Touch of brick red, nose ripe plum and blue berries, herbs, cedar, a little bit of smoke of wood. Very balanced and integraterd. Long finish. I expect not no further improvement, but still a long life a head.
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Early Mar 2024, Rheingau Gourmet Festival, rarity diner “25 vintages of Chateau Montrose”: according to the sommelier double decanted for up to 3 hours; deep crimson color; rich bouquet of coffee, cherries, and herbs; open and round, ethereal like texture; medium/light body.
Decanted an hour before dinner and enjoyed over 3 hours. Perfect cork. Fruit soars from the decanter at open. Dark blue fruit, great secondaries on the nose. On the palate this is ripe and expansive, really enjoyable with and without fruit. If there were the smallest nit it would be a very slight drying on the finish but nothing to complain about. I think I would be drinking this now because the fruit is in such a good place but should hold. A-
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PnP. Expressive aromas of leather, tobacco, brambly dark fruits and graphite. Fourth consistent bottle out of a well-stored case and they continue to mature and improve. Great balance with a few tannins in reserve. Drinking very well now and should hold for ~10 years.
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Very pure Cabernet dominated - clean but foursquare, firm and slightly green. Little aromatics, even with air. Just seems to be lacking something. Hopefully will develop more interest with another 5yrs. Drink from 2028. 92-93pts
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Not fully resolved with acid and tannin. Nice finish, not a great wine for me. Palate is nice, not sure it’s really complex, maybe a little plodding. Expected a bit more from vintage/producer I think. Fruit itself is quite nice though - understated and elegant.
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This is an example of how aged Bordeaux should taste like. Pronounced nose intensity with notes of black fruits, smoke, charr wood, toast, spices, vanilla. Medium+ acidity and medium+ tannin. Tannin is integrated. Drink now.
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Majestic nose of creamy, leathery black fruits, wonderful aroma! Dark ruby in colour, a hint of watery rim! The palate is smooth and quite ready to go, peppery, juicy and leathery, with a lengthy finish and still, a little tannic! A beauty!
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If you love powerful tannins, then I got you a good choice. The 1996 Montrose is still young, will need a decade or two in your cellar to tame the fantastic acidity-tannins battle, with still reasonably fresh fruity notes. Missed secondary and tertiary notes on the palate and finish was not too long in my opinion, given other contestants in our blind "Summer of 96 Tasting Events", which surpassed the minute mark by far. I guess you need to be very patient with this wine in your cellar and as I am not really known for this, but still prefer well aged wines, I am giving a pass on this one too.
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Opened 45 minutes prior to service. Opaque rusty garnet. Nose of currant, plum blossom, cedar, and a hint of mint. Layers of pliant red plum, leather, mild streaks of oddly satisfying bulbous green pepper, and stony earth on the satiny palate. Resolved tannin and lower but present acidity. Longer finish of earthy red plum cut with tobacco and earth. Last half bottle, paired with Dijon-slathered lamb rib chops at Van Horn RV Park after chance Blue Origin launch pad sighting.
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Birthday present, excellent wine, classic Bordeaux, barnyard, gravel, wet saddle, vanilla, it keeps lingering on. Opened slowly, gentle double decanted, little sediment, savoured over the coarse of the evening.
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Drinking beautifully now ... perfect balance with very long finishing. Superb floral nose, can't stop putting my nose on the glass. Med body with Forest floor, truffle, tobacco, gravels, leather, bamboo shoot. Minerals shown up towards the end after 3 hours in the bottle. An elegant expression of terror, little to non tannins and hint of salinity. Great stuff...
Youthful appearance. Nose of damp soil, red currant, cedar, cigar box, and dried black fruit. On the palate this is medium body, moderate tannin and medium acidity. The fruit seems slightly faded so I am hoping this opens up to reveal something else. It is well balanced and a pleasure to drink now, but there is a touch of bitter espresso on the finish that may resolve with some air. Drink now and over the next 5+ years.
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This is another example of '96 Montrose showing a bit too much brett for my liking. What's beyond that is an appealing, imposing, rich Montrose with a mix of black and red fruit, saddle, and cedar, pretty much ready for drinking now with a short decant.
Last 2 days of 2022 Naples-palooza; 12/30/2022-12/31/2022 (Casa Mark1npt): One of my top 3 wines of the weekend. Thank you Mark for opening. Slow oxed nearly all day but very open by the time I tried it first (had been open and recorked the night before). Then continued to improve with 9 hr slow ox. Spectacular nose, just so beautiful and nuanced. Earty, sweet pipe tobacco, saddle leather red cherries a hint of vanilla and white pepper on the palate. Tannins fading but acid is holding strong, great with our steak dinner.
My 2nd and last bottle of this '96. I was underwhelmed with the first about 21 months ago. This bottle is completely different, so now I am chalking up that experience, to just being an 'off bottle'. Slow ox'd for 3 hours the night before and that alone improved it greatly. Barnyard nose reduced considerably, dark blackish fruit with fresh black tilled soil, too. Gritty tannins smoothed out. Put the cork back in and back into the cellar overnight, until it was slow ox'd another 4-5 hours prior to this evening's NYE Palooza. It also improved further over the other 3-4 hours that we were all eating and sampling it, IMO. There is no mistaking this wine for anything other than a Bdx, and a very good one, at that. The nose is deep and rich and complexly layered with great fruit and perfumed florals. To me, the nose is a 97-98 and while the palate is very good, it plays second fiddle to that nose! The fruit remains dark, as it should, but there's no grit or rough edges. It's smooth and the wine is quite well integrated. Torn between giving this one a 94 and a 95 but the (97-98) nose keeps pushing me toward a 95 overall....so be it!
Another glorious bottle of this in exactly the spot it should be, full of cassis, blackberry, blueberry, cedar, leather, gravel, and ink with a pencilly finish. Classic Montrose, classic Medoc. Beautiful depth and saturation on the palate with an elegance commensurate to its punch. 94-95
PnP. Great wine. Drank before a 2006 Masseto, and while the Masseto was definitely the better wine, I actually preferred this. Drank perfectly. I would say it's definitely in its prime drinking window. A bit on the lighter side which is typical of the vintage. I love 96 BDX. One of my favorite vintages. The Montrose was classic aged Bordeaux. Stoney St. Estephe with pretty fruit, and beautiful earthiness. Smooth tannins. If you come across a bottle it's definitely worth it.
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Aromas rise from the glass even without air and evolve over time with dark red berry, tobacco, minerals, cedar and smoked herbs. Penetrating and youthful palate, with grippy acidity, great density, and a long lively finish. In the zone and even better than last bottle a few months ago.
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Chateau Montrose: '78, '96, '05 & Champagne (Paris Dining Club, Mpls, MN): Very dark red/purple color. From 3 liter, decanted for an unknown time. Drank a couple glasses over 2 hours plus. Wow this was good, young but very accessible, as you'd expect this just kept getting better and better in the glass. The nose is gorgeous with leather, pencil, red berries, cassis, violets, and damp earth in a developing, encompassing perfume. The palate is full bodied, with excellent depth and power, the core of dark berries, raspberry, and cassis fruits stand out, classic pencil notes, enhanced by the earth, minerality and spices make this shine all the way through to a finish that highlights the soft, almost luxurious tannins. This is a beauty from one of my favorite Bordeaux vintages of the nineties. 95-96pts.
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From Mag, not really convincing fror me this time, good nose but over 2h did not really open-up, a bit tight and dry, lots of sediment despite having stored the bottle vertically for 2 weeks prior drinking.
- Pale to medium ruby garnet, watery rim, signs of age.
- Cherries and black currant, mocha, coffee, liqourice, souboua, potent loamy soil that is very characteristic of Montrose, dry leaves, slight barn yard, after decanting, more cassis and floral character comes out.
- Classic claret style on the palate, medium bodied, elegant, extremely balanced. Low alcohol, nicely acidic, firm and fine grained tannins still present even after 26 years, extremely long finish. I agree with other reviewers who said that the wine is very early in its drinking window. Wait a few years for tannins to soften and even more complexity.
Mocca, white figs, new leather, fresh tobacco, cigar box, hint of smoke. Llicorice and pomegranate on the finish. Medium body, showy tannins. Very nice. Drinking well and showing no signs of age.
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Opened an hour ahead, but immediately recorked as nose was ebullient. On the pour, it was such a lovely glass of well-aged bordeaux; lots of cigar box playing through plum and blueberry. I did not detect the blood and iron notes that I sometimes find in this wine; but the midpalate was complex and the finish long. It's just entered its drinking window and surely stay there for a very long time.
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Lots of debate here, but ultimately it does appear to be around 1 or 2/10 TCA. Classic cedar and dry blackcurrant nose, and palate. A little herbal. Is it? Isn’t it? Yes, probably.
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Superbe vin en pleine phase de maturité. Dès l'ouverture, les arômes encore très fruits noirs se diffusent. La robe est d'un joli rubis à peine évolué. Et le passage en carafe plus de deux heures avant la dégustation lui apporte le plus grand bien, les arômes plus complexes de sous bois apparaissent. En bouche, c'est net, onctueux, les tanins sont parfaitement fondus, juste suffisants pour rappeler que l'on est à St Estèphe et s'accomoder du filet de boeuf sauce aux morilles servi avec. Très belle bouteille que je n'attendais pas à ce niveau. Devrait se boire encore plusieurs années mais pourquoi se priver d'un tel plaisir.
Je le place derrière le Pichon Comtesse mais assez largement devant le Ducru Beaucaillou du même millésime dégustés dernièrement.
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(ex-chateau, Oswalds). By far the wine of the night, instantaneously shows incredible precision and tension on the nose. 2 hours in a decanter was just starting to open up -- 3-4 hours would have been better. This wine gave great pleasure but was only entering into the start of its drinking window -- certainly there's 10-20 years to go here.
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1966 – 2010 Château Montrose vertical (Regional Wines, Wellington, NZ): Served single blind, one pour. Varieties: CS 76% | M 20% | CF 3% | PV 1%. The garnet highlights to the dark ruby colour suggested some age. Lovely aromatics, quite expressive and bright. Savoury and fragrant floral notes, with blackcurrants, fresh and dried herbs and slaty minerals. On palate, lots of fresh blackcurrants. Fresh and intense with more acids than expected. I thought first of 1986 then of 1996 acidity. Savoury and earthy, with touches of those freshly cut herbs. Wet granite minerality. Below full-bodied, Englishman’s claret, as this style used to be called. Still with a little of tannic grip to release. A style I like very much although some tasters found the 1996 too astringent. A top quality 1996 Bordeaux on its optimal drinking plateau. Fully open, I would drink by around 2027.
Rankings: Me 8/12 | GK 8/12 | CT 7/12.
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This wine behaved like an engine that never really started. A terrible waste of money, and an underwhelming experience.
Wine does suggest possible foul play and cork supports… So, no official scoring. As this bottle/abomination performed, it was mainly a watered down weak vintage, not the '96 we were expecting to reconnect to. Not bad, quite enjoyable. No faults, but no fireworks, just simply NOT doing anything near what it did last time we had it.
This btl behaved just like a good Château from a weak vintage, as in 1997 or 1991.
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End of year dinner: Right in my wheelhouse of classic Bordeaux from yesteryear. Colour was a lovely ruby red that made the wine appear very youthful, a right amount of funk and herbaceousness on the nose without being overbearing. Obvious left-bank Bordeaux but got lucky with the guess on the producer. On the palate, it had vibrant red fruits with some secondary development. Time has rounded out the sharp edges but this has the structure to go on for a long time.
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Classic Bordeaux close to maturity. Everything you want in a left bank Bordeaux in a beautiful package. A lot of depth on the palate that I think is only going to improve further with age and time. But this is drinking just great now.
Nose deeply complex, it started with a bit of barnyard but it quickly cleaned up with dark licorice, some florality and a super nice merange of red fruits. The palate clean, deep and almost resolved with substantial length.
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Simply a fantastic wine - although important to air enough as getting soo much better after few hours … Montrose 💪💪 powerful despite ”only” 12.5% alc by vol!
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Christmas Claret: Quite a cool, slightly restrained nose. It’s all there though, just in a minor key. Cool mineral edge. More composed than the 95. ****
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Schwarzer Adler 2021 (Schwarzer Adler): - Decanted for 4h (is necessary) @Schwarzer Adler - Nose: Intense and complex aromas of spice, lots of white pepper, paprika, tomato, typical austere St. Estephe, red fruit (which I always find nice when this comes out in Bordeaux as well) like sour cherry, red plums. But then also a lot of leather and cedar. With time wonderfully beautiful, singing!!!Needs air to show its full potential. - Palate: medium + tannins that still give a lot of grip are still present but in an opening drinking window. Nice drinkability (acidity medium+) with not too much flab on the hip (medium body). Wow, this Montrose sings. Quite long on the finish. Has more tension than the other Bordeaux (Lalande 2003, Cos d'Estournel 2000, La Mission Haut Brion 1995) tonight! - 95-96 point fresher with time and a lot better than the others. Can be stored for another + 10 years. Still needs some time (or a lot of aeration) to reach its absolute peak.
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Nose: intensive and dense aromas of tobacco, coffee, graphit, dark fruits which will jump out of the glas right into your face, nice freshness.
palate: grippy, yet velvety tannins, which are also nicely balanced with the acidic backbone. straightforward.
this is what i want from an aged bordeaux. for a 25 years old wine still youthful and fresh, yet complex with loads of layers. this blockbuster can last for another 20+ years, unbelievable.
was unisono nominated as the wine of the night.
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Double decanted two hours before dinner. Youthful purple core, turning to deep garnet at the rim. Absolute aromatic fireworks, with classic and confident scents of dried black fruits, roasted fennel, black truffle, leather, cigar box and sun baked stones. Medium bodied with a classic profile; ripe and dusty tannins, good concentration, layers of flavor but quite nimble and fresh, with great focus and grip on the long and refreshing finish. Wow, this is only an adolescent, and should improve for at least another 15 years. Great stuff!
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Reconfirms Robert Parkeer's remarks at his own vertical at the property in 2014. For me, it is that loamy character that defines the nose--freshly tilled, damp soil that tinctures the black fruit-- that takes you straight to this particular chateau. This is classic through and through and very well defined. The palate is wonderful with very fine deliniation, pitch-perfect acidity, touches of graphite infusing the red and black fruit that dovetails into a very pretty, floral finish. This is clearly one of the great wines of the 1996 vintage and I would be stocking up as much as I could, because it will give 30-40 years of pleasure. COLLECTOR WINE Robert Parker: 96 Pts Anticipated maturity: 2018-2055 Cost: $275 and up! COLLECTOR WINE
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Classic St. Estèphe. Nose of black fruit and fresh soil. The palate is focused and precise, framed with great acidity. The palate has notes of blackcurrant, blackberry, earth and flowers. A delightful and classic left bank Bordeaux.
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Short finish, very little evolution. Still very much alive, with the development of dirt, roots and bark, but hasn’t really evolved to become anything greater than it was in youth. Perhaps the vintage is simply a perfect 50+ year agability and we have committed infanticide, the ‘96 lafite certainly suggests the same. But it’s simple despite its promise of greater development
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Splash decanted an hour before dinner. This was the WOTN and really singing. Ripe blue fruits, great balance, long and expansive finish with the tannins fully resolved. In a perfect spot right now. A
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When there's brettanomyces in the bottle, you never know what you're going to get; and this bottle of the 1996 Château Montrose, a wine I hadn't drunk for several years, showed a bit too much brett for my palate (bottles I've drunk in Europe have tended to be cleaner). Rich aromas of smoked meats, bandaid, cigar ash and loamy soil dominate the wine's dark fruit tones, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and impressively broad, ample, lower-acid palate in this often tightly wound vintage. There's a great wine in here trying to get out, and I have had great bottles in the past, but this example was just a bit compromised.
This wine is finally in its sweet spot right now. Fully mature with an incredible Bordeaux nose that is actually more Pauillac in style than St Estephe. Utterly delicious demonstrating the strength of ‘96 Cabernet dominated left bank wines at age 25. Yum!
This is drinking very nicely. Dark garnet colored, still looks young with virtually no bricking.
Cork came out easily and was in good shape, just sniffing the cork and the wine you could tell it would be good, really intense nose of pipe tobacco, leather, and tar dominating at first.
After a 45 minute decant it mellowed out a bit, still pipe tobacco dominant, but with bell pepper, red fruits, and old leather on the nose. Red fruits on the palate, along with cedar, tomato, leather and tobacco. The tobacco flavor is a bit more muted on the palate can the nose, and more cigar tobacco vs the heavier pipe tobacco of the nose. Medium bodied, mid palate isn’t as intense as one might expect, though there is a nice long finish. Fruit hasn’t faded at all and secondary flavors are really coming out. Tannins fully resolved and nice acidity.
In its drinking window and drinking well. Definitely has some time left as I didn’t think it was super tertiary, but no reason not to drink now. Wouldn’t decant long, was better earlier in the evening then started to fade in the last 1/2 glass.
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Knockout bottle of Montrose. Trounces a recent 1995. Pours out a vibrant ruby-red with no-doubter aromatics right from the get-go delivering a powerful smack of tarry, truffly earth funk. The scents get softer with air but given about an hour in the decanter the texture turns exquisitely silky. I might have expected more brute power after those explosive aromas but instead it's pliant and gentle. The fruit tones are all blackberries and other black-toned stuff in a fully mature cast. No need to wait any further on this, this is ready to go and in the zone.
Wow. Just wow. First bottle from new case, perfect cork condition, stunning, drinking perfectly right now (see note at bottom). Perfectly balanced. 90 min decant seemed low but was perfect. Elegant, with +power and +complexity. "Abundance" of everything came to mind without being overbearing. Black fruit (black currant and blackberry), tobacco and leather plus hint of menthol on nose. Extremely full, totally fills palate. It's all there - fruit abundant without overwhelming, acidity crisp, tannins nicely resolved, very long finish; a top 5 wine I've drank in the last year out of hundreds. Great food wine due to strength and balance. Reminded me of Lafite 1996 I drank last year.
Note: this is 3rd 1996 Montrose popped in last 12 months. 1st two bottles were from different case, were fine but considerably less "wow" and more in-line with the reviews I'm seeing below. Would've given them low 90s ratings. I don't know if the variation is due to provenance of the different cases or I just got a lucky bottle here. 90 min decant seemed low for this magic bottle, the other 96 Montroses last year I did for 2+ hours each with considerably worse results. Not sure what's going on here.
Medium ruby with only a bit of bricking. Musty leather and spice on the nose. Red fruits. Tannins fully resolved. 20 second finish. Served with tri-tip skewers and roasted potatoes. Drank beautifully with food and nice by itself after dinner. In a good place now.
Classic St. Estephe. On the nose wet stones, lots of ash tray (but in the best way!), brambles and subdued red fruit notes (mainly strawberry and cherry). Palate was a little thinner than I would have liked, but still solid and finish is great. Overall a very good example of Bordeaux, drinking right in the appropriate window now with great balance and acidity. Drink up!
Decanted 3 hours. Lighter red in color and in fruit on the nose vs. the '95 LLC last night at open. With 3 hours air the nose is very nice but at 4 hours even better. Red fruit but explosive secondary elements of moss, earth, leather. This is such a great wine on the nose, but the palate just a little short of great - at least now. Leaves me really liking this wine and although the nose is perhaps more interesting than the '95 LLC not the palate - at least now. Still just really really good Bordeaux and perhaps it improves with time but easy to love right now with 3-4 hours of air. A-/A
The palate is of rare density. There is juice, it is undeniable. Unparalleled balance, to give an amplitude of madness. The tannins are noble, the touch silky, it is deep. And the final, powerful, on black fruits.
A firmly structured vintage of Montrose currently showing some of the negative aspects of this vintage; that is lean and green. It probably needs many more years of development but I much preferred the '95 & '00 tonight. 90+?
Aromatic on opening. 60+ minute decant revealed bell pepper, deep fruit and nuance. Not as clean and precise as the 1996 Leoville Barton drunk alongside, but lots of layers of flavor and character.
Pop and pour and drank over 2 hours. It was great for the first half hour, but then went downhill after that. Pretty youthful at first with and amazing finish of leather, cigar box and dark fruit. The nose got more intense after 15 minutes, but then the complexity and amazing finish disappeared. The nose went away after that. Drink now and do not decant.
Decanted for 45 minutes and followed for 3 hours. Opaque garnet with scarlet edges. Nose of savory green elements mixed with fecund soil, lifted floral notes, cassis, pencil lead, and currant. Seemingly settled layers of black currant, fine green leaf, and black plum on the palate nonetheless deepening with grip and lithe, earthen gravity. Lively acidity and softened tannin leading to a long finish of currant, soil, wild green, a bit of sauvage, and tobacco. Vital complexity within a civilized frame.
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What to pnp after a great Gru La 00 ? choose this one, what a meaty, smoky nose, great smell, perfect with grilled meat, terribly impressive right from the start, needs more aeration than the Gr La, rich, Lucious black fruit, but a lot of secondary and tertiary aromas though, really seductive meaty, mid- to full-bodied, some ripe but supporting tannin still, tremendous length, with a decant or some slow ox very delicious now, but will hold another two decades+ easily, great extraordinary bottle, ***(**), around 94, 95(+)potential
A little bricking, still fresh and gathered body and composure after a few hours. Leather, tobacco notes. A real joy. Sadly, I only have one bottle left. This can last another 10 years, easy.
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Decanted two hours. Classic nose of black currant, earth and underbrush. The wine at first came off a little thin but fleshed our nicely over another hour so giving this wine a long decant is recommended. The paltr shows red and black fruits intermixed with licorice, lead pencil and tobacco. This wine is built for a long life but it’s not overpowering - in fact it quotes well balanced and complex. This may continue to improve over the coming years.
Big and lean, tannins are still quite present and softened up with a few hours of air. Drank side by side with an 03’ Pavie, the Montrose by comparison was a bit austere, mostly because the Pavie was just so ripe and modern.
Double decanted for 5 hours, and still continued to develop. Excellent example of the best of Montrose. At first, rubber and earth, then a few hours in green pepper and pine needles. Tannic, sharp and intense, could go many more years but a pleasure if you can keep it open for hours now.
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Interesting that the smell was not what I would have guessed to be Bordeaux. Lots of expressive and bright fruit...has all the tannin worn off now?? Loved it but a bit different to the norm...
4th of 12, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, some development on rim since last bottle noted here in May 14, but nose and palate frustratingly backward, classical components there with nice touch of earth and even smoke, even decent length, but flavours rather disjointed, angular and thin given the quality of the vintage, maybe a phase particularly looking at some of the adulatory notes below. Just about F (17.5).
Color me disappointed......picked up a couple of these at auction, gave this plenty of time to decant......I'm talking 3-7 hours. Didn't help it one bit. The fruit started out red and tart, and ended red and tart. This had the requisite barnyard funk on the nose and it did take 3-4 hours to burn off. The fruit and the flavor profile however didn't budge an inch after opening and an hour or 5 of decant. I'm sorry, but this bottle just isn't floating my boat. Great aged BDX nose, but that's about it.......
Addendum: left about 1/4 of the bottle in the decanter with a lid on it overnight. Tasted the next day.....more pencil shavings, darker fruit, dryer, more prunes. I actually liked it a little better. But still, it's quite disappointing given the price.
PnP, finally the Montrose 1996 has reached its full maturity plateau. Right form the start it was clear that we have a stellar wine in the glass here. All you want from a mature Bordeaux. Tons of tertiary aromas around forest floor, dark fruit, some farmyard funk. Nicely dissolved tannins, good freshness. Simply wonderful, nothing goes better with red meat than a wine like this.
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Dinner at Burnt Ends: This bottle was a bit Brett-y, but otherwise decent without being brilliant - this probably needed a little bit of time yet. The nose was really quite funky at first, with a distinct whiff of stinky socks. With time though, this was more classic Montrose and quietly attractive, with drifts of graphite, tobacco, meat and dried earth, with just a title drift of cassis coming out with time. The palate had a nice 1996 ripeness on the attack, with sweet cassis seasoned with bits of spice, and more smoky tobacco and graphite drifting into a lip-smackingly fresh finish with a kiss of juicy cherries and earth.
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Opaque garnet color turning orange rust at the rim with a transparent edge. Considerable age has mellowed down this once powerful force, but ripe black and red fruits still abound amidst the smoky earth, espresso and lifted orange peel notes. The palate is gorgeous, showing a silky smooth texture with notes of black currants, black pepper, cloves, bitter chocolate, tobacco, gravel and burnt asphalt. It has a bracing finish that indicates a shelf life of not less than ten years. Amazing, graceful, elegant, and compelling. This is a stunner. Drink now until 2036.
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The nose is less expressive than the 1975 drunk just before. Distinguished. Classic. Very broad in the mouth. The tannin's are still quite present, but not disturbing. Beautiful fruit. Fairly long (and quite longer than the 1975).
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Simply put, approaching excellence. Surprisingly young-tasting for a wine with more than two decades of age. Menthol, smoke, leather and licorice, dark fruit. Aromas of sage and oregano in the mid palate. Pronounced minerality up front, some saltiness. Very long finish of wonderful complexity. This is drinking beautifully now, but has many years of life ahead of it.
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Acker Merrall & Condit Bordeaux vs. California Tasting (Michelangelo Hotel): The best expression of '96 Montrose I have tasted to date. This suggests it is in its prime drinking window and my prior tastings were way too early. Tasted blind, I called this as a '96 Pichon Lalande. I got the vintage, but missed St. Estephe. Classic left bank notes of cedar & black licorice.
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Garnet color. Wonderful nose of currant and earth, with bits of green, damp cellar, high-pitched florals, and cassis. Sinewy and lively on the tongue with layers of red currant, savory green pepper, earth, and leather, and tobacco. Moderate acidity and still-structured tannins. Longer finish of plum, earth, green elements, and sweet currant. Lovely. From a 375.
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This bottle is an example of why wine is so beguiling and frustrating all at the same time!. Montrose is one of my fav wines, but this bottle felt flat compared to previous ones from the same case! Decanted the same 90 mins, let it warm slowly etc but it didn’t live up to its previous heights.Nice old school nose that never really developed. And Tannins were not harsh, but certainly there. Hopefully it was a one off, and will certainly keep trying the various Montrose vintage Shop i have. Nothing bad, just an unremarkable bottle.
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Great wine but really needs time!!! This is the second bottle I have had in the last year and both have opened beautifully but both go backwards and tighten up. My suggestion is to wait another five years on this one and open a ‘98 instead.
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Montrose 1982, 1989, 1996 and 2003 (JM Amsterdam): Consistent with my note in January; Top Montrose, classic Left Bank. Rich, elegant and great complexity on the palate with cassis, cacao, coffee and graphite notes. Powerful nose with thick ripe cherries and iron. All in high precision.
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1 Stunde vor Genuss geöffnet, nicht dekantiert. 12,5 Prozent, schöne Nase, fein geschliffene Tannine. Einfach hervorragend. Die Geduld hat sich gelohnt, gereifte Bdx sind Haaammmmer. Leider gehen mir die Bdx vom letzten Jahrtausend langsam aus. Bin gespannt, ob die Höherpozentigen 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015 und 2016er jemals so viel Spass machen.
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seductive nose, very open. body almost fully delivers - just hints of under ripeness. bits of tobacco. Nose best part - but rest also very solid. Would drink this now
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The 96 Montrose is coming along beautifully; typically big, assertive nose full of cassis, blueberry, leather, pencil, and a touch of thyme. Maybe a touch blocky at the moment, but full of great material. Lots to love here.
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Zachy's Auction - May 2019 (Upper Story): Similar to the bottle we had about a month ago and definitely a wine that could use some more time in the bottle. It's very happy though - just kindof jumps out of the glass at you. Great red fruits, some nice spice, touch of stem. Very vibrant. A bit too young for me tastes but a wine that makes me optimistic about the future.
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Gave this a full 3 hour decant, and it showed a bit more open fruit and body on the palate than my last note. Same great nose of ripe fruits right out of the bottle. But a bot more expansive on the palate, making me think this wine has some upside with some more time in the bottle, while enjoyable now if you can give it at least 3 hours of air. A-/?
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Decanted 1 hour. Young, dark color. This was strong right out of the bottle with a nose of dark ripe fruit soaring from the decanter. But similar to my last note this seemed better early than with air as it seems to shut a bit and never really give you on the palate what you get from the nose. I see a note describing it as a feminine Montrose which I understand but just didn’t expect from Montrose in this vintage. Jeff Leve’s note feels spot on to me and leaves me wondering if this is it for this wine or will more air or time in the bottle reveal an even better Montrose than this very good one? A-
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Absolutely beautiful right now. Great structure, soft tannins, nice acidity in the back. A very feminine Montrose - drink now or within the next 3-5 years.
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Dinner at Jade Palace. Decanted for 1 hour. Mid ruby. Beautiful nose. Medium body, delicate, restrained fruit. Quite elegant, very classic. Already mature and in a good place now.
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I have just two words: Great wine!! Wonderful nose of forest floor, red berries, wet pebble stone and spices. On the palate again red berries, great grip with softened tannines and fine acidity. Medium body, great balance and a long finish. This wine is fully matured with some years left. Just wonderful !!
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Acker April 2019 (Marea in NYC): This was a very happy bottle. Ready to jump out right from the start. I would say prob still too much on the young side - it's darker and a bit deeper and still very strong with the red fruits. Tasty and almost a touch hedonistic for a bordeaux. Enjoyable.
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Top Montrose, classic Left Bank. Rich, elegant and great complexity on the palate with cassis, cacao, coffee and graphite notes. Powerful nose with thick ripe cherries and iron notes. All in high precision.
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Old school, classic in style, the wine is crisp, energetic and stubbornly tannic. The fruit is short, bright, and leaning to the strict, austere, cranberry and light red fruit side of the style range. The wine is a bit more interesting on the developed, cedar and tobacco edged nose, than on the palate. If this is your taste, you will probably like it more than I did.
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Lo Hei dinner at Peach Garden (Peach Garden, OCBC Building): Best showing of this wine so far, this is just starting to come into its own. The nose was lush and lovely, with loamy earth, a touch of funky meatiness, and wafts of cassis, cedar and tobacco spice. The palate was still youthful, probably needing more years in the bottle, but it was also clearly starting to open up after 2 hours in the decanter. There were juicy gobs of cassis, nicely lifted tones of citrus, almost orangey acidity, and then hints of tobacco and spice leading into a juicy finish, all of this beautifully framed in a lovely structure of fine, sinewy tannins and a nice minerality. Still young, almost hinting towards the primary at times, but I just loved the ringing sense of juicy purity to the fruit that the wine had - there was so much of that in reserve, and the structure was so fine, that I think that this will age for just about forever. This was lithe and elegant, strength without weight. Lovely stuff - I would love to try this again in 5 and then 10 years time.
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A superb showing. Benefited from a 4-hour decant. Familiar, enticing nose of currants and, leather, less earthy than prior bottles and without that barnyard aspect this time. Perfectly balanced and harmonious, with red currants, dried spice and a touch of black olives. A superior bottle.
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Thoroughly enjoyed this wine. Rather smooth, no hard edges. Felt like I could detect the earthiness of St Estephe on the nose. Serious wine but never heavy. Plenty of dark fruit although the wine is certainly moving into next stage in its life. Highly recommended.
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Excellent mature St. Estephe. Can it develop any further? Maybe, but it’s on that high level already that there is no need to wait any longer. There is still a bit fruit, but it’s heavily on the leather, fur, earth, mushroom, horse/stable side. The nose is just a ‚Wow!‘ and the mouth asks for more! Decant is not needed, but give the wine 5 minutes to relax and to get rid of the old dust aromas.
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first class nose on this wine. Schoolbook-bordeaux. cedar, dark fruit, stable, a hint of oak the palate is silk-soft with nice fruit, some tobacco, cedar, and well integrated tannins.
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Yves's Memorial; 11/10/2018-11/11/2018 (MO): This was fantastic, one of the best wines of the night. Explosive aromatics of mint and cedar. Palate is a little narrow still but has plenty of depth. Going to age SLOW.
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From Mag, 2nd out of 6, 4h slow ox, very elegant, not much fruit left but beautiful secondary aromas, only got better in the glass over the evening, excellent
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Wine & Dine Vol XI (Florhof (Zurich)): Tasted blind as part of a mini Montrose vertical (1996, 2003, 2005, 2009). For me the 2009 out on top, but the 1998 and 2003 were not far behind while the 2005 fell a bit short. .
Initially quite meaty also showing bacon fat and mushrooms. Fine leathery oak. But there is also a surprisingly intense fruit, both red and dark.
Still some decent acidity (medium +) there but with tannins pretty much melted away and showing a super fresh palate. Pretty much as when adjusting the lense of a camera, as time in the glass passes the precision of the fruit increases and reaches outstanding levels in the end.
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Wine & Dine Vol. XI (Zürich): Mini Montrose vertical 96/03/05/09. A good display of Montrose‘s aristocratic, classic charm. The 96 is fully mature and provides a lot of drinking pleasure even if it‘s not the most complex wine. The 03 is the odd one out, extremely spicy and quite ripe (the others who had it blind guessed Napa) but needs a lot of time. The 05 is completely closed, even after 7 hours in the decanter. The 09 is so intense, ripe and profound but so harmonious and elegant, certainly the one with the highest potential.
TN: Fully mature nose, subtle forest floor and leather aromas, medium intense, clean. On the palate dominated by earth, tobacco and leather. Fruit in the background. Medium+ intensity, medium complexity, good precision. Smooth tannins, good freshness, good balance. Not as deep and elegant as in other vintages, not good enough to play in the big league.
Decanting: 1-2 hours in the decanter will do the job.
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Outstanding - drinking perfectly. Has some real overt pepperiness on the nose. The palate is deliciously plush and everything is beautifully balanced. Lovely old-ish claret. Drink or hold.
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consistent with me last note: bright red with a brick rim - exuberant red fruit nose of cherries and cassis - amazingly young tasting in the mouth, thanks to not only the generous fruit, but also very refreshing acidity - tannins still present but not excessive - full body and long finish - this wine will keep on developing for the next 20 years - would not have opened this bottle except that I wanted to compare it to the 75 Montrose opened at the same time
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This was nice - maybe I'm being a bit mean with the score, but it's reflective of where it is now and where it might be in the future. Tighter than I expected it would be - it got maybe half hour in a decanter and remained quite closed over the next hour. Hopefully a little more time and it will reach its promise. All elements are present to indicate that it will.
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Poured into a decanter and sat for about an hour. Darker than the '90 Lagrange and almost the same color as the '96 La Turque. I got a slight funk in the nose that blew off to reveal aromas of new leather, wet earth, and cocoa powder. The wine felt slightly heavier than the Lagrange - velvety versus silky - and tasted like a warm cherry pie.
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Very classic stylings here. Lots of graphite and humidor aromas. Light on it's feet while delivering plenty of expression. Terrific and in it's window.
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Decanted 2hrs ahead. Barnyard, leather, and cassis nose. Savory dark fruit palate. Long finish. Just classic mature Bordeaux. Paired with Moroccan lamb and filet mignon. Rave wine of the night.
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Textbook aged left bank with dark fruit/cassis soul, dried provencal herbs, roast aromas, black truffles, leather, cigar box, cedar wood, barnyard, sous bois. Smooth, elegant, silky, weightless but with a high aroma intensity, full power. You could drink liters of this wine.
The wine needed some time in the glass to open up and gain weight. Give it some air (1h).
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Beatiful nose, and smooth subtle pallette. Opened an hour and half, keeping it cool, and then let it rise to room temp for 30 mins and it showed beatifully. Worthy of a retirment party celebration!
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tasted with Coravin. Mid to high shoulder, cork drenched of wine. Dark ruby and orange color, showing its age. At the nose, notes of black fruit,cigar box and pencil. At the mouth consistent hints of black currant anc cocoa, some black chocolate and leather. Some sediment. Not too impressive and juicy,austere but elegant. Interesting but not astonishing although pleasantly enjoyable
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bright red with a brick rim - exuberant red fruit nose of cherries and cassis - amazingly young tasting in the mouth, thanks to not only the generous fruit, but also very refreshing acidity - tannins still present but not excessive - full body and long finish - in contrast to the 96 Calon Segur we had at the same time, not nearly as developed or as much complexity, but pronounced youthfullness - also, much heavier sediment in the bottle, suggesting less filtration as a possible reason for the abundance of fruit - this wine will keep on developing for the next 20 years (just not sure when I should try the next bottle - perhaps 3-4 years from now - no hurry!)
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From magnum.At age 21 still a young wine.Expressive nose of rich dark fruits,leather,tobacco and subtle earth.Full-bodied,the palate is really impressive,with complex flavors built around a core of concentrated ripe fruit.A big wine,at the same time elegant and with incredible focus.Long finish with great grip.Still young,but ready.Should drink well for at least another 20 years.A brilliant wine.
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From magnum. Light bricking around the edge, ruby and translucent core. Fresh, ripe red fruit. Creme de cassis with a touch of earthy/bretty aromas. A little thin on the palate. Acid and tannin are in the forefront. This needs some time/air before truly enjoying. Wouldn’t open another one of these for 5 years at least. 750s might be more approachable.
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The hits just keep on coming, this is a fantastic wine...and then some. 96 Montrose is now entering 96 Lalande territory. What a stunning nose! Hot summer sun on steaming wet stones, drenched earth, tobacco, cassis, fresh black cherries, graphite, and pencil. And all of this is with incredible precision. The palate is rich and multi-layered with beautiful fruit and complexity. Velvet in the mouth with sorted tannins and a complete feel of regal charm. 1996 Montrose is not to be missed! 97 Pts
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Decanted for 1 hour. Medium garnet color. Pungent nose of cedar, cassis, currant, tobacco, and damp soil. Somehow combined density and fine detail on the palate with layers of austere dark currant, blackberry, cherry, leather, and traces of green pepper, all in impeccable balance. Moderate acidity and smoothed, integrated tannin. Long, brooding finish of earth, dark fruit, and hints of tobacco. Beautiful wine, perhaps not yet at peak.
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Gave this a 90-minute decant. Fragrant nose of barnyard, leather, tobacco, and fresh earth. The palate has presence but is also "cool" and austere: cassis, black fruits, some sweetness and integrated (yet noticeable) tannins. The finish is lengthy with sweet cassis and tobacco. Definitely not a ripe vintage but great Montrose and a wine that will go for a long time yet.
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I got my hands on a bottle of this thanks to President Sarkozy, who'd presented a few crates of wine as a gift to some relatives. They only drank white, so I snapped up two bottles of this. It was an eye-opener. I'd drunk some nice claret over the decades, but this was my first time in the VIP lounge. Straight out the bottle it tasted like silk. The nose was phenomenal - all kinds of complex fruit - and then this is intoxicating rush of taste and lingering finish. A bit like losing one's virginity - over much too quickly, but you know you'll be back. I'm now gathering 2011-14s and beyond for my dotage. Lovely wine.
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My new benchmark Bordeaux. Nice Cab notes but so well blended I can barely pick out the other varietals. Slight finish of faint black pepper. Color is so light looks like Grenache, did not need more than 30m decant! I’m new to Bordeaux but now I’m beginning to see what all the fuss is about! Nice to drink a bottle of 20+ years.
Served after a multi-hour decant. A bit of a quandary: both fresh and bretty, in stark contrast to previous bottles. The barnyard knows never blew off, but was irrelevant on the palate. Decidedly earthy notes of cherry, current and olives. Unmistakably Bordeaux. Floral finish. No hurry whatsoever.
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Dark and brooding but not looking as old as a 1996 after a 2.5 hr decant. Beautiful rich nose of leather, cigar box etc. The palate so dense and concentrated- only 12.5% alcohol. The fruit and tannins perfectly integrated into the oak- all appears to be in great balance. Lovely length. Years ahead but be hard to resist drinking right now given how good the wine is at the moment. Distinctive and special.
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absolutely classic mature Bordeaux - dark red with brick rim - great nose of cassis, blackberries, lead pencil and leather - but even better than the nose is the mouth: rich full body of sweet cabernet fruit with perfect balance of acid and tannin - quite long finish - I agree with previous notes that this is beautifully drinking right now - at its peak? who knows, but it will surely at least hold this level of development for another 5-10 years - one of the best 96s I've had so far
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Simply lovely. This is why you buy good bordeaux and hang in to it for 20 years prior to drinking. A level of depth and complexity that is a pleasure to discover. Drinking very well right now, with the sense that well stored this still has many years in front of it.
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Reunion (San Antonio): This had several hours in the decanter before we really dove in. Awesome nose with flint, mint, tobacco and a little horse. On the palate with was pinched a little, showing some diluteness, angular acidity and tartness. Just couldn't keep up with the wonderful nose. The tannins are still rather prominent with a harshness, so maybe it will come together with a few more years in the cellar. I doubt my previous prediction that '96 will be as good as '89.
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Decanted 1 hour and brought to restaurant. Completely open for business. Classic left bank black/blue fruit with earth, cigar, and slight hints of pencil shaving. Soft integrated tannins, beautifully balanced. Hitting it's prime, and absolute beauty.
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Perfumed nose of tobacco box, pencil with some fruit of bosenberry. Slight dried green tea. Palate is intense with silky smooth tannin and good acidity. Flavours of pencil and game - quite developed but some serious complexity. 30 second finish - such high quality. This will age longer and develop further but drinking perfectly now. Not sure what could really improve it. A superb wine.
Classic Bordeaux, this was the most beautiful Montrose I have had. The color was dark garnet, with very slight light edge, clear, with just a touch of sediment at the end. The smell was a complex blend of eucalyptus, forest floor, licorice, red fruit, a touch of prune. On the palate the wine was very focused and elegant with red and black currant, earthy, a bit of smoke towards the back. Medium finish that really closed out this wine beautifully. WOTN 95 Points...
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Sweet licorice nose, cassis, black olives, schoolpaint, very muscular yet well balanced. 4 hrs in the decanter, but it needs more than that... Still needs time.
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Decanted for a couple of hrs, med. ruby, red & black fruit with a little tobacco & leather, mod. tannins, long finish; delicious, drink or hold (no rush)
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Tasted Blind. A wine that we have experienced a lot of bottle variation and we are pretty sure its all down to the source of the wine and not the wine it self. A year ago we crossed path with a beautiful bottle (Papies 95) , 7 years ago with a very good ( Papies 92). The one on this occasion was very good but not singing in that level. Soft and in a way feminine, good classic notes on the nose, light herbal, soft but very much present tannin. A touch drying on the edges. Very enjoyable but not to the level of the one we had a year ago 92
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No formal note; also a bit disappointed for the same reasons but performed better than the 1996 Pontet Canet; overall, 92-93 points; needed a few more years at least to be truly enjoyable.
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Decanted an hour. Still young. This was better out of the bottle and with an hour in the decanter than it was at two hours when it shut down a bit. Classic Bordeaux with a touch more concentration and ripeness to it, I think this could be really good with time but right now the tannin is still a little too present and need some time to balance out. A-/?
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Herbaceous and green notes on the nose with hints of white pepper. Good tannic structure but slightly bitter and green on the palate. Needs 10 more years and should improve. 90+
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Dark fruit some coffee and pencil lead galore, still has firm tannin and good acid. Very pleasant and long finish. Color is bright and seems young-ish. Great Christmas eve bottle with family!
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From Coravin. Last tasted two years ago and still holding that same strong level. Youthful appearance. Pencil and black fruits on the nose; cedar and concentrated fresh berries on the palate. Very well structured, fine tannins still very much present. This wine is superb if you like classic style left bank wines. Unlike some bottles I have had of this, the finish goes on for a very long time, such a treat!!
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Strong classic pencil lead Cab nose that is so rare these days but oh so welcome. Lovely classic profile overall. Not an ultra complex wine at this point but dead solid perfect classic style. Not a lot of tannin at this point and the fruit has leaned out mostly. Probably in it's window. Terrific for the old school lovers.
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This bottle was a victim of inconsistent bottling. Why? No sediment...Its really hard to accept why some bottles of wine from the same vintage, from the same cellar, throw lots of sediment and some none. I am not saying this because I enjoyed the wine and then saw that the bottle was clean. I am saying this because the wine seemed a bit hollow and lacking in fruit throughout the whole night. I expected it to gain weight and get better, but it just stayed the same from start to finish. Propped up with great acidity, this wine was very youthful in its appearance, medium to full body, and had a super bordeaux nose of earth and cedar. But.... the wine never delivered what the nose promised and left me hanging... :-( Now I have to go and find a killer Bordeaux to open for the weekend to satisfy this hanging feeling!
Still a really good wine, but missed the mark for a 1996 Montrose experience. Reminded me very much of a Leoville Barton 1996 in its adolescence. Very good but not great. Drink or Hold
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Poped and poured, right on opening this is promissing and comes out very open. The nose is one of nice wood, graphite, forest floor in autumn and faded dark fruit. The pallet is very smooth, tannins are still present but nicely integrated, licorice, coffee, cherry's. Has a medium length, but a beautifull aftertaste. (very important!!!) If you have any left don't worry poppin' a cork, if you have a lot of this, no worry's you lucky bastard it will keep . Beautifull Saint Estephe.
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Awesome wine! WOTN compared to 1990 Ridge MB and 2010 Kistler Pinot Natalie. Phenomenal structure and intensity. Brooding dark fruit with layers of complexity. Perfect drinking window today but will last for another 10-20 years.
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This is the twentieth bottle of Bordeaux I have drunk from before vintage 2000. It's not the best, but it's one of the best experiences I've had. This is the first time I realized there's a solid core of the essential aged Bordeaux experience, a kind of taste that is by its nature indescribable. But we try to describe it anyway because that's how our brains are wired, and because the sensation comes with an equally hard-to-place emotion, somewhere between joy and nostalgia. Good Bordeaux approaches this taste, great Bordeaux exemplifies it. This was a great Bordeaux. Every sip was a little different, but after 2 hours that strange, complex, multi-component secondary core was ascendent, with a finish that was a lovely mushroom funk. This is up there with the Ducru and the Leoville Poyferre for sheer pleasure.
Nose: med intensity of herbal (mint, eucalyptus), black fruit (black currant, blackberry), red fruit (red currant, cranberry), pungent spice (licorice), floral (violet), tertiary notes (smoke, earthy, graphite). Developing.
Palate: dry, high acidity, med + tannin, soft and ripe, med body and alcohol, med + intensity of red currant, black currant, eucalyptus, savory, coffee, chocolate, earthy, smoke, toast, violet. Med + finish.
Assessment: very good quality. Tertiary notes balanced very well with primary fruit. Clear tertiary notes but still very vibrant due to high acidity. Great breadths of character and complex. a higher concentration and longer finish would make it outstanding.
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Excellent et très équilibré en ce sens que malgré le Cabernet Sauvignon en dominance, ce vin viril est tout de même raffiné et délicat en plus d'être long en bouche.
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The 1996 Montrose is a terrific wine, with an absolutely classic bouquet of cassis, redcurrant, cedar and dried ceps, introducing a pure, intense wine structured around a firm chassis of ripe tannins and bright acids. The wine is simultaneously more concentrated and more focussed and elegant than the 1995, with more focus and precision. The best vintage between 1990 and 2000, and in the same school as years like ’55, ’61 and ’05.
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Luxurious, pure and beautiful bouquet with dark forest fruits, graphite, cedar, tobacco, smoke and luxurious oak. On the palate beautiful and juicy dark berries, good acidity and round tannin with still a beautiful bite. A really beautiful and exclusive wine in its young maturity stage. Should save my last bottle until 2022 or a bit later. 95+
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Needs two hours for fruit to show through Before that fruit is muted and dry Good typical nose with a little barnyard funk Got some caramel Excellent Bordeaux
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Decanted for an hour and enjoyed over the next 3 hours. Intoxicating nose of light Bordeaux funk and red fruit, forest floor and a bit of mushroom (?). The wine looks crimson-brick colored with just a bit of lightening at the edges. Suggest decanting as there is a moderate amount of sediment in the bottle. Initially, it tastes like red currant and mineral with a somewhat hollow mid pallet. This changed over time as the fruit started to show better after an hour or more. As others have noted, the wine has satin-like texture...almost to a fault. Depends on what you like. For me, I'd prefer a bit more body. The acidity is on point and this paired well with juicy burgers on the grill and chicken sausage. After 3 hours+, the fruit is more pronounced...as is the acidity. So, so smooth.
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Beautiful, expressive (even youthful) and a long finish. Served with a Camembert (Normandy) and a Banon (Provence) that had arrived from France two days earlier. What a great combination!
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Decanted for one hour and drank over an hour and a half. Interesting nose of cigar box and barnyard. Over time the barnyard became more forest floor. This wine was silky and smooth almost to a fault. Tobacco, leather and slight hint of eucalyptus up front? There was a little red fruit left. But I got a hollow midpalate (hence the "fault") that did fill in somewhat over the evening, but never completely. The finish was decent. There was a lot of acidity which was helped (or helped with depending on the POV) the food. The tannins were imperceptible. Based on all the great notes on this wine recently on CT, maybe this was just a style preference showing through. Or maybe a bottle variation. This was a nice wine, but just didn't wow me like some older Bordeaux have in the past.
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Decanted and served. Classic, well aged, on the feminine side of the Bordeaux scale and just beautiful. The colour points to a well evolved wine and the nose confirms it. Leather, earth, mushrooms, light touch of pepper. Soft and silky but still very much alive on the palate, good evolved fruit, good acidity. Beautiful . 95 and drinks very nicely now.
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Gorgeous nose, floral yet meaty. On the palate a bit disappointing. High acidity, perhaps lacking some balance. Still a lovely mature bordeaux to go with châteaubriand à la béarnaise. And spinach.
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During a Left Bank 1996 tasting dinner. Dark garnet, expressive and very complex nose of dark fruit, earth forest floor, but also leather and a touch of barnyard. Very good presence on the palate, full bodied but fresh with good structure. A great showing of this wine tonight. Shared the WOTN space with the Palmer.
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The most highly toned with the highest acidity among the montroses tasted along side. Racy fresh small red berries with light florals and almost stewed Hawthorne pinot fruit like on the finish. Elegant. This has a Cocoa finish too.
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Musty, slightly green, and pepper nose. Palate is ripe, shows some of the same refined notes as the nose, but does not exhibit the same depth and thins and dries across the midpalate. Noticeable tannins remaining on the finish.
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Just popped and poured . A wonderful wine. Maybe a bit short on the follow through but everything else is so good and in the right place just now. Enjoy!!
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Decanted for three hours, a bare minimum in my view. Classic nose of currants, leather, earthy notes and barnyard funk. Drinking in perfect balance: red currants, dried spice, dark cherry, a bit gamey with a touch of green and white pepper. Rounded out further over time, with cedar, black olives and more cherry. Medium finish. Years to go.
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What a difference 6 years makes. No longer a lightweight. Leather and Tobacco on the nose and initial palate, but a mild green stem bitterness follows. This wine could be a show stopper, save for the mid palate, but still a wonderful wine. Plenty of time left.
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A thin, green-inflected wine out of the gate that happily fleshed out impressively over the course of 3 hours in decanter, eventually showing plenty of classic Montrose notes - currant, blueberry, gravel. Still retained some rustic beef blood and just a hint of green (more capsicum than under-ripeness), but the fruit evolution was enough to keep it from being too lean. Wouldn't necessarily have suspected 1996 but the fruit did keep on picking up the longer it had air. Curious as to where this will go but very satisfying now. From half.
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A little over 2 years ago I fell in love with this wine at this very same table but tonight it didn't rock me anywhere near to the same extent. I think I just wasn't in a BDX frame of mind tonight. My personal score would be more like 91pts tonight but others seemed to enjoy this more than I so 93pts is the score reflecting the comments I heard from others. It was a perfectly good btl but I found myself longing for Burgs tonight instead. Double decanted after leaving in the decanter for a couple hours earlier in the day then leaving the cork out till serving hours later. This btl warmed up prior to dinner and probably would have been better if served a little cooler.
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During a tasting, served semi blind. Dark ruby. Expressive nose of barnyard, wood, forest, pin tree. The rusticity points to St.Estephe, not to the two Pauillacs next to it. Solid structure and very masculine, deep aromatics. A tad rustic.
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wine-quartet at Yagil (at Yagil's): opened and lowered to shoulder 8 hours in advance. dark shiny red-purple classic high quality aroma of an elegant top Medoc mature wine, tertiary dark-fruits aroma, with notes of leather, tobacco, earthy-spicy & tobacco. more of Pauillac than St. Estephe... full bodied, fine firm round tannins, rich, elegant, structured, silky, array of flavours, with lasting quality finish. It stood shoulder to shoulder with a bottle of 2000 Pontet Canet. Both were very enjoyable, though different. Both can age 5-15 years more.
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Needed several hours to open up. Still a little angular and quite tannic. Animal nose, a little funky, with a great mint note throughout. Palate is fine, acidic, with tobacco notes. Moderate finish. A step down from the '89 (and maybe '00) but seemingly many years away from peak.
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This wine has really moved on in the last 18 months. Not decanted but breathed for about 3 hours. An amazing nose just a little short on the finish otherwise I would have scored it even higher.
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Good showing -- not great -- at last night's wine group diner at Two Chefs. Still dark color, smoke and dark fruits on the nose. medium body. nice 25-sec finish
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I didn't imagine this bottle would be so open and giving so much at this stage. Nose immediately open evokes mature grapes, ripe fruits and maybe some sweet candy/chocolate. Palate is fantastic, tannins are abundant and perfectly chiselled, balance is very good, this is pleasurable without being (too) decadent. This is great stuff
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Some Grilling with the Toronto Cru (Toronto, ON): There is already moderate bricking on this pristine bottle. Right off the bat there is that classic, awesome exotic Montrose nose. Wow! Aromas of black cherry, exotic spice, animal, cedar, grilled meat, game and red currants waft from the glass. The palate reveals that this is still a classically styled Bordeaux with some slightly green and lean edges along with some elevated red fruited acid (think cranberry and red currant). The tannin is fairly resolved, only around medium minus in presence. Overall a very nice bordeaux from a very nice vintage executed in a classic style. Drinking well now and will undoubtedly live a while longer yet.
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My first of these and had me at the nose which was just classic Bdx and inviting Tannins are resolved and the wine wonderfully smooth with a long finish Color still fairly dark and only modest bricking Nice fruit but this is a 96 so hardly voluptuous This is what excellent moderately mature left bank Bdx tastes like 93-94
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1996 Bordeaux at RSJ (RSJ, Southwark): A beautiful refined, developing claret nose immediately soars from the glass, showing black currant fruit, gravelly minerals, touch of leather. Medium/full bodied on the palate, firm but very fine tannins and a long finish. This is excellent, certainly approachable today but also with a. Long like ahead of it. *****. My 1st, Group 1st.
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Coravin tasting transparent shining red-purple rich ripe cassis and sweet berries, somewhat funky with barnyardy scents, wet earth and herb, menthol and toasted spice. med-full bodied, soft firm mouth coating tannins, good acidity level, wonderful balance & harmony, ripe black cherries and dark berries couched in bright acidity and chewy, long finish. can further age 8-10 years.
Disappointing showing. Dark purple, ruby color, but very restrained on the nose and palate. Decanted for an hour, it improved with time, but never really opened. Tight and lean, with some green notes. Perhaps this will soften and open with time, but not great on this tasting.
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Decanted for about an hour. Really lovely. Fragrant with blackcurrant still to the fore but with interesting earthy notes just behind. Tannins are nicely resolved and the finish is long and luscious with a reminder of all the flavours that greeted the nose.
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Decanted an hour. This was very good, still a little young, but very good. Dark fruits, earth, and still a bit of tannin on the finish but with some air this can be enjoyed now and is very good with food, but should improve with another few years of age. A-
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I am hoping this was just a bad bottle. It was sucky and disjointed. Super astringent. Poured down the drain. Need a mouth rinse to get it out of my thoughts. Yuck! Worst wine of the night. It may be my lowest scored wine of the year. 70 points
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cheers - superb, so enjoyable with Christmas dinner and the family, a great experience. Decanted for 90 minutes, not too much sediment. A great bottle.
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More expressive nose than earlier bottles (last year), with earth and tobacco in addition to the usual blackcurrant. Drinking really well, with just a 20 minute decant at Hamilton Grill
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Another outstanding experience. Fresh and intense, dominated by black currants and black berries, cedar wood. The whole experience is sublime and the wine is very similar to the Margaux -96, but with a less refined and shorter finish. Hence it gets a 96 rather than a 98-99
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A highly enjoyable wine from St. Estephe. Nose was initially a bit closed down, showing mostly dark fruit and green pepper. After decanting 3 hours, it opened up into an intense array of ripe red fruits, mineral, earth, tobacco, and a hint of cigar. Palate was impressive, with a nice attack and silky mid-palate. Round tannins well-integrated. Long finish that lingers nicely. This is a very well-structured wine, right in its prime drinking window. I can't imagine it getting much better, but if stays this way, I wouldn't complain. I expect at least 5+ years, maybe longer. Drink or hold. Excellent+.
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Nice dark rich dense black cherry quality. A big boy wine with everything turned up a bit, but still in balance. Nice black spices and long finish. Just entering early part of drinking window and still moving in quality. Recommended.
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2nd of 12, hour decanted, perfect fill, in August 2012 completely closed, but now - deepish garnet, youthful purple rim on decanting, attractive nose with primary flavours of blackcurrant and earth dominant, whiff of cedar and tobacco, med/full and very long, persistent and surprisingly complex. Still a baby and should score higher than present fine plus (18/20).
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Mini-Montrose Vertical - 1973, '85, '94, '95, '96 (Nicolas Restaurant, Teck Lim Street, Singapore): A bit more open than the previous bottle, but still way too young and really quite hard to gauge. It was decently good on the night, but nothing more – a surprise given how solid some of the other leading 1996 St Estephes that I have had have been. This was very funky on first pour, with barnyardy scents that took some time to blow off, revealing in its stead a big, rich nose of ripe cassis and sweet berries wed to wet earth and herb, menthol and toasted spice - the biggest, most modern bouquet amongst the five vintages, but still very nice. With time though, those big, blowsy aromas calmed down beautifully, and a meatier, almost gamey twang started taking the fore from amidst the dark fruit. Very promising. The palate was a little shift in gear. It was clearer and fresher than the big nose would suggest, with ripe black cherries and dark berries couched in bright acidity and chewy, slightly mouthcoating tannins. It was the richest and deepest of the wine, certainly the most primary, but still very nicely balanced and a structured. It was backward and still quite simple compared to the other wines though. The finish had a good bit of length, lingering on the backpalate with a little dusting of bittersweet herb and a kiss of wood spice, but still seemed very tight. Way too young I think, and this is not going to dramatically improve fast - it will probably take a long, slow glacial path towards maturity and, hopefully, more easy drinking. At the moment, clearly a wine with some quality, but lacking somewhat in charm. Try again in 6-8 years’ time.
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Started tight as a drum with but loosened up after a couple hours in the decanter. Decidedly black fruited with a deep, iron-like minerality and a touch of green pepper. Cool and fresh on the palate with fine tannins that relaxed their grip with air, but this maintained a classic BDX posture even as it got silkier and more inviting the longer it stayed open. In a great spot now, with the structure and stuffing to go much longer into what will no doubt be an exciting tertiary phase.
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Had it at the Blantyre in Lenox, MA. Very impressed with their outstanding cellar. Served from a half bottle. Very dark, almost inky color, it looks surprisingly young. Nose is intense, and very classic Bordeaux. Tobacco, cassis and cedar. In the mouth it exhibits a lot of power with sweet tannins, and so much complexity and depth. An extremely well integrated and balanced claret. It is drinking beautifully now, and would keep providing enormous pleasure for many more years.
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Great aroma coming off this as I poured it into the decanter. Sat for one hour. Tobacco on the nose. Menthol and cassis framed a nice start but an acidic finish marred this
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Outstanding wine! I liked it so much (and its QPR) that I bought another case that came up at Christies a few weeks back. I am so pleased I did. Pnp, and it's ready for business. The nose is dominated by fresh Cassis, some cedar wood and notes of forest floor. It is intense on the palate, with black currants and sour cherries dominating. But it's the structure that gets you; the balance is outstanding despite it being powerful! The finish is long, but I have had longer. Still, it is one of the better wines I have ever had.
Medium+ body. Classic flavors and aromas. Early maturity with some slight secondary characteristics emerging. 3rd consistent bottle recently. PnP is no problem.
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Full nose of tabacco leather and ripe plum. Surprisingly fruity on the palate. The wine feels fresh and younger than its age. Very silky and the fruit is great. Long finish although light.
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Dark ruby color. Cassis and tobacco. Classic claret, and lovely. Well-integrated tannins, but lots of depth. Once again, I preferred this over the '96 Calon Segur served after two bottles of this one. Very nice against the rib roast and au gratin potatoes.
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Quite a surprise, opened and ready to go. In the recent past this has always done better after a couple of hours. Great nose and cigar box tastes, but not as rich as the last case. This was bought from a London merchant in 2004 and I regret it. The previous case was bought en primeur and so, so much better. I still like the wine but I dont love it and I suspect at some stage it was stored poorly. The wine was brick coloured and a little metallic and thin and did not get any better. I think I have a poor example, the previous tastings had been better and promised even more.
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Pnp as was in a hurry. Very deep Bordeaux nose of black currants and graphite. Quite a lot of power in the mouth, cassis and cherries, and with superb length and balance. Will drink most of this tomorrow so letting it slow-ox over night and will then decant in the morning for a lunch with friends moving to NYC. Will be interesting to see if it fades like DougLee's note before me says... not a chance it seems to me now but we will see. Score 96 at least now. Day 2: Thankfully this was just as glorious now as I thought it would be, powerful, structured, lot's of fruit but a tannic and acidic structure that assures on longevity. Stick with score 96.
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Decanted and brought to friend's house. Had been in the decanter for 2.5 hours prior to serving. Bricky garnet color. Nose was wonderful: cassis, cedar, red currant, mulberry, pine forest. Palate was less forthcoming and showed mostly dried currant fruit, smoothed tannins, and lower acidity. Satin texture. Short finish with some astringency at the end. Bottle and cork were in truly pristine shape. Unclear what happened. Tasted much better right after opening than after the decant.
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this is outstanding. wonderful structure supported by ripe, softening tannins reveal layers of flavour. this is claret as it should be but so rarely is
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this is now showing its true class. a sensational wine with lovely cigar box and lead pencil notes. great mid palate and the aftertaste goes on and on. lots of life left in this!
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Although it has taken time, this forever-youthful Montrose is now showing enough maturity to give more than a hint of its greatness. The pristinely-cellared bottle was kindly served by M.B. at a walk-around wine and food party. Still opaque red in color, it now sports an intense and complex nose of dried herbs, coriander, currants, tar and leather. The wine is full-bodied on the palate, with medium acidity, generous sweet tannins and well-integrated alcohol. The flavors are similar to the nose and persist nicely throughout the middle palate and lengthy finish. This structured wine has entered its drinking phase and should provide immense pleasure for many years to come. Drink now-2030.
My Birthaday Party: Family, Friends, Food and Wine !!! (My home): Deep color. Leather and herbs in the nose. Still quite hard and lots of tannings. It still needs some time to find its balance but it is getting there. Long yet elegant and powerful. Wait another 3-5 years for another 1-2 points.
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Truly outstanding! One of the two-three best wines I have ever had. Bottle opened 24h before consumption and a thimble poured off the give it a little more access to oxygen. Very dark almost inky colour. Nose is intense of berries and cedar, not much of the typical left-bank earth/dank cellar aroma. On the palate it has all the typical left bank attributes of black currants, cherries, cedar, hints of gravel and tobacco and so the balance is excellent but it is the intensity that really gets you, as well as the length - wow, it's so powerful but without being heavy. I need to buy more of these.
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a truly delightful wine. lots of blackberry fruit and lead pencil on the nose. fantastic intensity on the palate with lovely cigar box flavours. lovely structure and plenty of sweet tannins imply a very long life
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Montose Dinner (89, 90, 95, 96, 99, 00, 01, 05) Plus Others: My first go at the '96, and what a stunner. Beautiful nose with clean red fruit, dried herbs, leather and more. Equally great on the palate with a big burst of flavor that expands out over the whole palate. Packed with fruit but perfectly balanced. Great long finish. Pure pleasure and in a really great place right now.
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This was a total standout, head turner in a fascinating six vintage verticle of great Montrose. Tasted along side the 89,90,95,96,99, 01 and 05 this was, for me, the most complete and most exciting wine of the night. At age 17 it is in an almost perfect place and yet has some potential for further heights over the next 3-5yrs if well stored. This btl and the already ethereal '05 were my two favs by a decent margin. I rank them in this order of preference for my palate 96,05,95,90,89,01,99. The 96 was focused with terrific depth in the vibrant fruit riding on a velvety texture. The elegant, weightless, Chambolle like '05 may end up the bettter wine in the long haul but the 96 is the one to own and drink right now if you can find one in good shape. The 05, if you have time is, probably the safer buy from a provenance standpoint but will need another 5-10yrs to really strut its stuff. I'd love to own the 96 and 05 both! Others liked the 89,90 better but, for me, they seemed a tad more evolved than I prefer. What a happy task to nit pic the 89/ 90 vs the 96/ 05. Life is good in my world!
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My introduction to Montrose was the 1990 - what a stonker! At one point it was a RP 100/100. So I bought six of the 96 and this was the last bottle. My old notes were very complimentary and this is no exception. Colour still deep, Bordeaux nose of cedar wood, blackcurrants and spices, continuing onto the palate to give rich long taste. Perfect balance. WoFW 17.5/20
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Rett fra flasken masse lær, litt krydder og modne bær som minner meg litt om de får i Château Musar. Fortsatt de klassiske kjennetegnene med jordlige toner og aske. I munnen samme som på nesen, hvor det er en del mer spice enn tidligere viner, fin syrlighet, modne lyse bær. Ikke et tanninmonster. Med luft kommer brett frem, men bare i en mengde som jeg mener gir økt kompleksitet. Fin fylde i anslag, dyp og mørk frukt mot sol- og skogsbær, flott syre. Bra lengde 93p. Dag to, etter en natt i åpen flaske. Ristet kaffe og mørk sjokolade på nesen. I munnen fin frukt, som går mot den samme mørke moccaen som så mange av vinene har hatt. Litt endimensjonal. Bedre den første dagen.
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The bottle was opened late the previous day and about two-thirds full when I was offered a pour. Bright, red color in the glass, lots of floral notes on the nose, mostly ripe, black cherry fruit on the nose, very aromatic for a Chateau Montrose, with a touch of earth, dust, cedar, cigar box, and spice, more of the same on the palate, a touch disappointing after the aromatics to me, still a lovely wine to sip, hints of almost fully resolved soft tannins on the aftertaste, medium/big body, medium/long finish, tasted three pours over forty-five minutes.
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Returning to Wine & View Bar; 1/23/2013-2/1/2013 (Vaanta Airport - Helsinki): Stronger than last Leoville in every sense: Deep-coloured, less ethereal aromas and definitively heavier on the palate. More masculine, more St. Estephe. After all, this chimney wine was delicious also mainly for that stony notes, nose and palate, both. It has a long life ahead so I'm rethinking what to do with that Lynch Bages of the same vintage that is sleeping in my cellar Perhaps an outstanding serious bottle but it isn't after that marvellous Leoville-Barton. Maybe too much serious for my mood today. Btw avoid that perfect marinated salmon tapa. Please save it. Don't do as I did.
Más fuerte que el último Leoville en todos los sentidos: De color profundo, de menos aromas etéreos y claramente más pesado en boca. Más masculino, más St. Estephe. Después de todo, este vino a chimenea estaba delicioso y lo era principalmente por esas notas a piedra tanto en nariz como en boca, ambos. Tiene una larga vida por delante y estoy repensando qué hacer con mi Lynch Bages de esa misma añada que duerme en mi bodeguita. Una botella seria fuera de lo común quizás pero no después de esa maravillosa Leoville Barton Puede que demasiado sería para mi estado de ánimo de hoy. Por cierto sáltate esa buena tapa de salmón marinada con esto. No como yo hice.
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Expected a little more from this sleeping giant. Pleasing creamy dark fruit on the tongue but increasingly smothered by pencil and wet wood.
Deep purple colour, not as much aroma as hoped. Obviously classy and very solidly structured, still a sense of heaviness pervaded throughout this one. Time had better improve or at least wake up the last two bottles.
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Deep, black-red. Big, classic nose, loads of red & black fruit, earth & cedar. Now quite soft, long finish, I'd say this is now on its plateau of peak maturity and will be so for a good while. Great wine & value (in those days...)
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Turkey day selection. Consistent with 1/12 notes, still very young. Excellent tobacco, cedar, currant on nose. Slightly better than last bottle, raising score a point.
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2 bottles tried on different days the last fortnight. Both decanted two hours before tasting. Great nose with chocolate. In the past this wine has all been in the nose but now the wine is starting to show its quality and follow through. Quite delicious!
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Sensual alluring nose of sexy cocoa Horse leather , light roasted chestnuts and black burnt violets. Crushed plums , black satsuma plums, sweet yet enticing savory berries. A really savory sweetness on the wine with an ovehanging funkiness prevailing
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Guy's Night Out at Shunjuu (Extra Space / Shunjuu, Robertson Quay): A good enough wine, but severely disappointing for what it is. Popped and poured and served blind, it was really clenched and a little underwhelming when first opened, really only showing better after a couple of hours in an open bottle. I must say that it did have a wonderful nose even from the get go though - really heady stuff, redolent with plums and blackberries, tobacco and spice, twists of roasted green capsicum and lush foresty aromas - a seriously enchanting bouquet. The palate was not quite as pleasant sadly. It reminded me a bit of the 1990 in its brett-iness, but not quite in terms of quality. On first taste, it strangely had a lot more funk and mud than the nose, almost barnyardy on the attack, with a lot more leather and green capsicums at the forefront before some cool black fruit flavours emerged, ran through by slightly raspy tannins at the finish. It was a bit short at first too, only opening up with time into a tobacco-filled length. Thankfully, it softened and rounded-up, fleshing out nicely with time, so that it got much better, even showing little signs of the sappy purity of the 1996 vintage in its burgeoning cassis flavours. However, even at its very best, I felt it always remained a bit fleeting and unconvincing on the finish, with the currently tough tannins taking their toll as well. I think this will come good, but it does need a lot of time yet. I am sitting on my few bottles for at least another 5 years.
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A well known wine critic, his name escapes me (yeah right!), once called this a "heckuva wine." I could not agree more. This is firing on all cylinders with a tank of nitrous in reserve. A big, bold , brick wall of an adolescent St. Estephe. Huge nose of iron, beef blood, green pepper (that subsides), tobacco, graphite, black cherry, cassis, and pencil. Wow! Palate ups the ante with incredible richness and delineation of the above flavors. This really is a masculine wine. Still some tannin to sort, I see nothing but upside with this wine. It will not equal the amazing 1989, but this puppy is a complete winner! 95+ Pts
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Bordeaux night at Matt's (with wives) (Matt's house): This smells amazing right out of the gate, but was closed until the second or third hour of the dinner, at which point it opened huge. Graphite, intense minerality, unsweeted cocoa powder, and some stink. Was great by the fourth hour.
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i do not havt my notes but this bottle was a dissapointment based on expectations. it i very possible that this bottle was an "off" bottle or that marginal storage at some point contributed to the poor showing.
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Really hitting its straps now. Secondary notes of leather and tobacco but smooth and elegant with it. Has been worth the wait and sense there is still more to come.
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Non-blind. Opened the bottle evening before, no decanting. Nose gave a promising albeit young impression with some oak. On the palate it was a ti-TANNIC wine with highly concentrated juicy qualities and some evidence of beginning maturity. Powerful acids like a sleek sports car that is not overly easy to appreciate for all people. Well structured for the longer haul. Throughout the evening, it slowly opened up. By the last glass, the tannins had become reduced and the mature aromas could play somewhat more freely over the tongue. Cork was perfect! Wine was too early for our tastes. Will leave the next bottle for 7-10 years.
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The Impromptu '96 Horizontal (Mine, Hong Kong): Decanted and drank over 4 hours. Beautiful nose from the start - interestingly, a little funky but perfumed, with a cherry and cassis lift. Balanced acidity and tannin on the palate - not great depth or body but fine. Quite ready now. After 4 hours in glass this was still good - very smooth and balanced.
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St. Estephe night. Quite young compared to other wines at the table. Despite being only 6 years from the '90, seemed like a decade in terms of maturity. Nose had more in common with the Cos, more black cherries, cedar, plums. Palate had very thick black fruits, expresso, leather. Still tannic finish, needing obvious time. Is this going the same direction as the '70?
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St. Estephe Night (Home of Mike and Sandra O.): So youthful compared to the other Montrose. Never decanted but followed over several hours. Expressive nose from the get go, with definite barnyard funk, black currants and espresso. Palate was sharply define, quite tannic, but lush dark fruit, mild bell pepper and a tannic dry finish than hangs on the palate with a cedar and espresso edge. This is really put together nicely, but will need another decade to soften based on the other wines in this tasting.
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Decanted for about 2.5 hours. Nice dark brick-red color. Nose was full of peat, black currant, cedar, and forest floor after popping the cork, then turned quite funky and foul after about an hour in the decanter. Later the nose reverted to deeply-pitched red currant along with cedar and underbrush. Tasted after the long decant, the palate exhibited a soft attack with low acidity but also lots of tobacco, red currant, and smoky backberry notes which deepened as time went on. More grip developed at the end of each sip, with a feathery finish of forest floor, sweet plum, and tobacco. Tannins quite burnished. Lovely wine, beautiful in its balance of elegance and persistence. From a 375.
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This has all the flavors I look for in Bordeaux, and complexity by the boatload, but it seems a little too austere for me. I wanted just a hint more body. Great concentration, drinking well.
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Decanted for 3 hours. Fruity nose with blackberry, tobacco, spice, and leather notes. Medium-to-full bodied. Blackberry with integrated tannins on the mid-palate. Medium length, dry finish. Paired well with roast duck.
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Dekanterad två timmar. Mycket parfymerad doft. Röda bär, vegetation, örter, vanilj, bittermandel, jord och ek. Mer platt än förväntat men ändå ett mycket bra vin och typisk Bourdeauxblend. Saknar lite kraft och är mer silkig och elegant än explosiv.
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Welcoming Craig C to DC - Marks duckhouse Part 1 (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): Barry mentioned that the fruit is not too sweet and I agree. This is a classic 96 and a classic Montrose. Incredibly perfumed nose, crushed blue and black berries, cedar, earth and etc. Excellent concentration with the structure to last. The nose reminded me the 89. A great showing and open for business. Pop and pour.
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Crimson in colour. Really lively nose, cranberries and crushed berries. Medium to full bodied, has lots going on - really concentrated, some dark fruit, smoked ham, and finishes long with some well balanced chunky tannins. Remains well balanced throughout and great texture - very refreshing. Lovely wine.
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Mature Left Bank Bordeaux (semi blind) (Wijnantiquariaat Amsterdam): Ripe accessible - red fruit, chocolate and herbs in the nose. Powerful, again herbs, chocolate, kirsch and mineral notes. Also secundary tones as leather and wood. Integrated tannins and substance for a long future. Really pleasant wine, in a similar style as 1989 Montrose.
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Decanted and consumed over 2 hours. Graphite, black pepper, leather, dark earth and sweet black friit on the nose. Still quite young on the palate, with persistent tannins but really nice sappy black fruit, mint and leather. Just starting to come into its drinking window and will only improve with age. Outstanding.
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Man, this wine is right in my wheelhouse. Great nose of pencil lead, dark fruit, just the right amount of earth (of the wet variety). Palate is delish plum/deep berry fruit, some minerality and nice balanced finish, altho a little "too elegant" for the Cali-whores I was drinking with. Just one more example where '96 SOOOOo eclipses '95. How could Parker and WS got the vintages so wrong? Every '95 I've had lately tastes watery and next-to-no secondary characteristic. Buying as much '96 as possible.
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After minimal decanting this was already opening up nicely. Beautiful flowers, dark berry, dried fruit, smoke and crushed stone on the nose. A great interplay of minerality and fruit on the palate, slightly austere. 30 second finish with the tannins already having integrated well and taking a back seat. After another 2 hours this started to shut down slightly or simply wore off. Thats part of the reason that this wine does not achieve a 95+ score, but has the elegance and complexity that left me returning to the glass time again. It was also the most popular wine of that evening. Formidable!
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Crushed stone, tobacco, cassis, spice, cigar box, earth and barnyard aromas are found with only a little swirling. The nose is the best part of this Bordeaux wine. Full bodied, powerful, tannic and with an austere leaning, this vintage of Montrose is more of an old school style of St. Estephe. The wine was produced from a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.
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Double decanted off sediment back into the cleaned bottle and re-corked for ~4 hours. No formal notes taken. Leather and some high toned red fruit. Medium-full bodied with great acids, gentle tannins, that reminds me of pinot-finesse. Spicy, lengthy finish again not lacking acid. More of a "classic" styled Bordeaux with some bottle age. Can be enjoyed now.
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Decanted for 3 hours. Rudy red color. Blackberry, black currants, tobacco, leather, and spice aromas and flavors. Medium bodied. Blackberry and velvet smooth tannins on the mid-palate. Good acidity and a long aftertaste. Paired well with lamb.
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Still extremely young. Saddle leather and smoke on the nose with flint and morel. A bit thin but showing deep black fruit with richness and density that will quite obviously round out and gain weight. Very enjoyable and light on it's feet. In a word, Sophisticated. Give it 10 years and this will be fantastic.
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I don't mind a little brett, but this had bottle had been used to shampoo a horse and then rebottled. Unfotrunate, because you could sense the blackberry fruit, white pepper and tobacco notes were there along with elegant texture and tannins that were starting to resolve, but the brett overwhelmed everything. A lovely 96 Mondavi Reserve outclassed this bottle.
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Purple royal full-bodied and beautifully balanced - a great mid palate with rich and luscious fruit, sweet tannin, and Smucker's black current make this North Carolina toasty tobacco, multi-dimensional marvel much better than many give it credit for. A finish to dream about.
Papi Birthday Dinner (The Papies, London): From magnum. Opened 2 hours ahead but no decanting and does not need it. On open the wine had a beautifull elegant nose which unfortunately died off a bit towards the end. Ina way for us a tipical of the avg Montrose vintages, leads with nose bt the body fails to match the level of sophistication (hence a 92+ and not a 95). Still very elegant and hard not to like especially if you are bordeaux fan like us. Could use some more density on the palate but away from that a beautifull bottle. A bit of burgandian feel to it if we might add. Drink now and do not decant. 92+
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Double magnum purchased from a UK wine merchant and stored the last 5 years. Opened for Thanksgiving in Amsterdam (brought the celebration back to the original Pilgrim hosts). Partially double decanted 3 and 1 hours prior to dinner. Fantastic wine, and one of my favorite typical St. Estephe's. Much younger than the last 2 '96's I've had out of the bottle. Sweet, balanced, elegant, lots of minerals, like chewing on an iron bar. Some spice and smoke and a nice long finish. Went quite well with the Turkey, stuffing and assorted spiced veggie dishes. With 14 at dinner, it went quickly.
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Not as memorable as 2 years ago. Just seemed rather closed - maybe not long enough decant. Earth and leather, musty, darker fruits, relatively balanced but with a sense the fruit never really opened. Was enjoyable but not epic.
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I keep reaching for more with this wine-- hoping it will get to that next level-- but it never seems to get there. This evening was no different. It is an interesting wine, which evolved in the glass throughout the course of the evening. A musty aroma at the outset that blew off quickly. Deep ruby color, lightening at the rim. Earthy, spicy, shitty. A classic St. Estephe. It merits some extra points for its complexity and layers, but in the end it hits a wall. It is a good but not great wine. It'll last for at least another decade but I don't see it getting any better. Notwithstanding the sort of negative tone of this note, I nonetheless in the end enjoyed this wine, it is an "interesting" effort, a fun wine to analyze.
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Deep purple with slight clearing to rim. Restrained but pleasant nose. Earth and leather predominate over flagging fruit. Soft, resolved tannins. Not a blockbuster Montrose but drinking very nicely now.
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In a great place. Open, aromatic and aristocratic structure. Very impressive, and obviously a well-stored bottle from auction. And very clean (no brett at all!). Drink now to 2025.
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aging nicely with lighter tannins, balanced fruit, and a mix of spices like nutmeg. There was a little chalkiness in the finish but all agreed that the wine was probably peaking.
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No official notes taken and no score given. Popped and poured. Clear, burgundy to brick red. Nose was mature with earth and dried fruit notes. The palate was smooth! It continued the earth and dried berry fruit notes picking up some oak or cedar. Just awesome! Easily an A.
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Kelvin's Bachelor Nite Dinner (Braise): Exotic scented incense, old world spices, dark fruited and a peppering of talcum powder. Layered mouthfeel of rich medium bodied black currants framed by fine cow leather. Long licourice-tinged finish that lingers attractively. Nicely rounded tannins , this is drinking at the start of its peak now.
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An extra year has improved this. Still the stinky nose on opening but didn't last. Nose became reticent but there were earthy notes, some leather and tobacco. Very well integrated and balanced which reall. Stood out and overall a very good wine leaving me wanting to open more.
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I've been eager to try this wine for a while and last night's dinner at my house was the perfect occasion. A good wine but nothing to write home about. Nose very earthy, tar, leather, hints of cigar box but overshadowed in the first hour by le poopoo nose which balances out after 3 - 4 hours between decanting and time in the glass. Good attack on the palate but a very one-dimensional wine, shy in fruit but nice smooth tannins and decent finish. Would like to try the Cos D'Estournel of the same vintage so I can fully rate / compare this wine.
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Nose of blackcurrent, tar, cigarbox, liquorice and soil. In the mouth, flavours of cigarbox, tar and liquorice. the wine is extremely powerfull with a distinctive masculine character. Strongly built tannins have the potential to last several more decades. The wine is concentrated and extremely balanced, but still a bit tight and below its potential.
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very earthy yet bold fruit on the nose, a bit tannic on the tongue at first but then opened up after an hour and felt a bit softer...went well with rigatoni sausage/tomatoes/artichokes...feel like this will still be good for 5-6 more years at least.
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Elegant and with the typical St Estephe complexity. However, a bit subdue and refine as to not representing the hot year which is known for full and powerful wines. Very enjoyable with light dishes. Drink now-2015.
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dark purple, a bit reserved nose, thick palate weight, packed with fruit, and still not yet at it's peak. Enjoyavle enough to drink now, but hold until 2012.
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Although this is one of my favorite wines in all of France....this vintage has disappointed me in the several times I have tired it. Opened last night and decanted for over an hour, but still the wine was out of balance. The fruit (the little that there was), was covered up by the dry, very dry, earthy taste. The wine seems to lack the structure of the many other Montrose vintages. This wine seemed to be somewhat of a lightweight in all areas but earthyness. The last glass....3 hours from opening, tasted marginally better than the others, but maybe I was just used to the dry taste by then. I will try to decant this for 3 hours the next time I open one.
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Showed very well. Decanted for 45 minutes. Beautiful nose. Classic Bordeuax. Will keep fopr some time, but you will not feel guilty about opening these now. Am going to buy a few more.
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Montrose vertical (Dylan Prime, NYC): Smooth, dense and serious with some dark notes. Still needs some time. Will blossom nicely but not ready yet. Dry tannic finish. This has a darker profile than the 1995.
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There’s a little band aid brett that mutes a somewhat expressive nose of cedar and cassis. It is rich and meaty in the mouth with good density and a nice vein of underlying minerality. It does breathe up to show some nice florals and perfumes, needs a bit more time.
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a night at michael (michael, winnetka IL): nose: this is just classic montrose and right up the alley of many 96s that I've had. It's just pure northern medoc bordeaux in its most unadulterated form with loads of cedar, leather, black cherries, rich cassis tones, and a touch of barnyard to bring it back home
taste: great full bodied feel with a good amount of cedar, black cherries, leather, sour cranberry, a touch of animal hides and some black currants. Good tannins and is starting to show really well for such a young montrose
overall: a classic montrose with a really good full body. This has miles to go before it hits its full stride, but its starting to drink great right now
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Casual dinner at Michael (WINNETKA IL): Over achiever of the night. Typical tells of great vintages of Montrose. More in the style of the 1990 than say the 1989. Nose of truffles, horse and rich animal fur, red and dark fruits and good wood. Surprisingly lush and smooth in the mouth with decent balance. This wine was one of the better 1996s I have had and was really enjoyable.
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Very silky and mineral with green tobacco, powdered earth, red cherry, cassis and violets. Sweet fruit and some remaining (though not obtrusive) chalky tannin. Lengthy finish with plenty of grip again. Give it a solid 5+ years to develop yet though. Lots of upside.
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Montrose Vertical Blind 1 hoiur decant everybody thought this a brett bomb I will admit it was different than the rest, but i DID NOT think it was off my notes said this was f-ing great, bretty and funk some of the classic montrose but with big extract and huge sugar cherry taste did not behave properly later in the evening - so maybe the others were correct I would not notice if i opened it on it's own
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Decanted for 1 hour but still had stinky nose. This faded to reveal some earth and later smoke. Started poor but came round which suggest it needs more time.
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A deep nose of tobacco and cassis belie a fairly bitter, tannic, chalky wine that probably needs another 5-10 years to really open up, although out in the glass for an hour improved the wine a bit.
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Decnated for two hours. Deep ruby color. Pure cassis on the nose along with toast, tobacco, graphite, and leather. The cassis repeats on the palate with tobacco and leather. Still hard as nails with a tight tannic finish. Let the rest sleep for at least 10 years.
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UK Wine Pages - Chateau Montrose Vertical (Le Colombier, Kensington, London.): Deep, pure cassis fruit on the nose, markedly more open than the 95 without, as yet, the complexity of the 94. Deep, sleek and balanced across the palate, with tobaccoey black fruit and soil notes on an extended finish. ***(*1/2)
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At first this seemed a little shrill and I'm still wondering if it wasn't a perfect bottle. It eventually opened up to the point where it was enjoyable to drink but never really reached the heights that I expected it to reach.
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Sweet blackfruits, cedar oak, pain grille and slightly leafy notes on the nose. Full, dense , close-knit palate with excellent purity, full but fine tannins and a long finish. Best from 2010.
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1996 Bordeaux Horizontal (Custom House): Medium nose of black fruit and pencil lead. Tight tannic black fruit with lots of stuffing, but big tough tannins as well. Needs a lot of time to shine.
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French wines 1996 tasting (DTV): Nose of dark soil and earthy ripe dark berries. Not giving much away. The taste has dark berries, dark cherry, blackcurrant and lots of bitter dark chocolate and tobaco. Lots of power in the tannins, very tight, but big structure and nice complexity.
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Decanted in wide open decanter from cold cellar at 17:30. Took a sip: promising. Nice berry fruit, good acidity, seems to have come out of it tannic shell. Let's see how this evolves over the course of the evening. After a few hours in the decanter this became somewhat better integrated, with a nice balance between fruit, spices, acidity and tannins. However, it is clear this has still more potential and is only just at the start of its ideal drinking window.
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Another great bottle and it followed on the heels of a 97 Rubicon and held up quite well. Hints of berries and a bit of spice, with anise and more fruit on the palate with a great finish.
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Stern, upright, austere. Less bottom than I expected, though it might just be masked by the strong tannins and sharp top notes of acidity. Needs age. Nose and palate contain the characteristic lush St Estephe center of velvet fruit (cherry, blackberry) and pepper (black and red), but these are upstaged at this point. Opened significantly after 3+ hours in decanter, bringing fruit and pepper forward somewhat.
A very interesting contrast to previous evening's Cos d'Estournel of same vintage, which was far more approachable (see note).
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Opened at 55 degrees and let it sit for 30 mins while it slowly came up to room temp as we prepared dinner. It has that big, earthy, St. Estephe nose with notes of the dark fruit still in the background. Dark ruby color with no signs of showing its relatively young age at this point. Medium bodied and very dry with mocha and tobacco mixed with subtle dark fruits. The finish is quite long and still a little tannic. Perhaps a couple of hours in the decanter is a good idea for the next bottle. Went very well with New York steak off the grill and sun-dried tomato and garlic fettucini.
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Cedar and earthy notes add to the dark fruit. Elegant yet still some classic St Estephe muscle and excellent length. We didn't finish many of the 33 bottles on day 1 but this was drinking so well...
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Heat damaged or otherwise off. Still showed earth/iron/blood/funk but basically bitter and fruitless. Will try another from this batch soon as this is completely unlike a previous bottle.
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Toronto Offline at Reds with Ian Darshan Cauble: Similar to the 1995 nose, just ramped up a bit showing tobacco and dark fruit. The palet was very tight, as can be expectd, it just has a bit more of everything than the 1995. Will go a lot further. Lots of tannins. I found the wine very distinctive, unlike the Cos, the sterness of St Estephe that let's you know it is Montrose.
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This is, admittedly, not my style of wine. There was a bunch of brett-like smell on the initial nose, but most of this blew off after decanting. The fruits were dark. There was some cedar shavings, maybe some sage, and an earthy component. It's a good wine for those who like this style - anybody want to buy the rest of mine?
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Tight nose that eventually revealed strawberry and damp soil. I tasted this on opening, 2 hours, 8 hours, and 24 hours and each time there were astringent, mouth coating tannins with minimal fruit that progressed to an acidic finish that never really softened. I won't open another for a few years.
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Opened 3 hrs and left in bottle. Deep ruby red, very fine and quite large nose, extremely smooth mouthfeel with lots of fruit, licorice, smokiness/tar/leather flavors, nice complexity. Finishes decently long and notably smooth.
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The 3 Tenors of Saint Estephe (Calon, Cos & Montrose): 1982, 1990, 1995, 1996 & 2000 (New York City, NY): Wine No. 1 (1996 Montrose) Dark ruby with amber hues. Nose of earth, spice and black cherry. Medium to full bodied with obvious tannin that is not harsh. Finish was earthy and medium in length. It had the most evoled color and nose of this flight. I guessed this was Cos and missed. 91 points . I did not write down the group voting in this flight.
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My choice for wine of the Flight. Dark ruby red with a touch of garnet showing up at the rim. Rich seamless nose of slightly roasted cassis showing excellent balance. In the mouth, a vigorous fruit-driven attack followed by mouth-coating fine tannins on the finish. Big step up here from Flight 1.
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An even, slightly young colour. Earthy, mushroomy nose. Very lovely palate. But fades very quickly in the mouth. I know this is verging on the heretical, but I find this a bit average.
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Tasted at the California Wine Experience, NY "Top Ten Tasting" Same dark color as Cos d'Estournel, but has much more fruit: it almost jumps out of the glass. Quite forward. On palate round and forward, quite pleasant. To evolve into a great wine it needs to open up and reveal considerable more grace, fruit and charm. Will it be able to do that?
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3/3/2024 - cypra Likes this wine: 94 Points
Touch of brick red, nose ripe plum and blue berries, herbs, cedar, a little bit of smoke of wood. Very balanced and integraterd. Long finish. I expect not no further improvement, but still a long life a head.
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3/2/2024 - Fatty Cat wrote: 95 Points
Early Mar 2024, Rheingau Gourmet Festival, rarity diner “25 vintages of Chateau Montrose”: according to the sommelier double decanted for up to 3 hours; deep crimson color; rich bouquet of coffee, cherries, and herbs; open and round, ethereal like texture; medium/light body.
Vintages of flight II:
1975 - 1986 - 1989 - 1990 - 1991 - 1994 - 1996
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2/24/2024 - MC wrote:
Decanted an hour before dinner and enjoyed over 3 hours. Perfect cork. Fruit soars from the decanter at open. Dark blue fruit, great secondaries on the nose. On the palate this is ripe and expansive, really enjoyable with and without fruit. If there were the smallest nit it would be a very slight drying on the finish but nothing to complain about. I think I would be drinking this now because the fruit is in such a good place but should hold. A-
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2/15/2024 - DarinC Likes this wine: 94 Points
PnP. Expressive aromas of leather, tobacco, brambly dark fruits and graphite. Fourth consistent bottle out of a well-stored case and they continue to mature and improve. Great balance with a few tannins in reserve. Drinking very well now and should hold for ~10 years.
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12/6/2023 - JulianSkeels wrote: 92 Points
Very pure Cabernet dominated - clean but foursquare, firm and slightly green. Little aromatics, even with air. Just seems to be lacking something. Hopefully will develop more interest with another 5yrs. Drink from 2028. 92-93pts
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11/22/2023 - Jpetrila Likes this wine: 91 Points
Not fully resolved with acid and tannin. Nice finish, not a great wine for me. Palate is nice, not sure it’s really complex, maybe a little plodding. Expected a bit more from vintage/producer I think. Fruit itself is quite nice though - understated and elegant.
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11/18/2023 - Sean Tay Likes this wine: 96 Points
This is an example of how aged Bordeaux should taste like. Pronounced nose intensity with notes of black fruits, smoke, charr wood, toast, spices, vanilla. Medium+ acidity and medium+ tannin. Tannin is integrated. Drink now.
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9/29/2023 - VAGentleman wrote: 94 Points
Refined cherry and blackberry with smoke and cedar notes. Drinking in its prime? Not that compkex, but elegant.
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9/2/2023 - Tao wrote: 95 Points
Majestic nose of creamy, leathery black fruits, wonderful aroma! Dark ruby in colour, a hint of watery rim! The palate is smooth and quite ready to go, peppery, juicy and leathery, with a lengthy finish and still, a little tannic! A beauty!
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7/29/2023 - luHar1423 wrote: 95 Points
If you love powerful tannins, then I got you a good choice. The 1996 Montrose is still young, will need a decade or two in your cellar to tame the fantastic acidity-tannins battle, with still reasonably fresh fruity notes. Missed secondary and tertiary notes on the palate and finish was not too long in my opinion, given other contestants in our blind "Summer of 96 Tasting Events", which surpassed the minute mark by far.
I guess you need to be very patient with this wine in your cellar and as I am not really known for this, but still prefer well aged wines, I am giving a pass on this one too.
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7/22/2023 - bbq_grandcru Likes this wine: 91 Points
Medium body. Heavy sauvage. A little tight after 3 hour decant. Disjointed.
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4/30/2023 - DougLee wrote: 93 Points
Opened 45 minutes prior to service. Opaque rusty garnet. Nose of currant, plum blossom, cedar, and a hint of mint. Layers of pliant red plum, leather, mild streaks of oddly satisfying bulbous green pepper, and stony earth on the satiny palate. Resolved tannin and lower but present acidity. Longer finish of earthy red plum cut with tobacco and earth. Last half bottle, paired with Dijon-slathered lamb rib chops at Van Horn RV Park after chance Blue Origin launch pad sighting.
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4/8/2023 - Winnje Likes this wine: 93 Points
Birthday present, excellent wine, classic Bordeaux, barnyard, gravel, wet saddle, vanilla, it keeps lingering on. Opened slowly, gentle double decanted, little sediment, savoured over the coarse of the evening.
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4/7/2023 - jskuek wrote: 95 Points
Drinking beautifully now ... perfect balance with very long finishing. Superb floral nose, can't stop putting my nose on the glass. Med body with Forest floor, truffle, tobacco, gravels, leather, bamboo shoot. Minerals shown up towards the end after 3 hours in the bottle. An elegant expression of terror, little to non tannins and hint of salinity. Great stuff...
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4/2/2023 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
Youthful appearance.
Nose of damp soil, red currant, cedar, cigar box, and dried black fruit.
On the palate this is medium body, moderate tannin and medium acidity. The fruit seems slightly faded so I am hoping this opens up to reveal something else. It is well balanced and a pleasure to drink now, but there is a touch of bitter espresso on the finish that may resolve with some air.
Drink now and over the next 5+ years.
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3/5/2023 - englishman's claret wrote: 93 Points
This is another example of '96 Montrose showing a bit too much brett for my liking. What's beyond that is an appealing, imposing, rich Montrose with a mix of black and red fruit, saddle, and cedar, pretty much ready for drinking now with a short decant.
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12/31/2022 - Decanting Queen wrote: 96 Points
Last 2 days of 2022 Naples-palooza; 12/30/2022-12/31/2022 (Casa Mark1npt): One of my top 3 wines of the weekend. Thank you Mark for opening. Slow oxed nearly all day but very open by the time I tried it first (had been open and recorked the night before). Then continued to improve with 9 hr slow ox. Spectacular nose, just so beautiful and nuanced. Earty, sweet pipe tobacco, saddle leather red cherries a hint of vanilla and white pepper on the palate. Tannins fading but acid is holding strong, great with our steak dinner.
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12/31/2022 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 95 Points
My 2nd and last bottle of this '96. I was underwhelmed with the first about 21 months ago. This bottle is completely different, so now I am chalking up that experience, to just being an 'off bottle'. Slow ox'd for 3 hours the night before and that alone improved it greatly. Barnyard nose reduced considerably, dark blackish fruit with fresh black tilled soil, too. Gritty tannins smoothed out. Put the cork back in and back into the cellar overnight, until it was slow ox'd another 4-5 hours prior to this evening's NYE Palooza. It also improved further over the other 3-4 hours that we were all eating and sampling it, IMO. There is no mistaking this wine for anything other than a Bdx, and a very good one, at that. The nose is deep and rich and complexly layered with great fruit and perfumed florals. To me, the nose is a 97-98 and while the palate is very good, it plays second fiddle to that nose! The fruit remains dark, as it should, but there's no grit or rough edges. It's smooth and the wine is quite well integrated. Torn between giving this one a 94 and a 95 but the (97-98) nose keeps pushing me toward a 95 overall....so be it!
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12/26/2022 - YvesBasquet wrote: 89 Points
Passed its peak for quite some time now. I was not impressed and won't remember that bottle in a good way.
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11/25/2022 - LWI wrote: 93 Points
BYO og pinnekjøtt; 11/24/2022-11/25/2022: Arketypisk, mye mint, aske og solbær, brukbar fruktsødme, men på den litt strenge siden, en høyreist vin.
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11/19/2022 - englishman's claret wrote: 93 Points
Ibid below but here more brett and a little less articulate
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11/10/2022 - englishman's claret wrote: 94 Points
Another glorious bottle of this in exactly the spot it should be, full of cassis, blackberry, blueberry, cedar, leather, gravel, and ink with a pencilly finish. Classic Montrose, classic Medoc. Beautiful depth and saturation on the palate with an elegance commensurate to its punch. 94-95
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10/22/2022 - tropa56 Likes this wine: 95 Points
PnP. Great wine. Drank before a 2006 Masseto, and while the Masseto was definitely the better wine, I actually preferred this. Drank perfectly. I would say it's definitely in its prime drinking window. A bit on the lighter side which is typical of the vintage. I love 96 BDX. One of my favorite vintages. The Montrose was classic aged Bordeaux. Stoney St. Estephe with pretty fruit, and beautiful earthiness. Smooth tannins. If you come across a bottle it's definitely worth it.
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10/13/2022 - mchern02 wrote: 95 Points
Similar to a few months ago; 2 hour decant
Aromas rise from the glass even without air and evolve over time with dark red berry, tobacco, minerals, cedar and smoked herbs. Penetrating and youthful palate, with grippy acidity, great density, and a long lively finish. In the zone and even better than last bottle a few months ago.
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10/7/2022 - rocknroller wrote: 95 Points
Chateau Montrose: '78, '96, '05 & Champagne (Paris Dining Club, Mpls, MN): Very dark red/purple color. From 3 liter, decanted for an unknown time. Drank a couple glasses over 2 hours plus. Wow this was good, young but very accessible, as you'd expect this just kept getting better and better in the glass. The nose is gorgeous with leather, pencil, red berries, cassis, violets, and damp earth in a developing, encompassing perfume. The palate is full bodied, with excellent depth and power, the core of dark berries, raspberry, and cassis fruits stand out, classic pencil notes, enhanced by the earth, minerality and spices make this shine all the way through to a finish that highlights the soft, almost luxurious tannins. This is a beauty from one of my favorite Bordeaux vintages of the nineties. 95-96pts.
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9/19/2022 - Stefan75 wrote: 91 Points
From Mag, not really convincing fror me this time, good nose but over 2h did not really open-up, a bit tight and dry, lots of sediment despite having stored the bottle vertically for 2 weeks prior drinking.
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6/25/2022 - hnatta16 Likes this wine: 93 Points
- Pale to medium ruby garnet, watery rim, signs of age.
- Cherries and black currant, mocha, coffee, liqourice, souboua, potent loamy soil that is very characteristic of Montrose, dry leaves, slight barn yard, after decanting, more cassis and floral character comes out.
- Classic claret style on the palate, medium bodied, elegant, extremely balanced. Low alcohol, nicely acidic, firm and fine grained tannins still present even after 26 years, extremely long finish. I agree with other reviewers who said that the wine is very early in its drinking window. Wait a few years for tannins to soften and even more complexity.
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6/17/2022 - JonnyG wrote: 93 Points
Another barnyard-affected bottle. This seems to be an every-other-bottle phenomenon of late…
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6/12/2022 - MWiking wrote: 93 Points
Inte lika grym som tidigare flaskor. Har tappat en del frukt,
Riktigt bra från start men dör i glaset
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6/1/2022 - Aris1a Likes this wine: 93 Points
Mocca, white figs, new leather, fresh tobacco, cigar box, hint of smoke. Llicorice and pomegranate on the finish. Medium body, showy tannins. Very nice. Drinking well and showing no signs of age.
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5/28/2022 - Forest Floor Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened an hour ahead, but immediately recorked as nose was ebullient. On the pour, it was such a lovely glass of well-aged bordeaux; lots of cigar box playing through plum and blueberry. I did not detect the blood and iron notes that I sometimes find in this wine; but the midpalate was complex and the finish long. It's just entered its drinking window and surely stay there for a very long time.
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5/25/2022 - mchern02 wrote: 94 Points
1 hour decant; drank next to 1996 LLC
Gorgeous nose on opening with some dark red fruit, smoke, wet tobacco. Good depth and penetration. Complete and delicious
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5/13/2022 - SimonG wrote: flawed
Lots of debate here, but ultimately it does appear to be around 1 or 2/10 TCA. Classic cedar and dry blackcurrant nose, and palate. A little herbal. Is it? Isn’t it? Yes, probably.
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4/12/2022 - Stefano60 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Superbe vin en pleine phase de maturité. Dès l'ouverture, les arômes encore très fruits noirs se diffusent. La robe est d'un joli rubis à peine évolué. Et le passage en carafe plus de deux heures avant la dégustation lui apporte le plus grand bien, les arômes plus complexes de sous bois apparaissent. En bouche, c'est net, onctueux, les tanins sont parfaitement fondus, juste suffisants pour rappeler que l'on est à St Estèphe et s'accomoder du filet de boeuf sauce aux morilles servi avec. Très belle bouteille que je n'attendais pas à ce niveau. Devrait se boire encore plusieurs années mais pourquoi se priver d'un tel plaisir.
Je le place derrière le Pichon Comtesse mais assez largement devant le Ducru Beaucaillou du même millésime dégustés dernièrement.
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3/5/2022 - ccn wrote: 93 Points
(ex-chateau, Oswalds). By far the wine of the night, instantaneously shows incredible precision and tension on the nose. 2 hours in a decanter was just starting to open up -- 3-4 hours would have been better. This wine gave great pleasure but was only entering into the start of its drinking window -- certainly there's 10-20 years to go here.
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3/2/2022 - Burgundy Al wrote: 93 Points
Post-Tasting Bordeaux and Stag's Leap Dinner (Portofino - Chicago IL): Firm when first opened, but an hour in a decanter worked miracles. Black currant and cassis with very good concentration. Clean for Montrose, this was wonderfully balanced, even while still a bit firm.
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1/22/2022 - HowardNZ Likes this wine: 94 Points
1966 – 2010 Château Montrose vertical (Regional Wines, Wellington, NZ): Served single blind, one pour. Varieties: CS 76% | M 20% | CF 3% | PV 1%. The garnet highlights to the dark ruby colour suggested some age. Lovely aromatics, quite expressive and bright. Savoury and fragrant floral notes, with blackcurrants, fresh and dried herbs and slaty minerals. On palate, lots of fresh blackcurrants. Fresh and intense with more acids than expected. I thought first of 1986 then of 1996 acidity. Savoury and earthy, with touches of those freshly cut herbs. Wet granite minerality. Below full-bodied, Englishman’s claret, as this style used to be called. Still with a little of tannic grip to release. A style I like very much although some tasters found the 1996 too astringent. A top quality 1996 Bordeaux on its optimal drinking plateau. Fully open, I would drink by around 2027.
Rankings: Me 8/12 | GK 8/12 | CT 7/12.
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12/31/2021 - StefanAkiko wrote:
This wine behaved like an engine that never really started.
A terrible waste of money, and an underwhelming experience.
Wine does suggest possible foul play and cork supports… So, no official scoring. As this bottle/abomination performed, it was mainly a watered down weak vintage, not the '96 we were expecting to reconnect to. Not bad, quite enjoyable. No faults, but no fireworks, just simply NOT doing anything near what it did last time we had it.
This btl behaved just like a good Château from a weak vintage, as in 1997 or 1991.
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12/30/2021 - melvinyeowq Likes this wine:
End of year dinner: Right in my wheelhouse of classic Bordeaux from yesteryear. Colour was a lovely ruby red that made the wine appear very youthful, a right amount of funk and herbaceousness on the nose without being overbearing. Obvious left-bank Bordeaux but got lucky with the guess on the producer. On the palate, it had vibrant red fruits with some secondary development. Time has rounded out the sharp edges but this has the structure to go on for a long time.
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12/30/2021 - Dibbs Likes this wine: 94 Points
Classic Bordeaux close to maturity. Everything you want in a left bank Bordeaux in a beautiful package. A lot of depth on the palate that I think is only going to improve further with age and time. But this is drinking just great now.
Nose deeply complex, it started with a bit of barnyard but it quickly cleaned up with dark licorice, some florality and a super nice merange of red fruits. The palate clean, deep and almost resolved with substantial length.
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12/24/2021 - mag.ehrnrooth@gmail.com Likes this wine: 96 Points
Simply a fantastic wine - although important to air enough as getting soo much better after few hours … Montrose 💪💪 powerful despite ”only” 12.5% alc by vol!
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12/13/2021 - SimonG wrote: 92 Points
Christmas Claret: Quite a cool, slightly restrained nose. It’s all there though, just in a minor key. Cool mineral edge. More composed than the 95. ****
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11/28/2021 - J_H Likes this wine: 96 Points
Schwarzer Adler 2021 (Schwarzer Adler): - Decanted for 4h (is necessary) @Schwarzer Adler
- Nose: Intense and complex aromas of spice, lots of white pepper, paprika, tomato, typical austere St. Estephe, red fruit (which I always find nice when this comes out in Bordeaux as well) like sour cherry, red plums. But then also a lot of leather and cedar. With time wonderfully beautiful, singing!!!Needs air to show its full potential.
- Palate: medium + tannins that still give a lot of grip are still present but in an opening drinking window. Nice drinkability (acidity medium+) with not too much flab on the hip (medium body). Wow, this Montrose sings. Quite long on the finish. Has more tension than the other Bordeaux (Lalande 2003, Cos d'Estournel 2000, La Mission Haut Brion 1995) tonight!
- 95-96 point fresher with time and a lot better than the others. Can be stored for another + 10 years. Still needs some time (or a lot of aeration) to reach its absolute peak.
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11/27/2021 - La Sprezzatura Likes this wine: 96 Points
Schwarzer Adler 2021 (Schwarzer Adler): decanted for 4h+
tasted side-by-side La Mission Haut Brion 1995
Nose: intensive and dense aromas of tobacco, coffee, graphit, dark fruits which will jump out of the glas right into your face, nice freshness.
palate: grippy, yet velvety tannins, which are also nicely balanced with the acidic backbone. straightforward.
this is what i want from an aged bordeaux. for a 25 years old wine still youthful and fresh, yet complex with loads of layers. this blockbuster can last for another 20+ years, unbelievable.
was unisono nominated as the wine of the night.
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11/27/2021 - Tavastgatan wrote: 94 Points
Very good. Very 96.
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11/7/2021 - tbabes wrote: 97 Points
Double decanted two hours before dinner. Youthful purple core, turning to deep garnet at the rim. Absolute aromatic fireworks, with classic and confident scents of dried black fruits, roasted fennel, black truffle, leather, cigar box and sun baked stones. Medium bodied with a classic profile; ripe and dusty tannins, good concentration, layers of flavor but quite nimble and fresh, with great focus and grip on the long and refreshing finish. Wow, this is only an adolescent, and should improve for at least another 15 years. Great stuff!
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11/7/2021 - Mi Pisco Likes this wine: 96 Points
Reconfirms Robert Parkeer's remarks at his own vertical at the property in 2014. For me, it is that loamy character that defines the nose--freshly tilled, damp soil that tinctures the black fruit-- that takes you straight to this particular chateau. This is classic through and through and very well defined. The palate is wonderful with very fine deliniation, pitch-perfect acidity, touches of graphite infusing the red and black fruit that dovetails into a very pretty, floral finish. This is clearly one of the great wines of the 1996 vintage and I would be stocking up as much as I could, because it will give 30-40 years of pleasure.
COLLECTOR WINE
Robert Parker: 96 Pts Anticipated maturity: 2018-2055 Cost: $275 and up! COLLECTOR WINE
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11/5/2021 - S1 Likes this wine:
Chas Offlineorama VI, Another embarrassment of riches; 11/3/2021-11/7/2021 (Various locations): Dark and burly with dark rough tannins and fading fruit. The magic happens because of the amazing spice and graphite as this wine enters its next stage of life. Drink or HOLD.
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11/5/2021 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Charleston VI; 11/3/2021-11/7/2021 (Charleston, SC (various locations)): Bright and fruity and just does like to jump out of the glass at you. One of my go to's in Bordeaux. Baking spices. Delicious.
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11/4/2021 - A.Hansen Likes this wine: 94 Points
Classic St. Estèphe. Nose of black fruit and fresh soil. The palate is focused and precise, framed with great acidity. The palate has notes of blackcurrant, blackberry, earth and flowers. A delightful and classic left bank Bordeaux.
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10/10/2021 - vintage_whine wrote:
Short finish, very little evolution. Still very much alive, with the development of dirt, roots and bark, but hasn’t really evolved to become anything greater than it was in youth. Perhaps the vintage is simply a perfect 50+ year agability and we have committed infanticide, the ‘96 lafite certainly suggests the same. But it’s simple despite its promise of greater development
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9/5/2021 - MC wrote:
Splash decanted an hour before dinner. This was the WOTN and really singing. Ripe blue fruits, great balance, long and expansive finish with the tannins fully resolved. In a perfect spot right now. A
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7/24/2021 - rralls wrote: 95 Points
This was really good tonight.
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7/3/2021 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 91 Points
When there's brettanomyces in the bottle, you never know what you're going to get; and this bottle of the 1996 Château Montrose, a wine I hadn't drunk for several years, showed a bit too much brett for my palate (bottles I've drunk in Europe have tended to be cleaner). Rich aromas of smoked meats, bandaid, cigar ash and loamy soil dominate the wine's dark fruit tones, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and impressively broad, ample, lower-acid palate in this often tightly wound vintage. There's a great wine in here trying to get out, and I have had great bottles in the past, but this example was just a bit compromised.
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5/28/2021 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 95 Points
This wine is finally in its sweet spot right now. Fully mature with an incredible Bordeaux nose that is actually more Pauillac in style than St Estephe. Utterly delicious demonstrating the strength of ‘96 Cabernet dominated left bank wines at age 25. Yum!
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5/28/2021 - HFLED Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is drinking very nicely. Dark garnet colored, still looks young with virtually no bricking.
Cork came out easily and was in good shape, just sniffing the cork and the wine you could tell it would be good, really intense nose of pipe tobacco, leather, and tar dominating at first.
After a 45 minute decant it mellowed out a bit, still pipe tobacco dominant, but with bell pepper, red fruits, and old leather on the nose. Red fruits on the palate, along with cedar, tomato, leather and tobacco. The tobacco flavor is a bit more muted on the palate can the nose, and more cigar tobacco vs the heavier pipe tobacco of the nose. Medium bodied, mid palate isn’t as intense as one might expect, though there is a nice long finish. Fruit hasn’t faded at all and secondary flavors are really coming out. Tannins fully resolved and nice acidity.
In its drinking window and drinking well. Definitely has some time left as I didn’t think it was super tertiary, but no reason not to drink now. Wouldn’t decant long, was better earlier in the evening then started to fade in the last 1/2 glass.
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5/24/2021 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine: 97 Points
Knockout bottle of Montrose. Trounces a recent 1995. Pours out a vibrant ruby-red with no-doubter aromatics right from the get-go delivering a powerful smack of tarry, truffly earth funk. The scents get softer with air but given about an hour in the decanter the texture turns exquisitely silky. I might have expected more brute power after those explosive aromas but instead it's pliant and gentle. The fruit tones are all blackberries and other black-toned stuff in a fully mature cast. No need to wait any further on this, this is ready to go and in the zone.
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5/20/2021 - eddie100 Likes this wine: 99 Points
Unbelievable. Fresh with amazing aroma.
One of the best I drank. (i am 72y 🙂)
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4/16/2021 - AAF2012 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Wow. Just wow. First bottle from new case, perfect cork condition, stunning, drinking perfectly right now (see note at bottom). Perfectly balanced. 90 min decant seemed low but was perfect. Elegant, with +power and +complexity. "Abundance" of everything came to mind without being overbearing. Black fruit (black currant and blackberry), tobacco and leather plus hint of menthol on nose. Extremely full, totally fills palate. It's all there - fruit abundant without overwhelming, acidity crisp, tannins nicely resolved, very long finish; a top 5 wine I've drank in the last year out of hundreds. Great food wine due to strength and balance. Reminded me of Lafite 1996 I drank last year.
Note: this is 3rd 1996 Montrose popped in last 12 months. 1st two bottles were from different case, were fine but considerably less "wow" and more in-line with the reviews I'm seeing below. Would've given them low 90s ratings. I don't know if the variation is due to provenance of the different cases or I just got a lucky bottle here. 90 min decant seemed low for this magic bottle, the other 96 Montroses last year I did for 2+ hours each with considerably worse results. Not sure what's going on here.
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3/25/2021 - MC wrote:
Decanted 4 hours. Very nice - great nose and good on the palate. Just short of great overall. A-
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3/13/2021 - europat55 wrote: 91 Points
1996 Tasting (Andre and Sabine's House, Mountain View, CA): Nose: 91 Palate: 91-92
My #8, Group's #11 (115 pts). Tasted blind.
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2/27/2021 - Jonny d Likes this wine: 94 Points
Medium ruby with only a bit of bricking. Musty leather and spice on the nose. Red fruits. Tannins fully resolved. 20 second finish. Served with tri-tip skewers and roasted potatoes. Drank beautifully with food and nice by itself after dinner. In a good place now.
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2/8/2021 - sfilene wrote: 93 Points
Classic St. Estephe. On the nose wet stones, lots of ash tray (but in the best way!), brambles and subdued red fruit notes (mainly strawberry and cherry). Palate was a little thinner than I would have liked, but still solid and finish is great. Overall a very good example of Bordeaux, drinking right in the appropriate window now with great balance and acidity. Drink up!
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2/6/2021 - europat55 wrote: 89 Points
Nose: 90 Palate: 88
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2/6/2021 - europat55 wrote: 94 Points
Nose: 95 Palate: 93
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1/30/2021 - MC wrote:
Decanted 3 hours. Lighter red in color and in fruit on the nose vs. the '95 LLC last night at open. With 3 hours air the nose is very nice but at 4 hours even better. Red fruit but explosive secondary elements of moss, earth, leather. This is such a great wine on the nose, but the palate just a little short of great - at least now. Leaves me really liking this wine and although the nose is perhaps more interesting than the '95 LLC not the palate - at least now. Still just really really good Bordeaux and perhaps it improves with time but easy to love right now with 3-4 hours of air. A-/A
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1/30/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine: 93 Points
the nose smells of tobacco.
The palate is of rare density. There is juice, it is undeniable. Unparalleled balance, to give an amplitude of madness. The tannins are noble, the touch silky, it is deep. And the final, powerful, on black fruits.
Excellent.
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11/25/2020 - rralls wrote: 93 Points
Fantastic.
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11/19/2020 - dream wrote: 90 Points
A firmly structured vintage of Montrose currently showing some of the negative aspects of this vintage; that is lean and green. It probably needs many more years of development but I much preferred the '95 & '00 tonight. 90+?
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10/24/2020 - aChave Likes this wine: 94 Points
Aromatic on opening. 60+ minute decant revealed bell pepper, deep fruit and nuance. Not as clean and precise as the 1996 Leoville Barton drunk alongside, but lots of layers of flavor and character.
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10/18/2020 - WST wrote:
Three day birthday celebration; great wines.: Corked. Lars' bottle. Too bad.
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9/17/2020 - louisl Likes this wine: 93 Points
Pop and pour and drank over 2 hours. It was great for the first half hour, but then went downhill after that. Pretty youthful at first with and amazing finish of leather, cigar box and dark fruit. The nose got more intense after 15 minutes, but then the complexity and amazing finish disappeared. The nose went away after that. Drink now and do not decant.
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9/13/2020 - Bromie wrote: 92 Points
A little bricking. Good nose and reasonable on the palate and length. A bit disappointing
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8/29/2020 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar to prior notes after a 1 hour double decant; outstanding, ready to drink
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8/28/2020 - DougLee wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for 45 minutes and followed for 3 hours. Opaque garnet with scarlet edges. Nose of savory green elements mixed with fecund soil, lifted floral notes, cassis, pencil lead, and currant. Seemingly settled layers of black currant, fine green leaf, and black plum on the palate nonetheless deepening with grip and lithe, earthen gravity. Lively acidity and softened tannin leading to a long finish of currant, soil, wild green, a bit of sauvage, and tobacco. Vital complexity within a civilized frame.
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8/15/2020 - LB88 wrote: 93 Points
Ready for drinking.
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8/8/2020 - fc1910 Likes this wine: 95 Points
What to pnp after a great Gru La 00 ?
choose this one, what a meaty, smoky nose, great smell, perfect with grilled meat,
terribly impressive right from the start, needs more aeration than the Gr La, rich, Lucious black fruit, but a lot of secondary and tertiary aromas though, really seductive meaty, mid- to full-bodied, some ripe but supporting tannin still, tremendous length, with a decant or some slow ox very delicious now, but will hold another two decades+ easily, great extraordinary bottle, ***(**), around 94, 95(+)potential
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7/20/2020 - bordeauxmartini wrote: 94 Points
A little bricking, still fresh and gathered body and composure after a few hours. Leather, tobacco notes. A real joy. Sadly, I only have one bottle left. This can last another 10 years, easy.
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7/20/2020 - mclanew Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted two hours. Classic nose of black currant, earth and underbrush. The wine at first came off a little thin but fleshed our nicely over another hour so giving this wine a long decant is recommended. The paltr shows red and black fruits intermixed with licorice, lead pencil and tobacco. This wine is built for a long life but it’s not overpowering - in fact it quotes well balanced and complex. This may continue to improve over the coming years.
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7/12/2020 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 95 Points
Big and lean, tannins are still quite present and softened up with a few hours of air. Drank side by side with an 03’ Pavie, the Montrose by comparison was a bit austere, mostly because the Pavie was just so ripe and modern.
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7/10/2020 - Abigailkb Likes this wine: 96 Points
Double decanted for 5 hours, and still continued to develop. Excellent example of the best of Montrose. At first, rubber and earth, then a few hours in green pepper and pine needles. Tannic, sharp and intense, could go many more years but a pleasure if you can keep it open for hours now.
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4/9/2020 - mjdixon Likes this wine: 94 Points
Interesting that the smell was not what I would have guessed to be Bordeaux.
Lots of expressive and bright fruit...has all the tannin worn off now??
Loved it but a bit different to the norm...
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3/29/2020 - liber Likes this wine: 91 Points
4th of 12, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, some development on rim since last bottle noted here in May 14, but nose and palate frustratingly backward, classical components there with nice touch of earth and even smoke, even decent length, but flavours rather disjointed, angular and thin given the quality of the vintage, maybe a phase particularly looking at some of the adulatory notes below. Just about F (17.5).
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3/21/2020 - Mark1npt wrote: 90 Points
Color me disappointed......picked up a couple of these at auction, gave this plenty of time to decant......I'm talking 3-7 hours. Didn't help it one bit. The fruit started out red and tart, and ended red and tart. This had the requisite barnyard funk on the nose and it did take 3-4 hours to burn off. The fruit and the flavor profile however didn't budge an inch after opening and an hour or 5 of decant. I'm sorry, but this bottle just isn't floating my boat. Great aged BDX nose, but that's about it.......
Addendum: left about 1/4 of the bottle in the decanter with a lid on it overnight. Tasted the next day.....more pencil shavings, darker fruit, dryer, more prunes. I actually liked it a little better. But still, it's quite disappointing given the price.
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1/26/2020 - Collector1855 wrote: 97 Points
PnP, finally the Montrose 1996 has reached its full maturity plateau. Right form the start it was clear that we have a stellar wine in the glass here. All you want from a mature Bordeaux. Tons of tertiary aromas around forest floor, dark fruit, some farmyard funk. Nicely dissolved tannins, good freshness. Simply wonderful, nothing goes better with red meat than a wine like this.
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1/10/2020 - Paul S wrote: 92 Points
Dinner at Burnt Ends: This bottle was a bit Brett-y, but otherwise decent without being brilliant - this probably needed a little bit of time yet. The nose was really quite funky at first, with a distinct whiff of stinky socks. With time though, this was more classic Montrose and quietly attractive, with drifts of graphite, tobacco, meat and dried earth, with just a title drift of cassis coming out with time. The palate had a nice 1996 ripeness on the attack, with sweet cassis seasoned with bits of spice, and more smoky tobacco and graphite drifting into a lip-smackingly fresh finish with a kiss of juicy cherries and earth.
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1/10/2020 - Life At Your Leisure 🍷 wrote: 98 Points
Opaque garnet color turning orange rust at the rim with a transparent edge. Considerable age has mellowed down this once powerful force, but ripe black and red fruits still abound amidst the smoky earth, espresso and lifted orange peel notes. The palate is gorgeous, showing a silky smooth texture with notes of black currants, black pepper, cloves, bitter chocolate, tobacco, gravel and burnt asphalt. It has a bracing finish that indicates a shelf life of not less than ten years. Amazing, graceful, elegant, and compelling. This is a stunner. Drink now until 2036.
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12/17/2019 - Grand Amateur Likes this wine: 94 Points
The nose is less expressive than the 1975 drunk just before. Distinguished. Classic. Very broad in the mouth. The tannin's are still quite present, but not disturbing. Beautiful fruit. Fairly long (and quite longer than the 1975).
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12/8/2019 - Aris1a Likes this wine: 94 Points
Simply put, approaching excellence. Surprisingly young-tasting for a wine with more than two decades of age. Menthol, smoke, leather and licorice, dark fruit. Aromas of sage and oregano in the mid palate. Pronounced minerality up front, some saltiness. Very long finish of wonderful complexity. This is drinking beautifully now, but has many years of life ahead of it.
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11/9/2019 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar to prior notes after a 1 hour double decant; outstanding, beautiful mature left bank Bordeaux, drink or hold
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10/10/2019 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Acker Merrall & Condit Bordeaux vs. California Tasting (Michelangelo Hotel): The best expression of '96 Montrose I have tasted to date. This suggests it is in its prime drinking window and my prior tastings were way too early. Tasted blind, I called this as a '96 Pichon Lalande. I got the vintage, but missed St. Estephe. Classic left bank notes of cedar & black licorice.
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10/7/2019 - DougLee wrote: 93 Points
Garnet color. Wonderful nose of currant and earth, with bits of green, damp cellar, high-pitched florals, and cassis. Sinewy and lively on the tongue with layers of red currant, savory green pepper, earth, and leather, and tobacco. Moderate acidity and still-structured tannins. Longer finish of plum, earth, green elements, and sweet currant. Lovely. From a 375.
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9/21/2019 - LB88 wrote: 93 Points
Still quite tight but has great structure and acidity. Drink next in 2021
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9/18/2019 - N.Bonaparte wrote: 93 Points
This needs a 4 hour decant. Nearing its prime and will hold for another 30 years. Great balance with a nice finish. Revisit in 5 years. Good value.
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9/13/2019 - PhilipT Likes this wine:
RP 96
CellarTracker 93
Drink 2016-2045
Drinking well on 9/12/19
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9/3/2019 - LopedeAguirre Likes this wine: 90 Points
Opened too early! The wine had some balance but too much concentration and despite decanting, it never really came out. Wait 10 years....
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8/30/2019 - Hermosabritdad wrote: 89 Points
This bottle is an example of why wine is so beguiling and frustrating all at the same time!. Montrose is one of my fav wines, but this bottle felt flat compared to previous ones from the same case! Decanted the same 90 mins, let it warm slowly etc but it didn’t live up to its previous heights.Nice old school nose that never really developed. And Tannins were not harsh, but certainly there. Hopefully it was a one off, and will certainly keep trying the various Montrose vintage Shop i have. Nothing bad, just an unremarkable bottle.
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8/30/2019 - GA Old World Guy Likes this wine: 92 Points
Great wine but really needs time!!! This is the second bottle I have had in the last year and both have opened beautifully but both go backwards and tighten up. My suggestion is to wait another five years on this one and open a ‘98 instead.
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8/18/2019 - Ary Likes this wine: 94 Points
Montrose 1982, 1989, 1996 and 2003 (JM Amsterdam): Consistent with my note in January; Top Montrose, classic Left Bank. Rich, elegant and great complexity on the palate with cassis, cacao, coffee and graphite notes. Powerful nose with thick ripe cherries and iron. All in high precision.
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7/21/2019 - MM29 Likes this wine: 95 Points
1 Stunde vor Genuss geöffnet, nicht dekantiert. 12,5 Prozent, schöne Nase, fein geschliffene Tannine. Einfach hervorragend. Die Geduld hat sich gelohnt, gereifte Bdx sind Haaammmmer. Leider gehen mir die Bdx vom letzten Jahrtausend langsam aus. Bin gespannt, ob die Höherpozentigen 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015 und 2016er jemals so viel Spass machen.
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7/6/2019 - steinersing wrote: 94 Points
seductive nose, very open. body almost fully delivers - just hints of under ripeness. bits of tobacco. Nose best part - but rest also very solid. Would drink this now
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6/7/2019 - englishman's claret wrote: 94 Points
The 96 Montrose is coming along beautifully; typically big, assertive nose full of cassis, blueberry, leather, pencil, and a touch of thyme. Maybe a touch blocky at the moment, but full of great material. Lots to love here.
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5/17/2019 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Zachy's Auction - May 2019 (Upper Story): Similar to the bottle we had about a month ago and definitely a wine that could use some more time in the bottle. It's very happy though - just kindof jumps out of the glass at you. Great red fruits, some nice spice, touch of stem. Very vibrant. A bit too young for me tastes but a wine that makes me optimistic about the future.
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4/28/2019 - MC wrote:
Gave this a full 3 hour decant, and it showed a bit more open fruit and body on the palate than my last note. Same great nose of ripe fruits right out of the bottle. But a bot more expansive on the palate, making me think this wine has some upside with some more time in the bottle, while enjoyable now if you can give it at least 3 hours of air. A-/?
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4/23/2019 - MC wrote:
Decanted 1 hour. Young, dark color. This was strong right out of the bottle with a nose of dark ripe fruit soaring from the decanter. But similar to my last note this seemed better early than with air as it seems to shut a bit and never really give you on the palate what you get from the nose. I see a note describing it as a feminine Montrose which I understand but just didn’t expect from Montrose in this vintage. Jeff Leve’s note feels spot on to me and leaves me wondering if this is it for this wine or will more air or time in the bottle reveal an even better Montrose than this very good one? A-
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4/22/2019 - DrZett wrote: 95 Points
Absolutely beautiful right now. Great structure, soft tannins, nice acidity in the back. A very feminine Montrose - drink now or within the next 3-5 years.
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4/9/2019 - SGoenophile Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dinner at Jade Palace. Decanted for 1 hour. Mid ruby. Beautiful nose. Medium body, delicate, restrained fruit. Quite elegant, very classic. Already mature and in a good place now.
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4/7/2019 - schneesurfer wrote: 94 Points
I have just two words: Great wine!! Wonderful nose of forest floor, red berries, wet pebble stone and spices. On the palate again red berries, great grip with softened tannines and fine acidity. Medium body, great balance and a long finish. This wine is fully matured with some years left. Just wonderful !!
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4/6/2019 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Acker April 2019 (Marea in NYC): This was a very happy bottle. Ready to jump out right from the start. I would say prob still too much on the young side - it's darker and a bit deeper and still very strong with the red fruits. Tasty and almost a touch hedonistic for a bordeaux. Enjoyable.
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3/12/2019 - Andrewbdc wrote:
Michael Schuster: 1996 Medoc - An Affordable Maturity? (Mullenlowe, C-Space, 37-45 City Riad, London, EC1Y 1AT): Medium garnet. Cassis, vanilla, cedar, clove, savoury, earth, gravel, smoke. Fully developed. Soft tannins, very long finish, fresh acidity. Finer, more concentrated and complex than La Dame. Rich, concentrated, mid-weight.
76% CS, 20% M, 3% CF, 1% PV, 12.5% alcohol, 45% new oak.
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3/1/2019 - Ary Likes this wine: 95 Points
Top Montrose, classic Left Bank. Rich, elegant and great complexity on the palate with cassis, cacao, coffee and graphite notes. Powerful nose with thick ripe cherries and iron notes. All in high precision.
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2/25/2019 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
Old school, classic in style, the wine is crisp, energetic and stubbornly tannic. The fruit is short, bright, and leaning to the strict, austere, cranberry and light red fruit side of the style range. The wine is a bit more interesting on the developed, cedar and tobacco edged nose, than on the palate. If this is your taste, you will probably like it more than I did.
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2/2/2019 - Paul S wrote: 93 Points
Lo Hei dinner at Peach Garden (Peach Garden, OCBC Building): Best showing of this wine so far, this is just starting to come into its own. The nose was lush and lovely, with loamy earth, a touch of funky meatiness, and wafts of cassis, cedar and tobacco spice. The palate was still youthful, probably needing more years in the bottle, but it was also clearly starting to open up after 2 hours in the decanter. There were juicy gobs of cassis, nicely lifted tones of citrus, almost orangey acidity, and then hints of tobacco and spice leading into a juicy finish, all of this beautifully framed in a lovely structure of fine, sinewy tannins and a nice minerality. Still young, almost hinting towards the primary at times, but I just loved the ringing sense of juicy purity to the fruit that the wine had - there was so much of that in reserve, and the structure was so fine, that I think that this will age for just about forever. This was lithe and elegant, strength without weight. Lovely stuff - I would love to try this again in 5 and then 10 years time.
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1/21/2019 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 97 Points
A superb showing. Benefited from a 4-hour decant. Familiar, enticing nose of currants and, leather, less earthy than prior bottles and without that barnyard aspect this time. Perfectly balanced and harmonious, with red currants, dried spice and a touch of black olives. A superior bottle.
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12/20/2018 - Kwlharvey wrote:
Very Oaky. Full body. Very long finish. Good
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12/13/2018 - MWiking wrote: 96 Points
love this wine and tonight was no difference, still beautiful.
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11/25/2018 - jrh82 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Thoroughly enjoyed this wine. Rather smooth, no hard edges. Felt like I could detect the earthiness of St Estephe on the nose. Serious wine but never heavy. Plenty of dark fruit although the wine is certainly moving into next stage in its life. Highly recommended.
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11/24/2018 - MWiking wrote: 96 Points
has to raise the points this time, this is a brilliant wine. Perfect balance between age and youth. In a great place right now. Love it.
95-97
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11/24/2018 - mr_rancho Likes this wine: 93 Points
Excellent mature St. Estephe. Can it develop any further? Maybe, but it’s on that high level already that there is no need to wait any longer.
There is still a bit fruit, but it’s heavily on the leather, fur, earth, mushroom, horse/stable side. The nose is just a ‚Wow!‘ and the mouth asks for more!
Decant is not needed, but give the wine 5 minutes to relax and to get rid of the old dust aromas.
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11/12/2018 - MWiking wrote: 94 Points
first class nose on this wine. Schoolbook-bordeaux.
cedar, dark fruit, stable, a hint of oak
the palate is silk-soft with nice fruit, some tobacco, cedar, and well integrated tannins.
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11/11/2018 - Nutty08 Likes this wine:
Yves's Memorial; 11/10/2018-11/11/2018 (MO): This was fantastic, one of the best wines of the night. Explosive aromatics of mint and cedar. Palate is a little narrow still but has plenty of depth. Going to age SLOW.
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11/10/2018 - texaswinelover wrote:
Unbalanced and touch acidic upon opening but fleshed out with air. Drank well even 3-4 hrs after opened.
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11/5/2018 - Stefan75 Likes this wine: 93 Points
From Mag, 2nd out of 6, 4h slow ox, very elegant, not much fruit left but beautiful secondary aromas, only got better in the glass over the evening, excellent
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10/27/2018 - sirpat00 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wine & Dine Vol XI (Florhof (Zurich)): Tasted blind as part of a mini Montrose vertical (1996, 2003, 2005, 2009). For me the 2009 out on top, but the 1998 and 2003 were not far behind while the 2005 fell a bit short. .
Initially quite meaty also showing bacon fat and mushrooms. Fine leathery oak. But there is also a surprisingly intense fruit, both red and dark.
Still some decent acidity (medium +) there but with tannins pretty much melted away and showing a super fresh palate. Pretty much as when adjusting the lense of a camera, as time in the glass passes the precision of the fruit increases and reaches outstanding levels in the end.
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10/26/2018 - Cailles wrote: 93 Points
Wine & Dine Vol. XI (Zürich): Mini Montrose vertical 96/03/05/09. A good display of Montrose‘s aristocratic, classic charm. The 96 is fully mature and provides a lot of drinking pleasure even if it‘s not the most complex wine. The 03 is the odd one out, extremely spicy and quite ripe (the others who had it blind guessed Napa) but needs a lot of time. The 05 is completely closed, even after 7 hours in the decanter. The 09 is so intense, ripe and profound but so harmonious and elegant, certainly the one with the highest potential.
TN: Fully mature nose, subtle forest floor and leather aromas, medium intense, clean. On the palate dominated by earth, tobacco and leather. Fruit in the background. Medium+ intensity, medium complexity, good precision. Smooth tannins, good freshness, good balance. Not as deep and elegant as in other vintages, not good enough to play in the big league.
Decanting: 1-2 hours in the decanter will do the job.
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10/21/2018 - gtilley wrote:
Outstanding - drinking perfectly. Has some real overt pepperiness on the nose. The palate is deliciously plush and everything is beautifully balanced. Lovely old-ish claret. Drink or hold.
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9/10/2018 - thomasito2001 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great, this bottle was a tad less precise and focussed, maybe a more tired version as was not form the same lot. Still brilliant though!
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9/2/2018 - Verb Likes this wine: 94 Points
consistent with me last note: bright red with a brick rim - exuberant red fruit nose of cherries and cassis - amazingly young tasting in the mouth, thanks to not only the generous fruit, but also very refreshing acidity - tannins still present but not excessive - full body and long finish - this wine will keep on developing for the next 20 years - would not have opened this bottle except that I wanted to compare it to the 75 Montrose opened at the same time
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8/26/2018 - Charogers wrote: 92 Points
This was nice - maybe I'm being a bit mean with the score, but it's reflective of where it is now and where it might be in the future. Tighter than I expected it would be - it got maybe half hour in a decanter and remained quite closed over the next hour. Hopefully a little more time and it will reach its promise. All elements are present to indicate that it will.
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8/13/2018 - alanr wrote: 91 Points
Reserved dark fruit, medium full body, pencil, crushed volcanic rock, coffee grounds. Needs a bit more time to continue to resolve.
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6/3/2018 - jseal@hotmail.com Likes this wine: 95 Points
Deep red past average. milder Classic Barnard stink nose. Barnyard and tart cherry long body and length. Classic. Seems like it can evolve.
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6/2/2018 - DoubleD1969 wrote: 93 Points
Poured into a decanter and sat for about an hour. Darker than the '90 Lagrange and almost the same color as the '96 La Turque. I got a slight funk in the nose that blew off to reveal aromas of new leather, wet earth, and cocoa powder. The wine felt slightly heavier than the Lagrange - velvety versus silky - and tasted like a warm cherry pie.
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6/1/2018 - WetRock wrote:
Very classic stylings here. Lots of graphite and humidor aromas. Light on it's feet while delivering plenty of expression. Terrific and in it's window.
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5/18/2018 - Claret & CdP Gang Likes this wine: 94 Points
2 hour decant, inky, regal, complex, stupendous wine, my wotn, full of character & breeding
94
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4/28/2018 - M.Batard wrote: 93 Points
Decanted 2hrs ahead. Barnyard, leather, and cassis nose. Savory dark fruit palate. Long finish. Just classic mature Bordeaux. Paired with Moroccan lamb and filet mignon. Rave wine of the night.
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4/1/2018 - Cailles wrote: 96 Points
Textbook aged left bank with dark fruit/cassis soul, dried provencal herbs, roast aromas, black truffles, leather, cigar box, cedar wood, barnyard, sous bois. Smooth, elegant, silky, weightless but with a high aroma intensity, full power. You could drink liters of this wine.
The wine needed some time in the glass to open up and gain weight. Give it some air (1h).
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3/22/2018 - Hermosabritdad Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beatiful nose, and smooth subtle pallette. Opened an hour and half, keeping it cool, and then let it rise to room temp for 30 mins and it showed beatifully. Worthy of a retirment party celebration!
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3/15/2018 - olracx62 wrote: 92 Points
tasted with Coravin. Mid to high shoulder, cork drenched of wine. Dark ruby and orange color, showing its age. At the nose, notes of black fruit,cigar box and pencil. At the mouth consistent hints of black currant anc cocoa, some black chocolate and leather. Some sediment. Not too impressive and juicy,austere but elegant. Interesting but not astonishing although pleasantly enjoyable
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2/28/2018 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar to prior notes; wonderful mature Bordeaux, at or near peak, but no rush
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2/26/2018 - Verb Likes this wine: 95 Points
bright red with a brick rim - exuberant red fruit nose of cherries and cassis - amazingly young tasting in the mouth, thanks to not only the generous fruit, but also very refreshing acidity - tannins still present but not excessive - full body and long finish - in contrast to the 96 Calon Segur we had at the same time, not nearly as developed or as much complexity, but pronounced youthfullness - also, much heavier sediment in the bottle, suggesting less filtration as a possible reason for the abundance of fruit - this wine will keep on developing for the next 20 years (just not sure when I should try the next bottle - perhaps 3-4 years from now - no hurry!)
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2/16/2018 - Brett Pitt Likes this wine: 94 Points
Really nice mature Bordeaux. Slightly better than the 1995er of the same night.
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2/5/2018 - valedeniro wrote: 96 Points
From magnum.At age 21 still a young wine.Expressive nose of rich dark fruits,leather,tobacco and subtle earth.Full-bodied,the palate is really impressive,with complex flavors built around a core of concentrated ripe fruit.A big wine,at the same time elegant and with incredible focus.Long finish with great grip.Still young,but ready.Should drink well for at least another 20 years.A brilliant wine.
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1/21/2018 - ONEFIVE Likes this wine:
From magnum.
Light bricking around the edge, ruby and translucent core.
Fresh, ripe red fruit. Creme de cassis with a touch of earthy/bretty aromas.
A little thin on the palate. Acid and tannin are in the forefront. This needs some time/air before truly enjoying.
Wouldn’t open another one of these for 5 years at least. 750s might be more approachable.
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12/27/2017 - Jamie Manley wrote: 97 Points
The hits just keep on coming, this is a fantastic wine...and then some. 96 Montrose is now entering 96 Lalande territory. What a stunning nose! Hot summer sun on steaming wet stones, drenched earth, tobacco, cassis, fresh black cherries, graphite, and pencil. And all of this is with incredible precision. The palate is rich and multi-layered with beautiful fruit and complexity. Velvet in the mouth with sorted tannins and a complete feel of regal charm. 1996 Montrose is not to be missed! 97 Pts
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12/26/2017 - steinersing wrote: 92 Points
Round pleasant , tea leave notes in nose
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12/10/2017 - europat55 wrote: 92 Points
Nose: A-/A Palate: B++
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12/9/2017 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
From mag, similar to prior note; delicious & classic aged Bordeaux, drink or hold
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11/26/2017 - DougLee wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for 1 hour. Medium garnet color. Pungent nose of cedar, cassis, currant, tobacco, and damp soil. Somehow combined density and fine detail on the palate with layers of austere dark currant, blackberry, cherry, leather, and traces of green pepper, all in impeccable balance. Moderate acidity and smoothed, integrated tannin. Long, brooding finish of earth, dark fruit, and hints of tobacco. Beautiful wine, perhaps not yet at peak.
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11/23/2017 - anthroman Likes this wine: 94 Points
Gave this a 90-minute decant. Fragrant nose of barnyard, leather, tobacco, and fresh earth. The palate has presence but is also "cool" and austere: cassis, black fruits, some sweetness and integrated (yet noticeable) tannins. The finish is lengthy with sweet cassis and tobacco. Definitely not a ripe vintage but great Montrose and a wine that will go for a long time yet.
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11/18/2017 - vanpe003 wrote:
Cloudy / cooked
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11/4/2017 - macmac007 Likes this wine: 95 Points
I got my hands on a bottle of this thanks to President Sarkozy, who'd presented a few crates of wine as a gift to some relatives. They only drank white, so I snapped up two bottles of this. It was an eye-opener. I'd drunk some nice claret over the decades, but this was my first time in the VIP lounge. Straight out the bottle it tasted like silk. The nose was phenomenal - all kinds of complex fruit - and then this is intoxicating rush of taste and lingering finish. A bit like losing one's virginity - over much too quickly, but you know you'll be back. I'm now gathering 2011-14s and beyond for my dotage. Lovely wine.
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10/5/2017 - MyWine2009 Likes this wine: 94 Points
My new benchmark Bordeaux. Nice Cab notes but so well blended I can barely pick out the other varietals. Slight finish of faint black pepper. Color is so light looks like Grenache, did not need more than 30m decant! I’m new to Bordeaux but now I’m beginning to see what all the fuss is about! Nice to drink a bottle of 20+ years.
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9/28/2017 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 93 Points
Served after a multi-hour decant. A bit of a quandary: both fresh and bretty, in stark contrast to previous bottles. The barnyard knows never blew off, but was irrelevant on the palate. Decidedly earthy notes of cherry, current and olives. Unmistakably Bordeaux. Floral finish. No hurry whatsoever.
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9/18/2017 - RN Likes this wine: 95 Points
Dark and brooding but not looking as old as a 1996 after a 2.5 hr decant. Beautiful rich nose of leather, cigar box etc. The palate so dense and concentrated- only 12.5% alcohol. The fruit and tannins perfectly integrated into the oak- all appears to be in great balance. Lovely length. Years ahead but be hard to resist drinking right now given how good the wine is at the moment. Distinctive and special.
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9/5/2017 - Verb Likes this wine: 95 Points
absolutely classic mature Bordeaux - dark red with brick rim - great nose of cassis, blackberries, lead pencil and leather - but even better than the nose is the mouth: rich full body of sweet cabernet fruit with perfect balance of acid and tannin - quite long finish - I agree with previous notes that this is beautifully drinking right now - at its peak? who knows, but it will surely at least hold this level of development for another 5-10 years - one of the best 96s I've had so far
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9/2/2017 - Hermosabritdad Likes this wine: 94 Points
Simply lovely. This is why you buy good bordeaux and hang in to it for 20 years prior to drinking. A level of depth and complexity that is a pleasure to discover. Drinking very well right now, with the sense that well stored this still has many years in front of it.
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8/23/2017 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Reunion (San Antonio): This had several hours in the decanter before we really dove in. Awesome nose with flint, mint, tobacco and a little horse. On the palate with was pinched a little, showing some diluteness, angular acidity and tartness. Just couldn't keep up with the wonderful nose. The tannins are still rather prominent with a harshness, so maybe it will come together with a few more years in the cellar. I doubt my previous prediction that '96 will be as good as '89.
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8/22/2017 - mye Likes this wine:
Decanted 1 hour and brought to restaurant.
Completely open for business. Classic left bank black/blue fruit with earth, cigar, and slight hints of pencil shaving.
Soft integrated tannins, beautifully balanced. Hitting it's prime, and absolute beauty.
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8/5/2017 - millesime66 wrote: 93 Points
Idem à celle bue il y a un an. Bouchon impeccable!
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7/7/2017 - W!neNot? Likes this wine: 98 Points
Perfumed nose of tobacco box, pencil with some fruit of bosenberry. Slight dried green tea. Palate is intense with silky smooth tannin and good acidity. Flavours of pencil and game - quite developed but some serious complexity. 30 second finish - such high quality. This will age longer and develop further but drinking perfectly now. Not sure what could really improve it. A superb wine.
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7/3/2017 - D. Mitchell Likes this wine: 95 Points
Classic Bordeaux, this was the most beautiful Montrose I have had. The color was dark garnet, with very slight light edge, clear, with just a touch of sediment at the end. The smell was a complex blend of eucalyptus, forest floor, licorice, red fruit, a touch of prune. On the palate the wine was very focused and elegant with red and black currant, earthy, a bit of smoke towards the back. Medium finish that really closed out this wine beautifully. WOTN 95 Points...
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6/21/2017 - jkoenen wrote: 93 Points
Sweet licorice nose, cassis, black olives, schoolpaint, very muscular yet well balanced. 4 hrs in the decanter, but it needs more than that...
Still needs time.
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5/28/2017 - GA Old World Guy Likes this wine: 92 Points
Started off very lovely but then closed down rapidly. Very backward wine. Probably needs another 5 years
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5/28/2017 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted for a couple of hrs, med. ruby, red & black fruit with a little tobacco & leather, mod. tannins, long finish; delicious, drink or hold (no rush)
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5/25/2017 - Papies wrote: 92 Points
Tasted Blind.
A wine that we have experienced a lot of bottle variation and we are pretty sure its all down to the source of the wine and not the wine it self. A year ago we crossed path with a beautiful bottle (Papies 95) , 7 years ago with a very good ( Papies 92). The one on this occasion was very good but not singing in that level. Soft and in a way feminine, good classic notes on the nose, light herbal, soft but very much present tannin. A touch drying on the edges. Very enjoyable but not to the level of the one we had a year ago 92
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5/21/2017 - CWang wrote: 93 Points
No formal note; also a bit disappointed for the same reasons but performed better than the 1996 Pontet Canet; overall, 92-93 points; needed a few more years at least to be truly enjoyable.
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5/18/2017 - MC wrote:
Decanted an hour. Still young. This was better out of the bottle and with an hour in the decanter than it was at two hours when it shut down a bit. Classic Bordeaux with a touch more concentration and ripeness to it, I think this could be really good with time but right now the tannin is still a little too present and need some time to balance out. A-/?
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5/8/2017 - mimik Likes this wine: 92 Points
A good showing but still tannic. Blackberry nose with hints of tobacco frame by more blackberry on the pallette. Sweet cedar on the long finish.
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3/25/2017 - fc1910 wrote: flawed
Opened three hours in advance, horse stable, spicy, but with more time a musty smell, obviously corked!
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3/23/2017 - kenv Likes this wine: 95 Points
WCC Saint Estephe Blind Tasting (Provence Restaurant, Albany, NY): Another terrific, rich, tannic young wine. Complex. Marvelous.
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2/23/2017 - tinybubbles wrote: 90 Points
Herbaceous and green notes on the nose with hints of white pepper. Good tannic structure but slightly bitter and green on the palate. Needs 10 more years and should improve. 90+
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2/23/2017 - nywine68 Likes this wine: 94 Points
An epic vertical of Chateau Montrose (Restaurant Daniel): Awesome wine. Saturated blackberry. Nice tannins. Nose not as expressive as the 1995. Needs more time. Montrose vertical 1895-2000
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2/2/2017 - werdna39 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Just delicious old Bordeaux. Very nicely balanced (fruit, tannin, acid). Classic nose. Juicy mouthfeel. Has easily got another 5-10 years ahead.
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1/22/2017 - MrBrege wrote: 96 Points
Another outstanding bottle. The best of the case so far, or is this wine still getting better?
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1/18/2017 - Sultanrocks Likes this wine: 92 Points
very smooth tanin，lots of prunes.Showing its age should drink well for next 3-5 years
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12/25/2016 - scott w Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark fruit some coffee and pencil lead galore, still has firm tannin and good acid. Very pleasant and long finish. Color is bright and seems young-ish. Great Christmas eve bottle with family!
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12/11/2016 - MrBrege wrote: 96 Points
From Coravin. Last tasted two years ago and still holding that same strong level. Youthful appearance. Pencil and black fruits on the nose; cedar and concentrated fresh berries on the palate. Very well structured, fine tannins still very much present. This wine is superb if you like classic style left bank wines. Unlike some bottles I have had of this, the finish goes on for a very long time, such a treat!!
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11/28/2016 - WetRock wrote:
Strong classic pencil lead Cab nose that is so rare these days but oh so welcome. Lovely classic profile overall. Not an ultra complex wine at this point but dead solid perfect classic style. Not a lot of tannin at this point and the fruit has leaned out mostly. Probably in it's window. Terrific for the old school lovers.
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10/20/2016 - Purple Tooth wrote: 92 Points
This bottle was a victim of inconsistent bottling. Why? No sediment...Its really hard to accept why some bottles of wine from the same vintage, from the same cellar, throw lots of sediment and some none. I am not saying this because I enjoyed the wine and then saw that the bottle was clean. I am saying this because the wine seemed a bit hollow and lacking in fruit throughout the whole night. I expected it to gain weight and get better, but it just stayed the same from start to finish. Propped up with great acidity, this wine was very youthful in its appearance, medium to full body, and had a super bordeaux nose of earth and cedar. But.... the wine never delivered what the nose promised and left me hanging... :-( Now I have to go and find a killer Bordeaux to open for the weekend to satisfy this hanging feeling!
Still a really good wine, but missed the mark for a 1996 Montrose experience. Reminded me very much of a Leoville Barton 1996 in its adolescence. Very good but not great. Drink or Hold
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10/2/2016 - Dave77 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Poped and poured, right on opening this is promissing and comes out very open.
The nose is one of nice wood, graphite, forest floor in autumn and faded dark fruit. The pallet is very smooth, tannins are still present but nicely integrated, licorice, coffee, cherry's. Has a medium length, but a beautifull aftertaste. (very important!!!)
If you have any left don't worry poppin' a cork, if you have a lot of this, no worry's you lucky bastard it will keep .
Beautifull Saint Estephe.
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9/7/2016 - nywine68 wrote: 95 Points
Awesome wine! WOTN compared to 1990 Ridge MB and 2010 Kistler Pinot Natalie. Phenomenal structure and intensity. Brooding dark fruit with layers of complexity. Perfect drinking window today but will last for another 10-20 years.
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9/3/2016 - ledocq Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is the twentieth bottle of Bordeaux I have drunk from before vintage 2000. It's not the best, but it's one of the best experiences I've had. This is the first time I realized there's a solid core of the essential aged Bordeaux experience, a kind of taste that is by its nature indescribable. But we try to describe it anyway because that's how our brains are wired, and because the sensation comes with an equally hard-to-place emotion, somewhere between joy and nostalgia. Good Bordeaux approaches this taste, great Bordeaux exemplifies it. This was a great Bordeaux. Every sip was a little different, but after 2 hours that strange, complex, multi-component secondary core was ascendent, with a finish that was a lovely mushroom funk. This is up there with the Ducru and the Leoville Poyferre for sheer pleasure.
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8/16/2016 - fcxj wrote: 90 Points
Solid everyday drinking Medoc. Lacked the finesse, lushness and vibrancy of the Redigaffi served alongside. Tuscan sunny Merlot...
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8/5/2016 - bebefat Likes this wine: 93 Points
Consumed with shanghainese food.
Appearance: deep garnet
Nose: med intensity of herbal (mint, eucalyptus), black fruit (black currant, blackberry), red fruit (red currant, cranberry), pungent spice (licorice), floral (violet), tertiary notes (smoke, earthy, graphite). Developing.
Palate: dry, high acidity, med + tannin, soft and ripe, med body and alcohol, med + intensity of red currant, black currant, eucalyptus, savory, coffee, chocolate, earthy, smoke, toast, violet. Med + finish.
Assessment: very good quality. Tertiary notes balanced very well with primary fruit. Clear tertiary notes but still very vibrant due to high acidity. Great breadths of character and complex. a higher concentration and longer finish would make it outstanding.
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8/3/2016 - millesime66 wrote: 93 Points
Excellent et très équilibré en ce sens que malgré le Cabernet Sauvignon en dominance, ce vin viril est tout de même raffiné et délicat en plus d'être long en bouche.
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7/14/2016 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 95 Points
The 1996 Montrose is a terrific wine, with an absolutely classic bouquet of cassis, redcurrant, cedar and dried ceps, introducing a pure, intense wine structured around a firm chassis of ripe tannins and bright acids. The wine is simultaneously more concentrated and more focussed and elegant than the 1995, with more focus and precision. The best vintage between 1990 and 2000, and in the same school as years like ’55, ’61 and ’05.
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7/9/2016 - Zweder wrote: 95 Points
Luxurious, pure and beautiful bouquet with dark forest fruits, graphite, cedar, tobacco, smoke and luxurious oak. On the palate beautiful and juicy dark berries, good acidity and round tannin with still a beautiful bite. A really beautiful and exclusive wine in its young maturity stage. Should save my last bottle until 2022 or a bit later. 95+
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6/11/2016 - mjdixon Likes this wine: 94 Points
Needs two hours for fruit to show through
Before that fruit is muted and dry
Good typical nose with a little barnyard funk
Got some caramel
Excellent Bordeaux
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6/4/2016 - Rackit Likes this wine:
Decanted for an hour and enjoyed over the next 3 hours. Intoxicating nose of light Bordeaux funk and red fruit, forest floor and a bit of mushroom (?). The wine looks crimson-brick colored with just a bit of lightening at the edges. Suggest decanting as there is a moderate amount of sediment in the bottle. Initially, it tastes like red currant and mineral with a somewhat hollow mid pallet. This changed over time as the fruit started to show better after an hour or more. As others have noted, the wine has satin-like texture...almost to a fault. Depends on what you like. For me, I'd prefer a bit more body. The acidity is on point and this paired well with juicy burgers on the grill and chicken sausage. After 3 hours+, the fruit is more pronounced...as is the acidity. So, so smooth.
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5/1/2016 - Labrador Likes this wine: 92 Points
Beautiful, expressive (even youthful) and a long finish. Served with a Camembert (Normandy) and a Banon (Provence) that had arrived from France two days earlier. What a great combination!
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4/9/2016 - JS1056 wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for one hour and drank over an hour and a half.
Interesting nose of cigar box and barnyard. Over time the barnyard became more forest floor.
This wine was silky and smooth almost to a fault. Tobacco, leather and slight hint of eucalyptus up front? There was a little red fruit left. But I got a hollow midpalate (hence the "fault") that did fill in somewhat over the evening, but never completely. The finish was decent.
There was a lot of acidity which was helped (or helped with depending on the POV) the food. The tannins were imperceptible.
Based on all the great notes on this wine recently on CT, maybe this was just a style preference showing through. Or maybe a bottle variation. This was a nice wine, but just didn't wow me like some older Bordeaux have in the past.
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4/8/2016 - Papies wrote: 95 Points
Decanted and served.
Classic, well aged, on the feminine side of the Bordeaux scale and just beautiful. The colour points to a well evolved wine and the nose confirms it. Leather, earth, mushrooms, light touch of pepper. Soft and silky but still very much alive on the palate, good evolved fruit, good acidity. Beautiful . 95 and drinks very nicely now.
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4/1/2016 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
Russk from Louis's wine Wizards tasting in Boca. My wine of the night. 92+
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3/27/2016 - mikita77 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Gorgeous nose, floral yet meaty. On the palate a bit disappointing. High acidity, perhaps lacking some balance. Still a lovely mature bordeaux to go with châteaubriand à la béarnaise. And spinach.
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3/25/2016 - Collector1855 wrote: 96 Points
During a Left Bank 1996 tasting dinner. Dark garnet, expressive and very complex nose of dark fruit, earth forest floor, but also leather and a touch of barnyard. Very good presence on the palate, full bodied but fresh with good structure. A great showing of this wine tonight. Shared the WOTN space with the Palmer.
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3/11/2016 - Alex H wrote: 89 Points
The most highly toned with the highest acidity among the montroses tasted along side. Racy fresh small red berries with light florals and almost stewed Hawthorne pinot fruit like on the finish. Elegant. This has a Cocoa finish too.
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3/1/2016 - tinybubbles wrote:
Musty, slightly green, and pepper nose. Palate is ripe, shows some of the same refined notes as the nose, but does not exhibit the same depth and thins and dries across the midpalate. Noticeable tannins remaining on the finish.
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2/22/2016 - senex Likes this wine: 97 Points
Just popped and poured . A wonderful wine. Maybe a bit short on the follow through but everything else is so good and in the right place just now. Enjoy!!
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2/20/2016 - Mivvy wrote: flawed
Corked/TCA
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2/19/2016 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for three hours, a bare minimum in my view. Classic nose of currants, leather, earthy notes and barnyard funk. Drinking in perfect balance: red currants, dried spice, dark cherry, a bit gamey with a touch of green and white pepper. Rounded out further over time, with cedar, black olives and more cherry. Medium finish. Years to go.
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1/10/2016 - Mr T wrote:
opened side by side with the 95 for xmas and consensus view was that the 95 won that night. Details now escape me. Apologies.
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12/28/2015 - RyanWu wrote: flawed
Undrinkable. Everything fading away. Pure disappointment.
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12/27/2015 - Jozefs wrote: 96 Points
Drank at a friends house. Still going strong and no need to hurry.
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12/18/2015 - Highlander wrote:
What a difference 6 years makes. No longer a lightweight. Leather and Tobacco on the nose and initial palate, but a mild green stem bitterness follows. This wine could be a show stopper, save for the mid palate, but still a wonderful wine. Plenty of time left.
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12/13/2015 - englishman's claret wrote: 94 Points
A thin, green-inflected wine out of the gate that happily fleshed out impressively over the course of 3 hours in decanter, eventually showing plenty of classic Montrose notes - currant, blueberry, gravel. Still retained some rustic beef blood and just a hint of green (more capsicum than under-ripeness), but the fruit evolution was enough to keep it from being too lean. Wouldn't necessarily have suspected 1996 but the fruit did keep on picking up the longer it had air. Curious as to where this will go but very satisfying now. From half.
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11/15/2015 - chablis28 wrote: 93 Points
A little over 2 years ago I fell in love with this wine at this very same table but tonight it didn't rock me anywhere near to the same extent. I think I just wasn't in a BDX frame of mind tonight. My personal score would be more like 91pts tonight but others seemed to enjoy this more than I so 93pts is the score reflecting the comments I heard from others. It was a perfectly good btl but I found myself longing for Burgs tonight instead. Double decanted after leaving in the decanter for a couple hours earlier in the day then leaving the cork out till serving hours later. This btl warmed up prior to dinner and probably would have been better if served a little cooler.
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10/8/2015 - Collector1855 wrote: 93 Points
During a tasting, served semi blind. Dark ruby. Expressive nose of barnyard, wood, forest, pin tree. The rusticity points to St.Estephe, not to the two Pauillacs next to it. Solid structure and very masculine, deep aromatics. A tad rustic.
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9/23/2015 - Yagil wrote: 93 Points
wine-quartet at Yagil (at Yagil's): opened and lowered to shoulder 8 hours in advance.
dark shiny red-purple
classic high quality aroma of an elegant top Medoc mature wine, tertiary dark-fruits aroma, with notes of leather, tobacco, earthy-spicy & tobacco. more of Pauillac than St. Estephe...
full bodied, fine firm round tannins, rich, elegant, structured, silky, array of flavours, with lasting quality finish.
It stood shoulder to shoulder with a bottle of 2000 Pontet Canet. Both were very enjoyable, though different. Both can age 5-15 years more.
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9/6/2015 - Nutty08 wrote: 93 Points
Needed several hours to open up. Still a little
angular and quite tannic. Animal nose, a little funky, with a great mint note throughout. Palate is fine, acidic, with tobacco notes. Moderate finish. A step down from the '89 (and maybe '00) but seemingly many years away from peak.
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8/26/2015 - senex Likes this wine: 96 Points
This wine has really moved on in the last 18 months.
Not decanted but breathed for about 3 hours.
An amazing nose just a little short on the finish otherwise I would have scored it even higher.
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8/19/2015 - mouton45 wrote: 91 Points
Good showing -- not great -- at last night's wine group diner at Two Chefs. Still dark color, smoke and dark fruits on the nose. medium body. nice 25-sec finish
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7/4/2015 - KendraPM wrote: 94 Points
Rare tasting menu at Blue by Eric Ripert
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6/15/2015 - thomasito2001 Likes this wine: 95 Points
I didn't imagine this bottle would be so open and giving so much at this stage. Nose immediately open evokes mature grapes, ripe fruits and maybe some sweet candy/chocolate. Palate is fantastic, tannins are abundant and perfectly chiselled, balance is very good, this is pleasurable without being (too) decadent. This is great stuff
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6/5/2015 - Wine Canuck wrote: 94 Points
Some Grilling with the Toronto Cru (Toronto, ON): There is already moderate bricking on this pristine bottle. Right off the bat there is that classic, awesome exotic Montrose nose. Wow! Aromas of black cherry, exotic spice, animal, cedar, grilled meat, game and red currants waft from the glass. The palate reveals that this is still a classically styled Bordeaux with some slightly green and lean edges along with some elevated red fruited acid (think cranberry and red currant). The tannin is fairly resolved, only around medium minus in presence. Overall a very nice bordeaux from a very nice vintage executed in a classic style. Drinking well now and will undoubtedly live a while longer yet.
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5/30/2015 - Mr T wrote:
My first of these and had me at the nose which was just classic Bdx and inviting
Tannins are resolved and the wine wonderfully smooth with a long finish
Color still fairly dark and only modest bricking
Nice fruit but this is a 96 so hardly voluptuous
This is what excellent moderately mature left bank Bdx tastes like
93-94
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5/6/2015 - Paul D wrote:
1996 Bordeaux at RSJ (RSJ, Southwark): A beautiful refined, developing claret nose immediately soars from the glass, showing black currant fruit, gravelly minerals, touch of leather. Medium/full bodied on the palate, firm but very fine tannins and a long finish. This is excellent, certainly approachable today but also with a. Long like ahead of it. *****. My 1st, Group 1st.
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5/6/2015 - chbeaumont wrote: 94 Points
'Cool' nose; sleek, classy, accessible. Extended finish, stylish. For drinking now & the next decade +.
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5/3/2015 - LWI wrote: 93 Points
31 Vintages of Château Montrose: 1928-2010; 5/2/2015-5/3/2015: Dark, linear, very good fruit quality; fresh wine with a fine core of fruit – good maturity of the grapes, balanced. Good now, but will improve.
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3/18/2015 - Yagil wrote: 92 Points
Coravin tasting
transparent shining red-purple
rich ripe cassis and sweet berries, somewhat funky with barnyardy scents, wet earth and herb, menthol and toasted spice.
med-full bodied, soft firm mouth coating tannins, good acidity level, wonderful balance & harmony,
ripe black cherries and dark berries couched in bright acidity and chewy, long finish.
can further age 8-10 years.
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3/5/2015 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Deep fruit, tobacco, it's ripe and elegant. A clean and classy wine. Was enjoyed at Betony and was perfectly paired with their beefy short ribs.
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3/2/2015 - Purple Tooth wrote: 94 Points
Drinking elegantly beautiful...very rich and almost as exotic as the 82'...This is a good QPR for a Montrose!
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3/2/2015 - SteelerFan wrote: 87 Points
Disappointing showing. Dark purple, ruby color, but very restrained on the nose and palate. Decanted for an hour, it improved with time, but never really opened. Tight and lean, with some green notes. Perhaps this will soften and open with time, but not great on this tasting.
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2/20/2015 - dustbuddy Likes this wine:
Decanted for about an hour. Really lovely. Fragrant with blackcurrant still to the fore but with interesting earthy notes just behind. Tannins are nicely resolved and the finish is long and luscious with a reminder of all the flavours that greeted the nose.
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1/17/2015 - MC wrote:
Decanted an hour. This was very good, still a little young, but very good. Dark fruits, earth, and still a bit of tannin on the finish but with some air this can be enjoyed now and is very good with food, but should improve with another few years of age. A-
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12/30/2014 - rdsboca wrote: flawed
I am hoping this was just a bad bottle. It was sucky and disjointed. Super astringent. Poured down the drain. Need a mouth rinse to get it out of my thoughts. Yuck! Worst wine of the night. It may be my lowest scored wine of the year. 70 points
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12/28/2014 - Jozefs wrote: 95 Points
Ready, but no need to hurry. Was even better on the second day.
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12/26/2014 - franm Likes this wine: 94 Points
cheers - superb, so enjoyable with Christmas dinner and the family, a great experience. Decanted for 90 minutes, not too much sediment. A great bottle.
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12/24/2014 - senex Likes this wine: 96 Points
just getting better-1 hour decant-everything just right.
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12/16/2014 - M.Batard wrote: 93 Points
More expressive nose than earlier bottles (last year), with earth and tobacco in addition to the usual blackcurrant. Drinking really well, with just a 20 minute decant at Hamilton Grill
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11/11/2014 - MrBrege Likes this wine: 96 Points
Another outstanding experience. Fresh and intense, dominated by black currants and black berries, cedar wood. The whole experience is sublime and the wine is very similar to the Margaux -96, but with a less refined and shorter finish. Hence it gets a 96 rather than a 98-99
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11/11/2014 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 94 Points
A highly enjoyable wine from St. Estephe. Nose was initially a bit closed down, showing mostly dark fruit and green pepper. After decanting 3 hours, it opened up into an intense array of ripe red fruits, mineral, earth, tobacco, and a hint of cigar. Palate was impressive, with a nice attack and silky mid-palate. Round tannins well-integrated. Long finish that lingers nicely. This is a very well-structured wine, right in its prime drinking window. I can't imagine it getting much better, but if stays this way, I wouldn't complain. I expect at least 5+ years, maybe longer. Drink or hold. Excellent+.
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8/19/2014 - macker100 wrote: 93 Points
Over dinner, no formal notes. Nose stellar. Consistent with prior bottles, great dusty cherries on finish.
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8/17/2014 - favorito Likes this wine: 93 Points
Perfect ! Decanted for 3 hours. Still potential for the next 10 years or more.
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8/10/2014 - MarcoNahuel Likes this wine: 85 Points
For a 1996 Montrose, this bottle was disappointing. Unfortunately, something must have gone wrong with this bottle - we have hab much better.
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7/15/2014 - rustyRudy Likes this wine: 91 Points
Red / purple, somewhat muted nose, mature, good solid aged Bordeaux. Fruit component holding up well.
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7/14/2014 - andrewdodd86 wrote: 94 Points
Good, little dusty and old school for my taste. Still really nice. Good red fruit. Like the last 2001 I had better.
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5/21/2014 - KenK Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nice dark rich dense black cherry quality. A big boy wine with everything turned up a bit, but still in balance. Nice black spices and long finish. Just entering early part of drinking window and still moving in quality. Recommended.
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5/2/2014 - liber Likes this wine: 94 Points
2nd of 12, hour decanted, perfect fill, in August 2012 completely closed, but now - deepish garnet, youthful purple rim on decanting, attractive nose with primary flavours of blackcurrant and earth dominant, whiff of cedar and tobacco, med/full and very long, persistent and surprisingly complex. Still a baby and should score higher than present fine plus (18/20).
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4/25/2014 - Wrighty Likes this wine:
Drank blind amongst a lot of other Bordeaux '96 as well as the Cakebread Benchland 96. Stood up well but the Mouton was the star.
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4/19/2014 - Paul S wrote: 92 Points
Mini-Montrose Vertical - 1973, '85, '94, '95, '96 (Nicolas Restaurant, Teck Lim Street, Singapore): A bit more open than the previous bottle, but still way too young and really quite hard to gauge. It was decently good on the night, but nothing more – a surprise given how solid some of the other leading 1996 St Estephes that I have had have been. This was very funky on first pour, with barnyardy scents that took some time to blow off, revealing in its stead a big, rich nose of ripe cassis and sweet berries wed to wet earth and herb, menthol and toasted spice - the biggest, most modern bouquet amongst the five vintages, but still very nice. With time though, those big, blowsy aromas calmed down beautifully, and a meatier, almost gamey twang started taking the fore from amidst the dark fruit. Very promising. The palate was a little shift in gear. It was clearer and fresher than the big nose would suggest, with ripe black cherries and dark berries couched in bright acidity and chewy, slightly mouthcoating tannins. It was the richest and deepest of the wine, certainly the most primary, but still very nicely balanced and a structured. It was backward and still quite simple compared to the other wines though. The finish had a good bit of length, lingering on the backpalate with a little dusting of bittersweet herb and a kiss of wood spice, but still seemed very tight. Way too young I think, and this is not going to dramatically improve fast - it will probably take a long, slow glacial path towards maturity and, hopefully, more easy drinking. At the moment, clearly a wine with some quality, but lacking somewhat in charm. Try again in 6-8 years’ time.
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4/12/2014 - Billigan Likes this wine: 94 Points
Started tight as a drum with but loosened up after a couple hours in the decanter. Decidedly black fruited with a deep, iron-like minerality and a touch of green pepper. Cool and fresh on the palate with fine tannins that relaxed their grip with air, but this maintained a classic BDX posture even as it got silkier and more inviting the longer it stayed open. In a great spot now, with the structure and stuffing to go much longer into what will no doubt be an exciting tertiary phase.
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3/23/2014 - AlfonsoWine Likes this wine: 96 Points
Had it at the Blantyre in Lenox, MA. Very impressed with their outstanding cellar. Served from a half bottle. Very dark, almost inky color, it looks surprisingly young. Nose is intense, and very classic Bordeaux. Tobacco, cassis and cedar. In the mouth it exhibits a lot of power with sweet tannins, and so much complexity and depth. An extremely well integrated and balanced claret. It is drinking beautifully now, and would keep providing enormous pleasure for many more years.
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3/21/2014 - Fur in the glass wrote:
Great aroma coming off this as I poured it into the decanter. Sat for one hour. Tobacco on the nose. Menthol and cassis framed a nice start but an acidic finish marred this
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1/27/2014 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 95 Points
spectacular!
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1/21/2014 - MrBrege wrote: 95 Points
Outstanding wine! I liked it so much (and its QPR) that I bought another case that came up at Christies a few weeks back. I am so pleased I did. Pnp, and it's ready for business. The nose is dominated by fresh Cassis, some cedar wood and notes of forest floor. It is intense on the palate, with black currants and sour cherries dominating. But it's the structure that gets you; the balance is outstanding despite it being powerful! The finish is long, but I have had longer. Still, it is one of the better wines I have ever had.
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1/11/2014 - DarinC Likes this wine: 93 Points
Medium+ body. Classic flavors and aromas. Early maturity with some slight secondary characteristics emerging. 3rd consistent bottle recently. PnP is no problem.
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12/28/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 94 Points
as before
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12/27/2013 - pilatus88 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Full nose of tabacco leather and ripe plum. Surprisingly fruity on the palate. The wine feels fresh and younger than its age. Very silky and the fruit is great. Long finish although light.
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12/25/2013 - M.Batard wrote: 93 Points
Dark ruby color. Cassis and tobacco. Classic claret, and lovely. Well-integrated tannins, but lots of depth. Once again, I preferred this over the '96 Calon Segur served after two bottles of this one. Very nice against the rib roast and au gratin potatoes.
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11/23/2013 - senex wrote: 92 Points
Quite a surprise, opened and ready to go. In the recent past this has always done better after a couple of hours. Great nose and cigar box tastes, but not as rich as the last case. This was bought from a London merchant in 2004 and I regret it. The previous case was bought en primeur and so, so much better. I still like the wine but I dont love it and I suspect at some stage it was stored poorly. The wine was brick coloured and a little metallic and thin and did not get any better. I think I have a poor example, the previous tastings had been better and promised even more.
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11/2/2013 - MrBrege wrote: 96 Points
Pnp as was in a hurry. Very deep Bordeaux nose of black currants and graphite. Quite a lot of power in the mouth, cassis and cherries, and with superb length and balance. Will drink most of this tomorrow so letting it slow-ox over night and will then decant in the morning for a lunch with friends moving to NYC. Will be interesting to see if it fades like DougLee's note before me says... not a chance it seems to me now but we will see. Score 96 at least now.
Day 2: Thankfully this was just as glorious now as I thought it would be, powerful, structured, lot's of fruit but a tannic and acidic structure that assures on longevity. Stick with score 96.
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10/21/2013 - DougLee wrote: 87 Points
Decanted and brought to friend's house. Had been in the decanter for 2.5 hours prior to serving. Bricky garnet color. Nose was wonderful: cassis, cedar, red currant, mulberry, pine forest. Palate was less forthcoming and showed mostly dried currant fruit, smoothed tannins, and lower acidity. Satin texture. Short finish with some astringency at the end. Bottle and cork were in truly pristine shape. Unclear what happened. Tasted much better right after opening than after the decant.
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10/17/2013 - RayOB wrote: 94 Points
Drank at Davy's
See other notes
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10/16/2013 - RayOB Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank at Davy's
Again this bottle was full of life. Excellent stuff.
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10/10/2013 - RayOB wrote: 94 Points
Drank at Davy's
Much more fruit than previous bottles and a lot more life. Lovely
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10/7/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 95 Points
this is outstanding. wonderful structure supported by ripe, softening tannins reveal layers of flavour. this is claret as it should be but so rarely is
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9/28/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 95 Points
this is now showing its true class. a sensational wine with lovely cigar box and lead pencil notes. great mid palate and the aftertaste goes on and on. lots of life left in this!
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9/8/2013 - La Cave d'Argent Likes this wine: 95 Points
Although it has taken time, this forever-youthful Montrose is now showing enough maturity to give more than a hint of its greatness. The pristinely-cellared bottle was kindly served by M.B. at a walk-around wine and food party. Still opaque red in color, it now sports an intense and complex nose of dried herbs, coriander, currants, tar and leather. The wine is full-bodied on the palate, with medium acidity, generous sweet tannins and well-integrated alcohol. The flavors are similar to the nose and persist nicely throughout the middle palate and lengthy finish. This structured wine has entered its drinking phase and should provide immense pleasure for many years to come. Drink now-2030.
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8/20/2013 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank at Davy's
Quite mature with a lot of earth and forest floor. Nice mature claret.
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8/19/2013 - Wine_lvr wrote: 92 Points
My Birthaday Party: Family, Friends, Food and Wine !!! (My home): Deep color. Leather and herbs in the nose. Still quite hard and lots of tannings. It still needs some time to find its balance but it is getting there. Long yet elegant and powerful. Wait another 3-5 years for another 1-2 points.
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8/4/2013 - MrBrege wrote: 96 Points
Truly outstanding! One of the two-three best wines I have ever had. Bottle opened 24h before consumption and a thimble poured off the give it a little more access to oxygen. Very dark almost inky colour. Nose is intense of berries and cedar, not much of the typical left-bank earth/dank cellar aroma. On the palate it has all the typical left bank attributes of black currants, cherries, cedar, hints of gravel and tobacco and so the balance is excellent but it is the intensity that really gets you, as well as the length - wow, it's so powerful but without being heavy. I need to buy more of these.
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8/3/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 93 Points
a truly delightful wine. lots of blackberry fruit and lead pencil on the nose. fantastic intensity on the palate with lovely cigar box flavours. lovely structure and plenty of sweet tannins imply a very long life
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7/24/2013 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 96 Points
Montose Dinner (89, 90, 95, 96, 99, 00, 01, 05) Plus Others: My first go at the '96, and what a stunner. Beautiful nose with clean red fruit, dried herbs, leather and more. Equally great on the palate with a big burst of flavor that expands out over the whole palate. Packed with fruit but perfectly balanced. Great long finish. Pure pleasure and in a really great place right now.
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7/24/2013 - chablis28 wrote: 96 Points
This was a total standout, head turner in a fascinating six vintage verticle of great Montrose. Tasted along side the 89,90,95,96,99, 01 and 05 this was, for me, the most complete and most exciting wine of the night. At age 17 it is in an almost perfect place and yet has some potential for further heights over the next 3-5yrs if well stored. This btl and the already ethereal '05 were my two favs by a decent margin. I rank them in this order of preference for my palate 96,05,95,90,89,01,99. The 96 was focused with terrific depth in the vibrant fruit riding on a velvety texture. The elegant, weightless, Chambolle like '05 may end up the bettter wine in the long haul but the 96 is the one to own and drink right now if you can find one in good shape. The 05, if you have time is, probably the safer buy from a provenance standpoint but will need another 5-10yrs to really strut its stuff. I'd love to own the 96 and 05 both! Others liked the 89,90 better but, for me, they seemed a tad more evolved than I prefer. What a happy task to nit pic the 89/ 90 vs the 96/ 05. Life is good in my world!
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7/15/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 91 Points
delicious cedary st. estephe. drinking wonderfully now
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5/25/2013 - M.Batard wrote: 92 Points
Decanted one hour ahead. Deep ruby color. Cassis and cedar nose. Black fruit and cedar on the palate as well; bigger, fuller than the '96 Calon Segur.
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5/18/2013 - Zazzaman Likes this wine: 93 Points
My introduction to Montrose was the 1990 - what a stonker! At one point it was a RP 100/100. So I bought six of the 96 and this was the last bottle. My old notes were very complimentary and this is no exception. Colour still deep, Bordeaux nose of cedar wood, blackcurrants and spices, continuing onto the palate to give rich long taste. Perfect balance. WoFW 17.5/20
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5/15/2013 - Cinsault86 wrote: 93 Points
Rett fra flasken masse lær, litt krydder og modne bær som minner meg litt om de får i Château Musar. Fortsatt de klassiske kjennetegnene med jordlige toner og aske. I munnen samme som på nesen, hvor det er en del mer spice enn tidligere viner, fin syrlighet, modne lyse bær. Ikke et tanninmonster. Med luft kommer brett frem, men bare i en mengde som jeg mener gir økt kompleksitet. Fin fylde i anslag, dyp og mørk frukt mot sol- og skogsbær, flott syre. Bra lengde 93p. Dag to, etter en natt i åpen flaske. Ristet kaffe og mørk sjokolade på nesen. I munnen fin frukt, som går mot den samme mørke moccaen som så mange av vinene har hatt. Litt endimensjonal. Bedre den første dagen.
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5/4/2013 - ledwards wrote: 88 Points
Pleasant but not outstanding. Perhaps in a slightly closed down phase as the tannins were a touch flat and overall a small touch sour.
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4/27/2013 - Chim Esteban Likes this wine: 92 Points
elegant. no rough edges.
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4/19/2013 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 91 Points
The bottle was opened late the previous day and about two-thirds full when I was offered a pour. Bright, red color in the glass, lots of floral notes on the nose, mostly ripe, black cherry fruit on the nose, very aromatic for a Chateau Montrose, with a touch of earth, dust, cedar, cigar box, and spice, more of the same on the palate, a touch disappointing after the aromatics to me, still a lovely wine to sip, hints of almost fully resolved soft tannins on the aftertaste, medium/big body, medium/long finish, tasted three pours over forty-five minutes.
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3/4/2013 - jcoleman Likes this wine: 93 Points
a delightful wine with lovely blackberry flavours and cedary aromas. still some tannin here and will last
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2/25/2013 - Bogho wrote:
Drak ruby color, green and intense nose, vegetal, peppercorn, herbs, a bit closed. very young, still impressive drinking, need few more years.
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2/10/2013 - andtheodor wrote: 93 Points
Green pepper, cigar, classic Bdx character and drinking really really well. A sense of weightless intensity. Lovely, WOTN among good company.
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1/23/2013 - Harley1199 wrote:
Returning to Wine & View Bar; 1/23/2013-2/1/2013 (Vaanta Airport - Helsinki): Stronger than last Leoville in every sense: Deep-coloured, less ethereal aromas and definitively heavier on the palate. More masculine, more St. Estephe.
After all, this chimney wine was delicious also mainly for that stony notes, nose and palate, both.
It has a long life ahead so I'm rethinking what to do with that Lynch Bages of the same vintage that is sleeping in my cellar
Perhaps an outstanding serious bottle but it isn't after that marvellous Leoville-Barton.
Maybe too much serious for my mood today.
Btw avoid that perfect marinated salmon tapa. Please save it. Don't do as I did.
Más fuerte que el último Leoville en todos los sentidos: De color profundo, de menos aromas etéreos y claramente más pesado en boca. Más masculino, más St. Estephe.
Después de todo, este vino a chimenea estaba delicioso y lo era principalmente por esas notas a piedra tanto en nariz como en boca, ambos.
Tiene una larga vida por delante y estoy repensando qué hacer con mi Lynch Bages de esa misma añada que duerme en mi bodeguita.
Una botella seria fuera de lo común quizás pero no después de esa maravillosa Leoville Barton
Puede que demasiado sería para mi estado de ánimo de hoy.
Por cierto sáltate esa buena tapa de salmón marinada con esto. No como yo hice.
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1/19/2013 - Exered68 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Expected a little more from this sleeping giant. Pleasing creamy dark fruit on the tongue but increasingly smothered by pencil and wet wood.
Deep purple colour, not as much aroma as hoped. Obviously classy and very solidly structured, still a sense of heaviness pervaded throughout this one. Time had better improve or at least wake up the last two bottles.
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1/3/2013 - latimer wrote: 92 Points
Deep, black-red. Big, classic nose, loads of red & black fruit, earth & cedar. Now quite soft, long finish, I'd say this is now on its plateau of peak maturity and will be so for a good while. Great wine & value (in those days...)
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11/22/2012 - macker100 wrote: 93 Points
Turkey day selection. Consistent with 1/12 notes, still very young. Excellent tobacco, cedar, currant on nose. Slightly better than last bottle, raising score a point.
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10/14/2012 - senex Likes this wine: 94 Points
2 bottles tried on different days the last fortnight. Both decanted two hours before tasting. Great nose with chocolate. In the past this wine has all been in the nose but now the wine is starting to show its quality and follow through. Quite delicious!
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9/30/2012 - Zweder wrote: flawed
Pity, corked…..
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9/22/2012 - jkoenen wrote: flawed
Cos-Montrose Battle (Restaurant Bottles, Sas van Gent): Corked.
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9/18/2012 - lator wrote: 92 Points
No formal notes. 91-92 points.
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8/31/2012 - Backdoctor wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for an hour, wonderful soft tannins. A great compliment to my dinner. Amazing wine.
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8/2/2012 - Alex H wrote: 88 Points
Sensual alluring nose of sexy cocoa Horse leather , light roasted chestnuts and black burnt violets. Crushed plums , black satsuma plums, sweet yet enticing savory berries. A really savory sweetness on the wine with an ovehanging funkiness prevailing
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7/30/2012 - Paul S wrote: 91 Points
Guy's Night Out at Shunjuu (Extra Space / Shunjuu, Robertson Quay): A good enough wine, but severely disappointing for what it is. Popped and poured and served blind, it was really clenched and a little underwhelming when first opened, really only showing better after a couple of hours in an open bottle. I must say that it did have a wonderful nose even from the get go though - really heady stuff, redolent with plums and blackberries, tobacco and spice, twists of roasted green capsicum and lush foresty aromas - a seriously enchanting bouquet. The palate was not quite as pleasant sadly. It reminded me a bit of the 1990 in its brett-iness, but not quite in terms of quality. On first taste, it strangely had a lot more funk and mud than the nose, almost barnyardy on the attack, with a lot more leather and green capsicums at the forefront before some cool black fruit flavours emerged, ran through by slightly raspy tannins at the finish. It was a bit short at first too, only opening up with time into a tobacco-filled length. Thankfully, it softened and rounded-up, fleshing out nicely with time, so that it got much better, even showing little signs of the sappy purity of the 1996 vintage in its burgeoning cassis flavours. However, even at its very best, I felt it always remained a bit fleeting and unconvincing on the finish, with the currently tough tannins taking their toll as well. I think this will come good, but it does need a lot of time yet. I am sitting on my few bottles for at least another 5 years.
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6/1/2012 - Jamie Manley wrote: 95 Points
A well known wine critic, his name escapes me (yeah right!), once called this a "heckuva wine." I could not agree more. This is firing on all cylinders with a tank of nitrous in reserve. A big, bold , brick wall of an adolescent St. Estephe. Huge nose of iron, beef blood, green pepper (that subsides), tobacco, graphite, black cherry, cassis, and pencil. Wow! Palate ups the ante with incredible richness and delineation of the above flavors. This really is a masculine wine. Still some tannin to sort, I see nothing but upside with this wine. It will not equal the amazing 1989, but this puppy is a complete winner! 95+ Pts
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5/28/2012 - Bordeauxman wrote: 90 Points
no notes taken, but so far i have not been thrilled with this vintage of Montrose.
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5/10/2012 - Nutty08 wrote: flawed
sadly corked
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5/4/2012 - overhill wrote: 92 Points
Bordeaux night at Matt's (with wives) (Matt's house): This smells amazing right out of the gate, but was closed until the second or third hour of the dinner, at which point it opened huge. Graphite, intense minerality, unsweeted cocoa powder, and some stink. Was great by the fourth hour.
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4/21/2012 - Bordeauxman wrote: 87 Points
i do not havt my notes but this bottle was a dissapointment based on expectations. it i very possible that this bottle was an "off" bottle or that marginal storage at some point contributed to the poor showing.
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2/22/2012 - Wrighty wrote: 94 Points
Really hitting its straps now. Secondary notes of leather and tobacco but smooth and elegant with it. Has been worth the wait and sense there is still more to come.
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1/31/2012 - StefanAkiko wrote: 94 Points
Non-blind. Opened the bottle evening before, no decanting.
Nose gave a promising albeit young impression with some oak.
On the palate it was a ti-TANNIC wine with highly concentrated juicy qualities and some evidence of beginning maturity. Powerful acids like a sleek sports car that is not overly easy to appreciate for all people. Well structured for the longer haul. Throughout the evening, it slowly opened up. By the last glass, the tannins had become reduced and the mature aromas could play somewhat more freely over the tongue.
Cork was perfect! Wine was too early for our tastes. Will leave the next bottle for 7-10 years.
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1/29/2012 - DonalOB wrote: 93 Points
The Impromptu '96 Horizontal (Mine, Hong Kong): Decanted and drank over 4 hours. Beautiful nose from the start - interestingly, a little funky but perfumed, with a cherry and cassis lift. Balanced acidity and tannin on the palate - not great depth or body but fine. Quite ready now.
After 4 hours in glass this was still good - very smooth and balanced.
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1/29/2012 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank in Hong Kong
Had this with a '96 Ducru and a '96 LasCases.
Deep red with no visable aging.
Nice nose of cassis, leather, plumb and some forest floor.
Reasonably smooth with a mid length.
This was a very nice wine a compared very well compared to the LasCases. Of course the '96 Ducru blew them both away.
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1/20/2012 - macker100 wrote: 92 Points
St. Estephe night. Quite young compared to other wines at the table. Despite being only 6 years from the '90, seemed like a decade in terms of maturity. Nose had more in common with the Cos, more black cherries, cedar, plums. Palate had very thick black fruits, expresso, leather. Still tannic finish, needing obvious time. Is this going the same direction as the '70?
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1/20/2012 - Nutty08 wrote: 93 Points
St. Estephe Night (Home of Mike and Sandra O.): So youthful compared to the other Montrose. Never decanted but followed over several hours. Expressive nose from the get go, with definite barnyard funk, black currants and espresso. Palate was sharply define, quite tannic, but lush dark fruit, mild bell pepper and a tannic dry finish than hangs on the palate with a cedar and espresso edge. This is really put together nicely, but will need another decade to soften based on the other wines in this tasting.
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1/9/2012 - DougLee wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for about 2.5 hours. Nice dark brick-red color. Nose was full of peat, black currant, cedar, and forest floor after popping the cork, then turned quite funky and foul after about an hour in the decanter. Later the nose reverted to deeply-pitched red currant along with cedar and underbrush. Tasted after the long decant, the palate exhibited a soft attack with low acidity but also lots of tobacco, red currant, and smoky backberry notes which deepened as time went on. More grip developed at the end of each sip, with a feathery finish of forest floor, sweet plum, and tobacco. Tannins quite burnished. Lovely wine, beautiful in its balance of elegance and persistence. From a 375.
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1/7/2012 - joshwoodward wrote: 90 Points
This has all the flavors I look for in Bordeaux, and complexity by the boatload, but it seems a little too austere for me. I wanted just a hint more body. Great concentration, drinking well.
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1/1/2012 - hoservin wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for 3 hours. Fruity nose with blackberry, tobacco, spice, and leather notes. Medium-to-full bodied. Blackberry with integrated tannins on the mid-palate. Medium length, dry finish. Paired well with roast duck.
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12/31/2011 - Fnyslund wrote: 91 Points
Dekanterad två timmar. Mycket parfymerad doft. Röda bär, vegetation, örter, vanilj, bittermandel, jord och ek. Mer platt än förväntat men ändå ett mycket bra vin och typisk Bourdeauxblend. Saknar lite kraft och är mer silkig och elegant än explosiv.
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12/15/2011 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Welcoming Craig C to DC - Marks duckhouse Part 1 (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): Barry mentioned that the fruit is not too sweet and I agree. This is a classic 96 and a classic Montrose. Incredibly perfumed nose, crushed blue and black berries, cedar, earth and etc. Excellent concentration with the structure to last. The nose reminded me the 89. A great showing and open for business. Pop and pour.
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11/18/2011 - Mivvy wrote: 95 Points
Crimson in colour. Really lively nose, cranberries and crushed berries. Medium to full bodied, has lots going on - really concentrated, some dark fruit, smoked ham, and finishes long with some well balanced chunky tannins. Remains well balanced throughout and great texture - very refreshing. Lovely wine.
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11/7/2011 - Ary Likes this wine: 93 Points
Mature Left Bank Bordeaux (semi blind) (Wijnantiquariaat Amsterdam): Ripe accessible - red fruit, chocolate and herbs in the nose. Powerful, again herbs, chocolate, kirsch and mineral notes. Also secundary tones as leather and wood. Integrated tannins and substance for a long future. Really pleasant wine, in a similar style as 1989 Montrose.
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10/24/2011 - lumpyelbow wrote: 92 Points
Fete de Bordeaux (Centro, Toronto): No notes but loved it.
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10/16/2011 - jreis wrote:
Decanted and consumed over 2 hours. Graphite, black pepper, leather, dark earth and sweet black friit on the nose. Still quite young on the palate, with persistent tannins but really nice sappy black fruit, mint and leather. Just starting to come into its drinking window and will only improve with age. Outstanding.
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10/9/2011 - rstark wrote: 94 Points
Man, this wine is right in my wheelhouse. Great nose of pencil lead, dark fruit, just the right amount of earth (of the wet variety). Palate is delish plum/deep berry fruit, some minerality and nice balanced finish, altho a little "too elegant" for the Cali-whores I was drinking with. Just one more example where '96 SOOOOo eclipses '95. How could Parker and WS got the vintages so wrong? Every '95 I've had lately tastes watery and next-to-no secondary characteristic. Buying as much '96 as possible.
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9/3/2011 - Chrisw97 wrote: 94 Points
After minimal decanting this was already opening up nicely. Beautiful flowers, dark berry, dried fruit, smoke and crushed stone on the nose. A great interplay of minerality and fruit on the palate, slightly austere. 30 second finish with the tannins already having integrated well and taking a back seat. After another 2 hours this started to shut down slightly or simply wore off. Thats part of the reason that this wine does not achieve a 95+ score, but has the elegance and complexity that left me returning to the glass time again. It was also the most popular wine of that evening. Formidable!
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9/1/2011 - Wine_lvr wrote: 94 Points
Montrose Vertical Tasting 1989 - 2005 (Work in Progress) (Switzerland): Note to follow
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7/23/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 90 Points
Crushed stone, tobacco, cassis, spice, cigar box, earth and barnyard aromas are found with only a little swirling. The nose is the best part of this Bordeaux wine. Full bodied, powerful, tannic and with an austere leaning, this vintage of Montrose is more of an old school style of St. Estephe. The wine was produced from a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.
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7/16/2011 - jakuda wrote:
Double decanted off sediment back into the cleaned bottle and re-corked for ~4 hours. No formal notes taken. Leather and some high toned red fruit. Medium-full bodied with great acids, gentle tannins, that reminds me of pinot-finesse. Spicy, lengthy finish again not lacking acid. More of a "classic" styled Bordeaux with some bottle age. Can be enjoyed now.
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4/24/2011 - hoservin Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted for 3 hours. Rudy red color. Blackberry, black currants, tobacco, leather, and spice aromas and flavors. Medium bodied. Blackberry and velvet smooth tannins on the mid-palate. Good acidity and a long aftertaste. Paired well with lamb.
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2/28/2011 - MRichman wrote:
1996 Bordeaux Horizontal (Harry's, NYC): Strong, big, muscular. Juicy. Wonderful fruit with some black tar. Needs time.
B+/A-
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2/11/2011 - joshbryer Likes this wine:
Still extremely young. Saddle leather and smoke on the nose with flint and morel. A bit thin but showing deep black fruit with richness and density that will quite obviously round out and gain weight. Very enjoyable and light on it's feet. In a word, Sophisticated. Give it 10 years and this will be fantastic.
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1/29/2011 - tplskylrk wrote:
Think I drank this during Mike's trip. All I recall was it was supereb. Great stuff.
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1/7/2011 - jreis wrote:
I don't mind a little brett, but this had bottle had been used to shampoo a horse and then rebottled. Unfotrunate, because you could sense the blackberry fruit, white pepper and tobacco notes were there along with elegant texture and tannins that were starting to resolve, but the brett overwhelmed everything. A lovely 96 Mondavi Reserve outclassed this bottle.
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1/5/2011 - gsquireh wrote: 94 Points
Purple royal full-bodied and beautifully balanced - a great mid palate with rich and luscious fruit, sweet tannin, and Smucker's black current make this North Carolina toasty tobacco, multi-dimensional marvel much better than many give it credit for. A finish to dream about.
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12/20/2010 - AleksanderDye wrote: 93 Points
fantastisk vin! duft av kjøttflulle kirsebær og moreller samt blåbær. veldig lang ettersmak
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12/15/2010 - CHarder wrote: 92 Points
not as big as expected but very rounded and elegant. Coming into its prime. Opened up after a couple of hours in decanter.
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12/4/2010 - Papies wrote: 92 Points
Papi Birthday Dinner (The Papies, London): From magnum. Opened 2 hours ahead but no decanting and does not need it. On open the wine had a beautifull elegant nose which unfortunately died off a bit towards the end. Ina way for us a tipical of the avg Montrose vintages, leads with nose bt the body fails to match the level of sophistication (hence a 92+ and not a 95). Still very elegant and hard not to like especially if you are bordeaux fan like us. Could use some more density on the palate but away from that a beautifull bottle. A bit of burgandian feel to it if we might add. Drink now and do not decant. 92+
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12/4/2010 - rjlud wrote: 94 Points
Double magnum purchased from a UK wine merchant and stored the last 5 years. Opened for Thanksgiving in Amsterdam (brought the celebration back to the original Pilgrim hosts). Partially double decanted 3 and 1 hours prior to dinner. Fantastic wine, and one of my favorite typical St. Estephe's. Much younger than the last 2 '96's I've had out of the bottle. Sweet, balanced, elegant, lots of minerals, like chewing on an iron bar. Some spice and smoke and a nice long finish. Went quite well with the Turkey, stuffing and assorted spiced veggie dishes. With 14 at dinner, it went quickly.
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11/25/2010 - Ho Bryan wrote: 89 Points
Fine, but not exciting. Didn't enjoy this as much as some of the lesser vintages. Backward and chewy, and extremely tannic.
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11/3/2010 - envirovino wrote: 91 Points
Not as memorable as 2 years ago. Just seemed rather closed - maybe not long enough decant. Earth and leather, musty, darker fruits, relatively balanced but with a sense the fruit never really opened. Was enjoyable but not epic.
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10/20/2010 - Pacalet wrote: 91 Points
Nice dark berries and earthy tones, pretty long but subtle finish. Nothing particularly stands out but a decent bottle of Bordeaux.
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7/2/2010 - JimHow wrote: 91 Points
I keep reaching for more with this wine-- hoping it will get to that next level-- but it never seems to get there. This evening was no different. It is an interesting wine, which evolved in the glass throughout the course of the evening. A musty aroma at the outset that blew off quickly. Deep ruby color, lightening at the rim. Earthy, spicy, shitty. A classic St. Estephe. It merits some extra points for its complexity and layers, but in the end it hits a wall. It is a good but not great wine. It'll last for at least another decade but I don't see it getting any better. Notwithstanding the sort of negative tone of this note, I nonetheless in the end enjoyed this wine, it is an "interesting" effort, a fun wine to analyze.
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5/9/2010 - elbosco wrote: 91 Points
Deep purple with slight clearing to rim. Restrained but pleasant nose. Earth and leather predominate over flagging fruit. Soft, resolved tannins. Not a blockbuster Montrose but drinking very nicely now.
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4/1/2010 - micha_e wrote: 94 Points
In a great place. Open, aromatic and aristocratic structure. Very impressive, and obviously a well-stored bottle from auction. And very clean (no brett at all!). Drink now to 2025.
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3/13/2010 - samer wrote: 90 Points
aging nicely with lighter tannins, balanced fruit, and a mix of spices like nutmeg. There was a little chalkiness in the finish but all agreed that the wine was probably peaking.
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2/27/2010 - jim_crane Likes this wine:
No official notes taken and no score given. Popped and poured. Clear, burgundy to brick red. Nose was mature with earth and dried fruit notes. The palate was smooth! It continued the earth and dried berry fruit notes picking up some oak or cedar. Just awesome! Easily an A.
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2/27/2010 - Alex H wrote: 89 Points
Kelvin's Bachelor Nite Dinner (Braise): Exotic scented incense, old world spices, dark fruited and a peppering of talcum powder. Layered mouthfeel of rich medium bodied black currants framed by fine cow leather. Long licourice-tinged finish that lingers attractively. Nicely rounded tannins , this is drinking at the start of its peak now.
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2/18/2010 - Wrighty wrote:
An extra year has improved this. Still the stinky nose on opening but didn't last. Nose became reticent but there were earthy notes, some leather and tobacco. Very well integrated and balanced which reall. Stood out and overall a very good wine leaving me wanting to open more.
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12/11/2009 - the player wrote: 89 Points
I've been eager to try this wine for a while and last night's dinner at my house was the perfect occasion. A good wine but nothing to write home about. Nose very earthy, tar, leather, hints of cigar box but overshadowed in the first hour by le poopoo nose which balances out after 3 - 4 hours between decanting and time in the glass. Good attack on the palate but a very one-dimensional wine, shy in fruit but nice smooth tannins and decent finish. Would like to try the Cos D'Estournel of the same vintage so I can fully rate / compare this wine.
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12/10/2009 - jpijg wrote: 91 Points
Nose of blackcurrent, tar, cigarbox, liquorice and soil. In the mouth, flavours of cigarbox, tar and liquorice. the wine is extremely powerfull with a distinctive masculine character. Strongly built tannins have the potential to last several more decades. The wine is concentrated and extremely balanced, but still a bit tight and below its potential.
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11/3/2009 - samer wrote: 91 Points
very earthy yet bold fruit on the nose, a bit tannic on the tongue at first but then opened up after an hour and felt a bit softer...went well with rigatoni sausage/tomatoes/artichokes...feel like this will still be good for 5-6 more years at least.
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10/24/2009 - samer wrote: 91 Points
quite barnyard/dirt/le poopoo on the nose but more open and drinkable than the bottle from one year ago
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9/9/2009 - jakob.krummenacher@gmail.com wrote: 89 Points
Elegant and with the typical St Estephe complexity. However, a bit subdue and refine as to not representing the hot year which is known for full and powerful wines. Very enjoyable with light dishes. Drink now-2015.
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9/8/2009 - cfe wrote:
dark purple, a bit reserved nose, thick palate weight, packed with fruit, and still not yet at it's peak. Enjoyavle enough to drink now, but hold until 2012.
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9/6/2009 - Highlander wrote:
Although this is one of my favorite wines in all of France....this vintage has disappointed me in the several times I have tired it. Opened last night and decanted for over an hour, but still the wine was out of balance. The fruit (the little that there was), was covered up by the dry, very dry, earthy taste. The wine seems to lack the structure of the many other Montrose vintages. This wine seemed to be somewhat of a lightweight in all areas but earthyness. The last glass....3 hours from opening, tasted marginally better than the others, but maybe I was just used to the dry taste by then. I will try to decant this for 3 hours the next time I open one.
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8/18/2009 - gsa wrote: 93 Points
Showed very well. Decanted for 45 minutes. Beautiful nose. Classic Bordeuax. Will keep fopr some time, but you will not feel guilty about opening these now. Am going to buy a few more.
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8/18/2009 - MRichman wrote:
Montrose vertical (Dylan Prime, NYC): Smooth, dense and serious with some dark notes. Still needs some time. Will blossom nicely but not ready yet. Dry tannic finish. This has a darker profile than the 1995.
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7/18/2009 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:
There’s a little band aid brett that mutes a somewhat expressive nose of cedar and cassis. It is rich and meaty in the mouth with good density and a nice vein of underlying minerality. It does breathe up to show some nice florals and perfumes, needs a bit more time.
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3/30/2009 - Invinoverytas wrote: 90 Points
Very nice, soft tannins, slightly acidic and thin on the fruit
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2/3/2009 - KeithAkers wrote: 92 Points
a night at michael (michael, winnetka IL): nose: this is just classic montrose and right up the alley of many 96s that I've had. It's just pure northern medoc bordeaux in its most unadulterated form with loads of cedar, leather, black cherries, rich cassis tones, and a touch of barnyard to bring it back home
taste: great full bodied feel with a good amount of cedar, black cherries, leather, sour cranberry, a touch of animal hides and some black currants. Good tannins and is starting to show really well for such a young montrose
overall: a classic montrose with a really good full body. This has miles to go before it hits its full stride, but its starting to drink great right now
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2/3/2009 - jordanj wrote: 93 Points
Casual dinner at Michael (WINNETKA IL): Over achiever of the night. Typical tells of great vintages of Montrose. More in the style of the 1990 than say the 1989. Nose of truffles, horse and rich animal fur, red and dark fruits and good wood. Surprisingly lush and smooth in the mouth with decent balance. This wine was one of the better 1996s I have had and was really enjoyable.
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1/22/2009 - pbjosh wrote: 93 Points
Very silky and mineral with green tobacco, powdered earth, red cherry, cassis and violets. Sweet fruit and some remaining (though not obtrusive) chalky tannin. Lengthy finish with plenty of grip again. Give it a solid 5+ years to develop yet though. Lots of upside.
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1/20/2009 - beachbum wrote: 94 Points
Montrose Vertical Blind
1 hoiur decant
everybody thought this a brett bomb
I will admit it was different than the rest, but i DID NOT think it was off
my notes said this was f-ing great, bretty and funk some of the classic montrose but with big extract and huge sugar cherry taste
did not behave properly later in the evening - so maybe the others were correct
I would not notice if i opened it on it's own
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1/18/2009 - peternelson wrote: 92 Points
Tom A: Beaut. bal, sweet notes, soft, beaut. & nice frt, good softer fin.
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1/18/2009 - WetRock wrote:
EWG Bordeaux with Flannery and a couple Champers (Tom Altmayer's): The nose shows pencil lead and tobacco initially and becomes very perfumey later on. Tight and young palate with a classicly lovely finish. Excellent.
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12/16/2008 - Wrighty wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for 1 hour but still had stinky nose. This faded to reveal some earth and later smoke. Started poor but came round which suggest it needs more time.
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11/6/2008 - prez wrote: 92 Points
Great balance and lenghty finish.
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10/11/2008 - envirovino wrote: 94 Points
Excellent, super balanced. Complex, mouth filling and long finish. Had with 96 Calon Segur.
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10/3/2008 - samer wrote: 90 Points
A deep nose of tobacco and cassis belie a fairly bitter, tannic, chalky wine that probably needs another 5-10 years to really open up, although out in the glass for an hour improved the wine a bit.
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9/14/2008 - chbeaumont wrote: 92 Points
Deep; restrained, tight & yet fragrant; real Montrose, powerful. tremendous length. Needs 10 years. 17 >.
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9/13/2008 - GalvezGuy wrote: 92 Points
Decnated for two hours. Deep ruby color. Pure cassis on the nose along with toast, tobacco, graphite, and leather. The cassis repeats on the palate with tobacco and leather. Still hard as nails with a tight tannic finish. Let the rest sleep for at least 10 years.
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9/12/2008 - Paul D wrote:
UK Wine Pages - Chateau Montrose Vertical (Le Colombier, Kensington, London.): Deep, pure cassis fruit on the nose, markedly more open than the 95 without, as yet, the complexity of the 94. Deep, sleek and balanced across the palate, with tobaccoey black fruit and soil notes on an extended finish. ***(*1/2)
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5/26/2008 - 60ouvrees wrote:
At first this seemed a little shrill and I'm still wondering if it wasn't a perfect bottle. It eventually opened up to the point where it was enjoyable to drink but never really reached the heights that I expected it to reach.
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3/26/2008 - DKim wrote: 88 Points
Had high hopes but rather disappointed. Great Bordeaux nose, but the wine itself almost a little thin and washed out on the palate
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12/24/2007 - loverboy wrote: 92 Points
Very impressive bordeaux nose. Still quite hard tannin. Very gooddddd
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12/21/2007 - tewino wrote: 93 Points
Classic west bank. Great fruit and smoke. Tannic still
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11/19/2007 - Art_Vandelay wrote: 92 Points
Sweet blackfruits, cedar oak, pain grille and slightly leafy notes on the nose. Full, dense , close-knit palate with excellent purity, full but fine tannins and a long finish. Best from 2010.
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9/8/2007 - NavyGrog wrote: 92 Points
Drank with Kevin Mistry with Staek au poivre. Vey nice. As you might a St Estephe to be is was a bit austere, but had a nice long finish.
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7/18/2007 - winefool wrote: 92 Points
1996 Bordeaux Horizontal (Custom House): Medium nose of black fruit and pencil lead. Tight tannic black fruit with lots of stuffing, but big tough tannins as well. Needs a lot of time to shine.
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7/18/2007 - Nanda wrote: 91 Points
1996 Bordeaux Horizontal (Custom House - Chicago, IL): Reticent nose shyly offers some black fruits and spice. Palate is full-bodied with dark fruits and brooding tannic structure. Not ready.
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6/29/2007 - Terkel wrote: 92 Points
French wines 1996 tasting (DTV): Nose of dark soil and earthy ripe dark berries. Not giving much away. The taste has dark berries, dark cherry, blackcurrant and lots of bitter dark chocolate and tobaco. Lots of power in the tannins, very tight, but big structure and nice complexity.
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4/7/2007 - Jozefs wrote: 93 Points
Decanted in wide open decanter from cold cellar at 17:30. Took a sip: promising. Nice berry fruit, good acidity, seems to have come out of it tannic shell. Let's see how this evolves over the course of the evening. After a few hours in the decanter this became somewhat better integrated, with a nice balance between fruit, spices, acidity and tannins. However, it is clear this has still more potential and is only just at the start of its ideal drinking window.
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3/5/2007 - cvvhrn wrote: 93 Points
Another great bottle and it followed on the heels of a 97 Rubicon and held up quite well. Hints of berries and a bit of spice, with anise and more fruit on the palate with a great finish.
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2/11/2007 - BailliSacks wrote: 92 Points
Stern, upright, austere. Less bottom than I expected, though it might just be masked by the strong tannins and sharp top notes of acidity. Needs age. Nose and palate contain the characteristic lush St Estephe center of velvet fruit (cherry, blackberry) and pepper (black and red), but these are upstaged at this point. Opened significantly after 3+ hours in decanter, bringing fruit and pepper forward somewhat.
A very interesting contrast to previous evening's Cos d'Estournel of same vintage, which was far more approachable (see note).
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2/4/2007 - Rob MacKay wrote: 92 Points
Opened at 55 degrees and let it sit for 30 mins while it slowly came up to room temp as we prepared dinner. It has that big, earthy, St. Estephe nose with notes of the dark fruit still in the background. Dark ruby color with no signs of showing its relatively young age at this point. Medium bodied and very dry with mocha and tobacco mixed with subtle dark fruits. The finish is quite long and still a little tannic. Perhaps a couple of hours in the decanter is a good idea for the next bottle. Went very well with New York steak off the grill and sun-dried tomato and garlic fettucini.
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12/10/2006 - Grinner wrote: 92 Points
Cedar and earthy notes add to the dark fruit. Elegant yet still some classic St Estephe muscle and excellent length. We didn't finish many of the 33 bottles on day 1 but this was drinking so well...
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11/17/2006 - Wrighty wrote: 93 Points
Birthday dinner (Crown Wine Cellars, Hong Kong): Complex and balanced. Evolved over the evening.
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10/10/2006 - pbjosh wrote:
Heat damaged or otherwise off. Still showed earth/iron/blood/funk but basically bitter and fruitless. Will try another from this batch soon as this is completely unlike a previous bottle.
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5/8/2006 - MRichman wrote:
1996 Bordeaux Horizontal: Dense, thick, concentrated. Some menthol. Some funk.
B+/A-
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3/28/2006 - beachbum wrote: 94 Points
Toronto Offline at Reds with Ian Darshan Cauble: Similar to the 1995 nose, just ramped up a bit showing tobacco and dark fruit. The palet was very tight, as can be expectd, it just has a bit more of everything than the 1995. Will go a lot further. Lots of tannins. I found the wine very distinctive, unlike the Cos, the sterness of St Estephe that let's you know it is Montrose.
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12/24/2005 - MarkC wrote: 91 Points
This is, admittedly, not my style of wine. There was a bunch of brett-like smell on the initial nose, but most of this blew off after decanting. The fruits were dark. There was some cedar shavings, maybe some sage, and an earthy component. It's a good wine for those who like this style - anybody want to buy the rest of mine?
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11/23/2005 - ATBridge wrote: 89 Points
Tight nose that eventually revealed strawberry and damp soil. I tasted this on opening, 2 hours, 8 hours, and 24 hours and each time there were astringent, mouth coating tannins with minimal fruit that progressed to an acidic finish that never really softened. I won't open another for a few years.
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11/10/2005 - pbjosh wrote: 93 Points
Opened 3 hrs and left in bottle. Deep ruby red, very fine and quite large nose, extremely smooth mouthfeel with lots of fruit, licorice, smokiness/tar/leather flavors, nice complexity. Finishes decently long and notably smooth.
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11/1/2005 - rhansen wrote: 93 Points
Should have decanted this bad boy for a couple of hours, but alas it was a last minute pull of the trigger.
Pulled and poured, then tasted over an hour with a Filet.
Classic St. Estephe nose. Initial taste was that remarkable damn stinky feet bordeaux taste.
After 30 minutes it was smoothing out into an outstanding glass of wine. Wonderful leather, tobacco and mixed black & red fruit.
I would probably give this one at least another 2 years...
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9/5/2005 - espia wrote:
Still young, nice classic bdx aromas, showed better than the Cos
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3/22/2005 - hcampana wrote: 91 Points
The 3 Tenors of Saint Estephe (Calon, Cos & Montrose): 1982, 1990, 1995, 1996 & 2000 (New York City, NY): Wine No. 1 (1996 Montrose)
Dark ruby with amber hues. Nose of earth, spice and black cherry. Medium to full bodied with obvious tannin that is not harsh. Finish was earthy and medium in length. It had the most evoled color and nose of this flight. I guessed this was Cos and missed. 91 points . I did not write down the group voting in this flight.
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10/25/2003 - CSteefel wrote: 94 Points
My choice for wine of the Flight. Dark ruby red with a touch of garnet showing up at the rim. Rich seamless nose of slightly roasted cassis showing excellent balance. In the mouth, a vigorous fruit-driven attack followed by mouth-coating fine tannins on the finish. Big step up here from Flight 1.
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10/10/2003 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 82 Points
An even, slightly young colour. Earthy, mushroomy nose. Very lovely palate. But fades very quickly in the mouth. I know this is verging on the heretical, but I find this a bit average.
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10/20/2000 - Bandreas wrote:
Tasted at the California Wine Experience, NY "Top Ten Tasting"
Same dark color as Cos d'Estournel, but has much more fruit: it almost jumps out of the glass. Quite forward.
On palate round and forward, quite pleasant. To evolve into a great wine it needs to open up and reveal considerable more grace, fruit and charm.
Will it be able to do that?
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12/13/1998 - Zweder wrote: 93 Points
Enormous concentration, a lot of black fruits. Complex. A very complete wine.
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