en structure que sur le fruit. Un vin qui se révèle pleinement à table, noble et imposant, droit, la finale surprend par sa finesse. Il n'est pas charmeur mais montre une belle profondeur. 91 pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/11/2014 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Another Saturday at Knightsbridge - mostly blind (Northbrook, IL): Tasted double blind. Black, fleshy fruit with firm tannic structure that was somewhat unwelcoming today. Lots of power matched with lots of tannins. Needs lots of time. Probably not a Bordeaux for me.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2014 - galewskj wrote: 91 Points
30 minute decant and then followed over at least 4 hours - very little change during that time. The nose is amazing. The palate is slightly austere but friendlier than many Bordeaux. Like many, it is intellectually satisfying but not very tasty.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2013 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 93 Points
New Years 2013 at Kevin's (Minneapolis, MN): Outstanding showing with funk, raspberries, forest floor, gravel and coffee beans. The nose was a top five of 2013. Palate while not as good added a cigar component and had a medium finish. Should age five plus years but honestly why wait when it is this good now.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2013 - rocknroller wrote: 93 Points
New Years Eve Celebration Offline (Rocknroller's (Kevin & Vicki's Place)): Very dark purple color. Decanted for 45 minutes. Drank 2 glasses over 3 hours. This has a great nose that mesmerizes you with the first whiff. There is ample floral perfume, with cedar box, crème de cassis, boysenberry and leather. The palate is quite nice too, medium full body, elegant, cassis, dark berries, graphite, cigar box, and minerals. The tannins seem round and integrated already. I thought this showed very, very well with the nose being the star, and a palate that that is quite good too. Classic Bordeaux. I think this has probably hit its stride, though it may improve somewhat. 92+pts to 93pts.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/2/2013 - pageknudsencowles wrote:
Tight to begin. Fruity. A bit tannic. Brought by Cam Winton. Not as interesting as the Chateau Monbousquet we tasted at the same time.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/11/2013 - GFischer wrote: 94 Points
In the nose very complex, very difficult to separate aromas, red and black berries, floral, spring forest floor, licorice, dark cherries. On the palate all the aromas from the nose. Finish long elegant, more cherries, fine, extremely complex. Great wine.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/5/2013 - octopussy Likes this wine: 95 Points
Bordeaux 2001 Blind Tasting (+ two 2000s): Shiny cherry red. In the nose, this rich, but has great finesse, "power without weight", lots of depth and elegance. Fragrant, light and dark with lots of Graphite and cedar wood. Awesome. On the palate, it's complete, young, great acidity, a lot freshness, it's very direct. Grip, substance, elegance, everything there. Very long and minerality driven finish. Young, but truly great.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/5/2013 - Robert Pavlovich wrote:
Tasted in a lineup of '82 Talbot, '90 Ormes de Pez, and an '05 Fleur Cardinale I found this to be the least interesting of the flight. It's very even right now, nothing stood out to me in its flavor profile, though it does sport an incredibly sleek and polished texture with good freshness. I'd wait 5-10+ years on these.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/21/2013 - Cheungtp Likes this wine: 91 Points
Scoring is truly based on the current drinking experience, but no doubt this wine has very good potential and should provide pleasant drinking experience in the years to come, when it's ready. The claret still appears to be quite youthful, dark, opaque in color. Very tight, and not yielding much, even with almost 3 hours of decanting. In between some intervals, you get notes of cream, vanilla, red cherry, tea leaf, tobacco. On the palate, very balanced structure with spot on acidity and some fruity juicy taste. Will keep the other bottles in the cellar and try again in three years or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2013 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 94 Points
Montose Dinner (89, 90, 95, 96, 99, 00, 01, 05) Plus Others: Two bottles opened (sorry Lonny), both popped and poured. The nose offers an impressive blend of dark fruit and mineral with just a hint of oak. The taste is even more impressive, with dark fruit, mineral, smoke and herbs. Great balance and showing really well right now. Great finish. Drink or hold; this should be spectacular for many, many years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/15/2013 - Cinsault86 wrote: 91 Points
nesen gir snev av modning mot lær, aske og ren stall, fortsatt strålende primærfrukt mot solbær. Svært mineralsk nese, mot knust gråstein. I munnen svært fyldig vin, med fyldige røde og syrlige bær. Dette holdes oppe av en flott syre. Mangler litt eleganse, noe som blir tydeligere med luft. 91p. Dag to, så er jeg fortsatt på at dette er en endimensjonal vin. Masse mocca og fyldig moden frukt. Grei syre, men mangler litt friskhet. Er for all del godt, men blir litt kjedelig. Ville nok barbert 5 poeng dag nr 2.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/10/2013 - cos65 Likes this wine:
a bit of funk, a little lean, but nice claret flavors. dead on day 2
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/10/2013 - macker100 wrote: 93 Points
Served blind. Guessed bdx, but my producer offerings were Poyferre, Las Cases, Lalande. This was primarily due to its more modern profile, especially on the nose. This is going to be a great wine. I rate it above the '96 vintage. Nose even had elements of the stellar '90, with dense black fruit, cedar, leather, and floral notes. Palate very smooth bursting with sweet red and black fruits. Finish is still primary, with drying tannins as a younger Montrose will give you.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/19/2013 - overhill wrote: 93 Points
Wine of the 2001 Vintage at Matt B's House (New Canaan, CT): Super dark all the way to the rim. On the nose was bretty with tons of tight black fruit, black licorice, and a strange but enjoyable burnt eraser aroma. Silky and elegant across the palette but also immensely powerful, complex, and long. Balanced.
This was my favorite of the night. Tied for first place in the group vote (2 x 1st and 2 x 3rd) with the 2001 Serpico.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/6/2013 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 91 Points
VEO tasting - Moselle, Saar and Ruwer (Restaurant Bolenius, Amsterdam): Lovely nose, deep, dark and masculine, good ripe fruit, rich spicy oak, hint of toast; on the palate a nice weight and balance, very solid but on the dry side in the tannins; good length. Attractive nose, lacks charm and some stuffing on the palate. A very generous impromptu gesture from Frits after an evening of Riesling...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/17/2013 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted for about 2h. Still a dark garnet, sweet dark fruit, liquorice, earth, fresh herbs, a touch of oak. Good acidity giving it freshness. Fine tannins, medium+ finish.
This wine really has a fantastic balance and a very precisely drawn palate. Interesting to see that one does not have to go back to 1980s/1990s to find outstanding Bdx with moderate alcohol levels, this has 12.5% but definitively not missing on fruit or concentration.
Out of the Bdx I have had over the last 12 months, the 01 Montrose and the 95 Pape Clement were the two wines I have been most looking forward to revisit. While they are very different wines, and neither will wow you immediately, they share this outstanding balance and precision that makes them an absolute joy to drink. Even better now than last year: 93-94
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2013 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark colour. Commanding taste following very pure nose; austere yet elegant. Cistercian wine. Profound? Maybe not, but this untamed beast has not yet said its last words. Drink if you like'm youngish, or keep without worries for many years yet.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/3/2013 - MGrange Likes this wine: 94 Points
With Kale and Rib eye. Wonderful elegant Bordeaux. Great to drink now and over the next 20 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/29/2013 - kenhoeve wrote: 93 Points
Double decanted immediately back into bottle. Initial whiffs of horse dung, promising! Really lovely and still primary, it is slender and elegant. Licorice, forest floor, fresh berries. It gets a slight upgrade with food, the acid/tannin balance is so spot on that different dishes provide little pops of flavor. Lots of evolution left in this one. (93-95).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/28/2013 - BobJohnson1 Likes this wine:
Dark purple, dark fruits. Coming together very nicely. Oak and tannin just about resolved. Still tight, in need of 5 years. Very classy wine. Excellent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/14/2013 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Weekly tasting group #058; Bordeaux left bank 2001, 2002 and 2003. (@ VD): Beautiful and classical bouquet with dark forest fruits and luxurious oak. Same on the palate with good cassis and other dark berries, a touch of sweetness and some not unpleasant bell pepper, sweet spices, minerals and graphite. A firm amount of acidity and bitterness and good, still powerful tannin. A beautiful and focused wine which is in its early maturity stage now. No problem cellaring this until 2020+.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/26/2012 - jonnyoro wrote: 94 Points
Still very young, primary and tannic- but this has great fruit and minerality and really lovely texture... Probably five years away from coming completely together this wine is loaded with potential- I really love Montrose stylistically; while this is no monster, it's finesse and texture make it a real winner... After last night's wines (a cab and a Grenache) whose sweetness made them undrinkable, this was more than refreshing- it was reaffirming...p.s. bought a couple of years after release at $53 per bottle- a pretty good deal-
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/22/2012 - FamilyLarsson wrote: 93 Points
Klassisk doft av mörk frukt, tobak och körsbär. Har börjat öppna upp och bjuder på bra smakintensitet med avtagande tanniner och mogen frukt. Bra längd och klart att dricka.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/10/2012 - DonWinspear wrote: 92 Points
Deep garnet color with touch of bricking on the meniscus. Nose of earth, dark fruit, red licorice, truffle. The palate replicates the nose, complemented with a beautiful acidic balance and still enough tannic structure to keep it interesting and beautiful. The fruit is bright, but a decade of aging blankets the wine with classic woody left bank personality.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/2/2012 - JohnFalstaff wrote: 93 Points
Nose: sweet and delicate aroma of marshmallow, red and black fruits and some mushrooms. Taste: excellent mouthful of round yet strong enough sensations. Fruit is dominant, but earthy and animal flavours are also very perceptible. Marshmallow, licorice, even some anise. Finely balanced. Could possibly stay bottled for another 3-5 years. The finish is hot and a little dry.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/28/2012 - bullmrkt wrote: 91 Points
Restrained nose, dark fruits, a little chunky with somewhat grainy tannins, but good balance makes for a nice finish. This has the fresh balance of the 2001...but somehow just doesnt come together as well as the many other 01's im fond of.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/20/2012 - andrewdodd86 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Adding in older tasting notes - I remember this drinking exceptionally well for the vintage, very floral, but fell a little short on the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/30/2012 - Zweder wrote: 94 Points
Beautiful and classical bouquet with cassis, graphite, sweet spices, tobacco, cedar etc. Same on the palate. Beautiful acidity and friendly, soft tannin. Very elegant and round and a great pleasure already. Young maturity stage now, no problem keeping this another 5 - 8+ years.
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/22/2012 - jkoenen wrote: 93 Points
Cos-Montrose Battle (Restaurant Bottles, Sas van Gent): Animal-like nose, classic feel. Wonderful, macerated black fruit. Great acidity, chalky and dense. Great wine. 18-18.5/20
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/26/2012 - pavel_p wrote: 92 Points
Poured half of bottle into decanter and followed over 5h. Medium garnet. A fine and complex nose with initially a bit of cedar, a bouquet of mainly dark fruit, flowers, earth, sous-bois and a bit of barnyard. Medium body and very fine but still dense tannin structure. A fairly long but subtle finish.
This wine changes with time in the glass (at some point in time I had sour cream potato chips on the nose..) but does never really "opens up" and I wonder whether it ever will. With the exception of even softer tannins and an even darker fruit profile, the rest of bottle on day 2 was pretty much unchanged, so not sure whether another 5 years will see a major "improvement" here. It's a wine to sip and demands attention as it speaks in "sotto voce". 91-92
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/6/2012 - tooch wrote: 91 Points
Showed very well. Burnt earth, crushed rocks, dark fruit and violets compose this elegant palate. Should have a long life ahead of it - the tannins were certainly there and even with air they were still a bit gritty for my tastes. Love Montrose's style...great combination of earthiness and dark fruit.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/6/2012 - KeithAkers wrote: 92 Points
A Friday Afternoon at Domaine (Domaine Wine Storage, Chicago IL): nose: very horsey right off the bat, but does unwind into tones of cedar, tobacco, spice box, dark red cherries, and cassis tones. Excellent depth, though it is wound up a bit tight.
taste: full bodied with rough and coarse tannins along with medium acidity. Certainly shows off it's youth, but has some great tones of cassis, tobacco, cedar, and dark red cherries. Very good depth underneath the tannins right now.
overall: Still quite young. It's class is starting to show, but this could easily use another 5 years. This does have the power that one expects from montrose, but it isn't that large scaled of a wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/10/2012 - Wine Canuck wrote: 92 Points
Still a bit early on this one, could use some more time in bottle. Good contrast next to the 1966 tasted next to it. Coffee, tar, meaty, cassis, blackberry. Very structured palate. 92+ today, with great potential to improve.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/9/2012 - alittle wrote: 91 Points
Mixed Bag, Mostly Bordeaux in KW (Chris' House): Decanted for sediment, served immediately, and followed over the next 4 hours. Still a deep inky purple in the glass, showing quite a contrast to the '66. With some coaxing, we could see that this was darker on the fruit spectrum, with suggestions of blackberries and blackcurrants, mineral, graphite, and light floral and leather notes. On the palate, black fruits, graphite and earth, showing decent structure, with moderate tannin and acidity. Finish is moderate. Unfortunately, this wasn't all that giving at the moment, as it never really opened up over the course of the evening. A bit of a disappointment given the pedigree, however, there appears to be a lot of potential upside here. If I had any of these, I would tuck them away for another 5 years before giving it another try.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/6/2012 - pjaines wrote:
Wonderfully expressive nose of maturing fruit reigned back with a reticence on the palate that really needs another 10 years to strut its stuff. Right now this is quite tightly wound up and the acidity is quite high but there are layers of complexity just under the surface. I think this could be rather tasty given more time in the cellar. Very good.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/4/2012 - steffenpelz wrote:
33rd Austin Wine Salon - Bordeaux (Max's Underground): Completely shut down. Black fruit, lead pencil shavings, earth, and beeswax. Just in an awkward state at the moment. The pieces are there, but it hasn't all come together yet. I would say it needs 5 more years at least before it's in the early drinking window. For me, it's a wine to taste starting in about 2020.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/3/2012 - drbarta wrote: 90 Points
Very complex nose, cassis, leather, tobacco, earthiness, cocoa bean, green walnuts, spices. Medium body, lots of dusty tannin, high, vital acidity. Flavours are quite mouthfil and produce nice length. In the aftertaste it shows some astringency and sourness, making me think, that the tannins and adids are still not well-integrated. Anyway nice and tight wine, with further potential to develop.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/3/2011 - Rob MacKay wrote: 92 Points
For me, this wine at 10 years old is in it's optimal drinking window. Neither too old and tired nor too young and wound up. The nose exhibits a really nice note of pencil shavings combined with some black fruit and initially just a touch of grass clippings. Very well balanced on the palate with good acidity up front that gives way to some red berry and plum flavors with a medium bodied texture and nicely integrated tannins on the finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2011 - lumpyelbow wrote: 92 Points
Fete de Bordeaux (Centro, Toronto): Has a resinous nose compared to the '96. Generous acid. Difficult when young but I really lean toward the Montrose style when they get a little age on them.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/13/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
Stone, tobacco, blackberry, minerality, lead pencil and spicy, red and black plum flavors are easy to find. This is not the most concentrated vintage for Montrose, yet there is still refined tannins to resolve. From an assemblage of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, this mineral driven, St. Estephe wine wants another 3-5 years before entering prime time drinking.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/1/2011 - Wine_lvr wrote: 95 Points
Montrose Vertical Tasting 1989 - 2005 (Work in Progress) (Switzerland): Note to follow
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2011 - DonalOB Likes this wine: 94 Points
Always one of my favourites. Obviously lots of time for development here but showing nicely now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2011 - DonalOB Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted for 3 hours and drank over an evening. Still lots of primary fruit but getting some tertiary notes already. Really enjoyable given it's youth - will try again in a couple of years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
6/24/2011 - River Rat wrote:
Sipped 1st half of bottle through Carpaccio app and Osso Bucco entree. Nose of saddle leather, cassis and cedar. Palate not giving much up other than some green pepper on a medium body. Tannins still a bit course. Corked and will revisit tomorrow night. Enjoyable but still too young to rate. Will surely show better after a day or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/17/2011 - DonalOB Likes this wine: 94 Points
Fabulous!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/12/2011 - gsquireh wrote: 91 Points
Full bodied, rich dark purple, a cherry bomb nose that invites, black currant and cassis with earth and tannins that grip and need more time, but are not unpleasant. Decant and take your time if you are drinking now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/11/2011 - austinwinesalon wrote:
Back, Back in the USofA (StrEat Restaurant, Austin, Texas): Clear winner of the flight: tops in one group, second in another. A rich and lively dark red wine with whiffs of the barnyard and the pencil box, dried rose, baking spice and dill/green fern. Austere cassis and dark cherry notes with bright acidity, medium tannins and a tea like finish. A few tasters found it unimpressive for a Ch. Montrose, but others liked it immensely and noted it was out of place with the California fruit-driven cabs. This wine was included in the flight because it sold new for less than the California wines, and seemed (and indeed is) a better value, and had a low Parker score compared to the flight's highly rated Cal cabs.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/31/2011 - MRichman wrote:
2001 Bordeaux at 10 years served blind (La Fonda del Sol, NYC): Bright with some tight acidic tannins. Some tar. Hard, young. Needs a lot of time. Score reserved.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/14/2011 - pgruber wrote: 94 Points
Fully mature Bordeaux- just lovely.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/19/2011 - Flavito wrote: 91 Points
Very potent and tannic, long way to go. Do not touch for another 5 years at least...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/14/2011 - DonWinspear wrote: 91 Points
Pop and pour with a beef tenderloin dinner. I don't typically do that, but the first wines were gone! Still performed well. Nice hints of woodsy tones layered on blackberries, cassis. Nice finish that is balanced. Tannins are relaxing to provide a smooth mouth feel to it. Overall, an elegant bordeaux just starting to show it's stuff. Glad I have more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/22/2010 - DonWinspear wrote: 90 Points
Decanted three hours before dinner with lamb and wild rice. Earthy, spice nose with classic terroir on the nose. The wine started off a little thin but after three hours had opened up and was showing its stuff. Oak, spices, dark fuit, touch of pencil lead. The wine has relaxed and offered a smooth mouthfeel with moderate finish. Tannins are softening. Nice balanced acidity.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/30/2010 - Khamen wrote: 92 Points
Slightly forced short decant through some fine grade coffee paper. Lovely deep but bright ruby colour. Nose is slightly shy initially but soon opens to a very round and fruity splash of colour - blackcurrant pastilles and a little 2b pencil. Christmas spice on the palate and nicely ripe rather than overdone. Still quite tight after short decant but breeding and balance evident. Drunk direcly after a 2003 Ornellaia this shows more breeding but less exuberance perhaps. Very fresh with good acidity. Finish is just a litte tight at present but will doubtless open up in glass/decanter. Approchable but with plenty mileage left in the tank. Call it heresy but I prefer this to the 2000. Compelling wine. From now if you have plenty but room to evolve for another 8-10 at least I would imagine. Interestingly the profile here is surprisingly close to the Ornellaia.
EDIT : +48 hours decanted. Real juicy red fruit profile now with a lot of zingy acidity. No hint of over-ripeness in this Montrose by any means. Beautifully made, and a kicker for the terroir. Unlike a few of the "bigger" vintages of Montrose this can't be mistaken for a St Julien or Pauillac and in my opinion so much the better for it. Excellent wine, should drink very nicely through 2025.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/16/2010 - Rob-Rah wrote: 94 Points
Cabernet Sauvignon night: Starting to show some age, but only just. Nose took a while to get going in the glass, but offering up classic St Estephe cassis mixed with cedar, leadpencil, wood and so on. Very nice. Palate extraordinarily smooth and balanced. Wow. Lovely. Decent length. A beatiful and civilised wine, not a powerhouse.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/5/2010 - TheArtisan wrote:
PW205 Wines of the World - Lesson 2 (Bordeaux) (Plumpton College, East Sussex, UK): Another classic Bordeaux (but unlike the rich, jammy Batailley, this seemed a more classic, older style) with more notes of cedar and pencil shavings as well as green peppers with luscious red fruit and ripe tannins that make it beautiful drinking now. However, I'm sure this will last for another decade at least. I'm a little disappointed that I did not have time to make a full and detailed tasting note! However, this is more of your roast-lamb-classic-Bordeaux in comparison to richer, jammier Parker influenced styles that are increasingly common. ****
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/2/2010 - keith prothero wrote: 92 Points
Decanted 2 hours.
Opened as I have quite a few bottles and felt like a rich wine on a typically awful wet and cold English October day.
Very deep, thick and lively colour. Great density, flavours in retreat. Chewy edge. Full, dense, sturdy spread over the palate of lots of ripe fruit and tannins but overall an impressively silky texture despite the massive concentration.Could probably do with another few years and will no doubt last another ten at least. 12.5% abv
Excellent
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/22/2010 - LWI wrote: 90 Points
BdX 01/04 (Oslo): Sweet and deep dark berry fruit, that still has something civilized; good intensity throughout the taste curve until the middle, then it tails off a bit too quickly. Later in the evening it grew and the curve became more complete. Fresh and intense.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/10/2010 - Fur in the glass wrote:
blackcurrant, plum/stewed fruit on the nose. Really nice mix of fruit, acid and tannin that had definite power.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
8/11/2010 - NY Wino wrote: 93 Points
Ruby/purple color, with a nice bouquet of smoke, cherries and some spice/earth. The wine has nice acidity and really good, soft fruit. Tannins have mellowed considerably and it is drinking nicely now. The finish is smooth but not exceptionally long. Expect this to improve some with age but it can be drunk up now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2010 - Ho Bryan wrote:
I couldn't be more delighted with this. I just picked up a case for 58 quid a bottle. It easily outclassed a 2001 Palmer I tried the other night which cost double that. This is a coherent wine, no green steaks, and hits all the classic St Estephe notes on the nose and the palate. Just a little mature at the rim, but I'm sure this has years to go.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/25/2010 - cadamson wrote: 93 Points
A nice, classic nose that kept interest all through the bottle. Good palate also, I was surprised how open it was. Clearly some improvement is ahead, but very nice now. A good showing.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/5/2010 - petec-s wrote: 93 Points
mature rim, medium tears/ good intense nose, cedar, habano, licorice, red currant and spice/ silky, dry palate, more classic flavours/ long and very dry finish/ 12.5%/ excellent classic claret with true class. Note after time in the glass this wine got better and better!.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/28/2010 - Faryan wrote: 93 Points
2001 Bordeaux (Lavandou): The third time I’ve had this wine in about a year and it seems to be a bit more open for business than prior. Has a real nice subtle sense of pose, with some bright red fruit, earthiness, graphite/lead pencil and hints of saddle. With more time, the fruit begins to really emerge and the pitch of the red fruit begins to magnify. While it is indeed bright at this phase, I’d be willing to wager that in time, it will add heft and weight and will really round out into a beautiful wine. I’m a fan of the upside of this wine, as well as the Calon. 93+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/27/2010 - etherscreen wrote:
very nice. nose of dark fruit, lots of earth, flowers, and spice. soft in the mouth, but tannin still present to resolve yet. seemed to lack the depth of concentration of the better vintages, but this was quite pleasing none the less. i really enjoy this chateau.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/24/2010 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 94 Points
Bordeaux, Italy and a Burg in Minneapolis: Top five wine of the vintage? Wonderful wine and drinking well right now with cherry, gravel, spices and floral notes. Good acid profile and still medium tannins. Medium and concentrated on the finish and super balanced wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/23/2010 - Mattshank wrote: 92 Points
Old World Reds at Edina CC (Edina Country Club, MN): Nose: Very floral and almost perfume-like aromas and some mineral. Very seductive nose! Palate: Good balance of acid and red fruits. Nice clean, velvety finish. Tied for WOTN with the '04' Pontet-Canet for BDX.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/8/2010 - MarkMich wrote: 91 Points
dark purple with a nose of berries, vanilla and caramel. well balanced full bodied bdx. could probably use a couple more years but was very enjoyable.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/7/2010 - fluddy wrote: 92 Points
Wonderful balance, romantic nose but ephemeral finish. My wife loves this wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2010 - macker100 wrote: 93 Points
Only Bordeaux at the wine club event. Very dense with prominent tannins. Nose was muted, needed decanting. After some time, aromas of smoke, black olives, and minerals arose. Deep cherry rosewood, stones, and leather notes with some cleansing acidity. A very layered and classic Montrose that really stood out versus California and Washington Cabs at table. Will no doubt deliver in a few years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2010 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Boerne Wine Club - Cab/Chardonnay (Scenic Loop Cafe, San Antonio, TX): The only bdx really stood out in this lineup with 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, and the rest Petite Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Aromatic barnyard/funky nose with cassis, cherry and cedar. Acidic palate, with cherry fruit, firm tannins though not drying, and wonderful length with mocha, touch of tar, and tart cherry. Great balance and complexity and retains a refreshing character despite the tannins. Surprisingly approachable as this was not decanted, but certainly is just entering it's drinking window and should last another 10yrs. I have high hopes for my bottles.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/6/2010 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Regular dinner group (@ EM): Beautiful bouquet with barnyard and liquorice. Juicy cassis and luxurious oak. Still very youthful. Double decanted several hours before drinking it is already a great pleasure, but keeping it another 5 - 8+ years might be rewarding.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/16/2010 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 94 Points
Color: Medium purple
Nose: Herbs, raspberries, pencil lead,
Taste: Concentrated with grit along with raspberries, black cherry, tobacco, earth
Finish: Medium and very elegant
Evaluation: This is a great wine 94 points
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/11/2010 - Tao wrote: 92 Points
Not shining at all! Rather Closed but got a lot of potential to the upside! Dense. Dark ruby in color! Dark fruits dominate the palate, rather one dimension at this moment!! Will it show it's real face in 10 years time?
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/24/2009 - Hazeo wrote: 93 Points
Sweet dark fruit, lush and full. Classic mix of smoke, leather, spices are well integrated in the midpalette and stays with you through the finish. Reminds me a lot of the 04 version which also is classically styled and with perfect level of ripeness. Obviously young still, but the full tannins are round and sweet.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/28/2009 - sethmorgenlong wrote: 91 Points
Tasted blind, decanted prior to tasting. Clear, opaque ruby to a light ruby rim, with moderate intensity and appears more youthful than aged though rim variation is apparent. On the nose, wine shows beautiful amarena cherry, blackcurrant, clove, cocoa powder, cigar box, green sous bois, cedar and cigar box notes. Healthy, moderate + intensity and again appears more youthful than aged. On the palate, wine was moderate intensity with structured tannins, moderate- acids and low + alcohol. Black currant mingles with olive, green bell pepper, pencil shavings, gravel and light potpourri notes. Wonderful wine, well integrated still a bit sharp on the tannins but showing well now, will most definitely develop. Most of the group though this right bank Saint Emilion. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, $67 wholesale.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/21/2009 - Manus wrote: 89 Points
Double decanted for 2 hours. Very good nose with black fruit, spices and oak. On the palate, it is quite powerful and concentrate. A lot of tannins but a little bit rustic now. May require much longer cellaring.
http://hk.myblog.yahoo.com/hkwine-blog/article?mid=253
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/4/2009 - Papies wrote: 91 Points
At the BBR Fine wine winter tasting - Great body. This is a big wine for sure and will age well. However still very closed with no nose at all. Would like to try it in 5yrs but at 55£ a bottle i dont think this is value for money.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2009 - aof wrote: 90 Points
Double decanted for 4 hours; classic Bordeaux nose of cedar, earth, with spices- on the elegant side on the palate. I had this with an Amarone, so I'm unsure of how much fruit is present compared to to the ripe and relatively dense Amarone. Will hold and re-taste a year from now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/4/2009 - skifree wrote: 95 Points
Very dark color, very complex but smooth, well integrated tannins. Blackberry, leather, some mineral, some earth and mushroom, even a hint of meat The wine evolved nicely over time, but stayed subtle and old world in style. A great pleasure to drink.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/8/2009 - balassis wrote: 95 Points
This opaque purple Motrose offers layers of currants, wild cherries, forest floor and mushrooms.
Silky texture and juicy tannins.
Very impressive vintage, a real amazing St Estephe near to perfection.
To pair with lamb leg in the oven.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/14/2009 - Dave Canada wrote: 94 Points
Similar to last bottle. This is open for business....great bordeaux
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/25/2009 - Dave Canada wrote: 94 Points
From memory
Wow....this was a great bottle. So complex....layers of cassis and currant, leather, cedar, tobacco and graphite....finish was seemless
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/21/2009 - gsquireh wrote: 96 Points
Ripe, sweet, rich, beautiful, viscous, velvety royal purple, aromas of cherry and currant, this is a full bodied sleeper of the vintage. Usually Montrose is brooding and the tannins need fifteen years to soften and integrate. Not so here! Smooth, balanced and so drinkable now and for another two decades. The value of 2001.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/20/2009 - beachbum wrote: 90 Points
Montrose Vertical Blind
note as mature as others, but still shows the classic montrose stones, smoke tobacco and dark fruit
I think it will best the 98 for sure, it has the concentration and volume, almost I think, of the 95
green right now
I like this wine
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/16/2009 - roelof.ligtmans@gmail.com wrote: 91 Points
Very dark, almost black colour. Austere classic lead pencil nose, with black fruit (dark cherries, blackberries) in the background. Intense taste, still pretty closed, with wel-integrated tannins and good acidity. Long aftertaste with some fine-grained tannins. Not yet completely ready, but getting there. A bottle that will never be joyfull, but always "classic", austere and intense. A winter wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/9/2009 - jvogel wrote:
Quite a bit of bottle stink already already, which in time blew off to reveal a complex nose of green pepper, paprika, pencil lead, leather and currant. Some truffle notes showed prominently from time to time. Exceedingly elegant on the palate, very pure and refined, with lots of class in the finish. I really enjoyed the velvet tannin in this wine, as it was a significant change from the few wines tasted before. Would buy again if I could find at a reasonable price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/4/2009 - gmerc wrote: 88 Points
Currant with notes of pencil lead, leather, some violets. Great mouth feel and long finish. LAter some coffee notes.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2009 - dd wrote:
good needs time
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/21/2008 - envirovino wrote: 91 Points
more linear than the Troplong, finish more tannic but less tart, just young i think but had lots of stuffing so to speak
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/13/2008 - rikipedia Likes this wine: 89 Points
Caroline Wine Shop - Bordeaux 2001 to 2005 (Carolines Wine Shop): Deep garnet to plum colour that is inky. A slightly lifted VA along with marmite, earth and some graphite.
A rich, slightly sinewy entry, brooding with a thick texture of wet clay accompanied by firm tannins. I picked up apple skin, bruised somewhat, along with some black plum and crushed stones. It lacks concentration and feels a little one-dimensional. Mid-length.
Score: 89
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/23/2008 - leadpencil wrote: 92 Points
Dark red, medium to full bodied. Plum, coffee, lead pencil. Good structure.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/10/2008 - Faryan wrote: 92 Points
2001 Bordeaux Dinner (Bethesda, MD): opened 5 hours prior to arrival and Audouzed. This was the only wine that really needed more air as it came out of the gates thin and a bit disjointed. Nice notes of earth, light barnyard, blackberry and game. Palate began thin and the tannins seemed invisible until after the dinner, I revisited the remnants of the bottle with Dave and found it had fleshed out very properly with nice thick blaccurrant, mocha and game notes. I wish we had decanted this guy so it would show better, but it was clearly outclassed by its counterparts.
89FW at first, 92+GW after
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/18/2008 - PatrikO wrote: 93 Points
Really liked this bottle, very approachable for such a young wine, elegant more than complex and wonderfully silky/creamy texture, leaves your palate dry wanting more.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/12/2008 - Paul D wrote:
UK Wine Pages - Chateau Montrose Vertical (Le Colombier, Kensington, London.): Deep ruby. Quite closed on the nose - cassis, slightly meaty. Some nice pure cassis fruit more evident on the palate, this has good depth and a nice fresh, if still firm finish. The best wine of this flight. **(**).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/16/2008 - BordeauxNut wrote: 94 Points
St. Louis Saturday Group -- 2000 v 2001 Bordeaux Tasting (Jim Dove's home): Quite a big wine. Very aromatic -- a bit oaky with some licorice and a light green note mixing with dark berry fruit. I found some green wood tannins on this wine that I didn't much care for and scored it a couple of points lower than anyone else, so, the noted score reflects the higher consensus. Consistent with the EWS tasting, a very good showing for most tasters. RANK: 6 Vintage: 2000.22
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/9/2007 - guile wrote:
Drank with the Mrs. and friends over a nice French dinner. Dark purple, notes of black fruit and mineral. Not the blood, iron and animal experience I had with an older ('90) La Dame -- which is kind of what I was hoping for here! Nice and powerful nonetheless. This was better than the Richard Perry 02 Cab we had with the first course.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/9/2007 - hcampana wrote: 90 Points
Wine dinner TNs: 02 Pride Cab Franc, 03 Flor de Pingus, 00 Magdelaine, 01 Montrose, 95 Pesquera Gran Reserva, 99 Lisini Ugolaia and a Chinese ringer! (Monterrey, Mexico): Red Wine No. 6
Very dark purple color. The nose is New Worldish with melted butter and vanilla, but it also offers a restraint and floral aspect that takes me back to the Old World. This is very un evolved and showing signs of high extraction without going over the top. Full bodied and tannic, this wine smells like a barrel sample of Latour. My guess is this will be excellent in 10 more years. 90+points.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/7/2007 - Siggy wrote: 91 Points
Tasting Group Dinner - Steaks & Montrose (Dave's House): The nose shows smoke, black cherries, and coffee. On the palate, this is quite charming. Not a powerhouse like the 89 or 90, obviously, but a nicely minerally, medium-weight wine. Dark cherries, coffee, and minerals with ripe tannins.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/7/2007 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 92 Points
Another Tuesday Night in Minneapolis (Montrose 82, 86, 89, 90, 95, 01, 03, 04): Decanted about 12 hours before serving. The nose offers an impressive blend of dark fruit and mineral with a touch of oak/vanilla. The taste is equally impressive. Concentrated dark fruit with mineral, grilled meat, and earth. Fiercely tannic. Great finish. This needs many years in the cellar to show at peak.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/10/2006 - CSteefel wrote:
Much less open than the last bottle, this took several hours of air to show much of anything. When it did open a bit, it was clear that this was some impressive Cabernet dominated juice, with partly integrated oak, cassis, tobacco and soil notes. Fine tannins are prominent when tasted, but this wine has good volume and an impressive finish. A lot of potential with some bottle age.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/10/2006 - CSteefel wrote:
Surprisingly expressive aromas of ripe cassis, tobacco, cedar, underbrush, and finely crushed rock. In the mouth, the crisp acidity and very fine tannins really draw out the intense flavors that coat the palate. Not a deep powerhouse like the very best vintages of Montrose, still this has some of the brightness and delineation and sheer intensity of flavor that I find in the 1989 and the 1996. A strong showing for this young but aristocratic wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/15/2006 - baxter67 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Huge power but subtle with it. Blackberry fruit, earth and tobacco. Smooth tannins. ***(**)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/24/2006 - JasonD wrote: 94 Points
Wonderful! This at time outshowed the 03. This showed better integration than the 03 and was very well rounded. Deep dark color, Dark cherry, smoke and black licorice aromas with with a thick palate and sweet tannins. Balanced
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/8/2006 - micha_e wrote: 92 Points
Very dark ruby color. A bit mute on the palate. After getting some air, it was clear that this bottle was TCA affected in view of the cardboard notes on the finish. But the TCA concentration was sufficiently low for the plastic bag trick. After that, it improved quite a bit (although still not 100% perfect). Very complex wine, but seems to close down. Still one of my favorite left bank BDX of the 2001 vintages, especially considering the price. But I fear it will close down soon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/19/2006 - Thilo wrote: 92 Points
Dark garnet to the rim in color. Nose shows cassis, cedar, tobacco, and leather. On the palate this wine is still very young. Cassis is met immediately by a hard Bordeaux backbone of oak and tannin. Tobacco and smoke also play into the palate. This spent two hours in a decanter and definitely opened up over that time, but it still needs at least a few years to show its best. Lots of stuffing, however, reveals that it should develop well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/2/2005 - Russell Faulkner wrote:
2001 Claret Tasting (Vintners' Hall, London): Very full body, ripe blackcurrent, tannin in balance, but oak tannin slightly astringent.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/8/2005 - Ben Andersen wrote:
2001 Bordeaux (Virginia): Tasted along with about a dozen other 2001s, so forgive the short TN... Big, slightly dusty tannins. Black fruit. Fairly old-school in style. A bit lean compared to the '01 Cos d'Estournel (see TN)tasted along side it, though still balanced and quite impressive. One of the better wines of the tasting.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/5/2005 - micha_e wrote: 93 Points
In a word: WOW! I know that Montrose is on a string in recent vintages, but this 2001 was far better than expected. Dark ruby color (but not purple black as some other, more modern wines). Right after opening, the nose was a bit unformed, but a little sip already confirmed what was to come after decanting... After 2 hours in the decanter, this wine really blossomed. This is not a modern, fruity wine. It sported already a rather complex nose, with a melange of dark fruits, tobacco, truffels, wood spice - very deep and exciting. BTW, I haven't detected any of the barnyard aromas Montrose is (was) known for in recent vintages of this wine. In the mouth, the wine is full-bodied, almost chewy, but nevertheless retains its sense of elegance (for a St. Estephe). The tannins spread over the entire palate and release wave after wave of dark fruits, spice and licorice. Surprisingly low in acidity, but not at all flabby, which seems to make it already approachable. Nevertheless I feel that this wine will soon shut down hard and only emerge after several years. In sum, a fantastic expression of ripe cabernet and a great Bordeaux from this underhyped vintage. I had only two bottles, but now I will need to look for more! Drink 2010 to 2030
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
5/4/2004 - Double-A wrote:
Rounding, tar, leather, dried currant, smoke and toasted nut nose. Full bodied, low acid palate with polished flavours and solid tannins; lush, long, smoky finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment