2018 du Tertre (Margaux)

A touch subdued on the nose, this is an extremely accomplished wine that`s full of pleasure. It holds itself back for a few minutes and you can feel the concentration that comes from small berry size, from a yield of 36hl/ha - pretty good for 2018 considering the gravel and sand terroir will have suffered in the dry summer. But it opens in the glass to reveal bouncy tannins and a layer of slatey minerality that you push up against on the finish. Vinified at 25°C. 50% new oak. 14% Petit Verdot makes up the blend. Drink 2025 - 2038. 92 points

30% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Cabernet Franc, 14% Petit Verdot. 50% of the crop went into the grand vin – less than usual. 50% new oak. Darker and more savoury than the Sirène de Giscours, tasted alongside, with a fine note of crushed rocks. Really pure, delicately floral, smells – and tastes – elegant. Fine texture, dry tannic finesse. Unusually pretty in this vintage. Lots of freshness through to the finish. Already showing real refinement when many wines are too concentrated to show their likely future. 17 points

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 du Tertre is a little reduced to begin, opening out to notions of baked plums, warm cassis and dried mulberries with hints of tar, chargrill and black pepper plus a waft of bouquet garni. Full-bodied with a firm, chewy frame, it has a good amount of baked berries and herbal flavors with a sage-laced finish. 89-91 points

The 2018 du Tertre is dense and powerful. Scorched earth, game, tobacco, licorice and incense give the 2018 its decidedly feral, pungent character. The 2018 seems quite marked by the radiant intensity of Merlot in its fruit and Petit Verdot in its savory overtones. The blend is 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc and 14% Petit Verdot. 89-92 points

The blend is 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc and 14% Petit Verdot, with a yield of 36 hl/ha, and the declared alcohol is 13.9%. It is dark, smoky, slightly reductive, but clearly showing its substance and mettle. The palate shows a creamed substance at the very start which is not as common in the appellation as it should be I feel, along with a wealth of chocolate and coffee-tinged tannins, with plenty of peppery energy and vivacity, and some lightly roasted fruits. This is a huge, bold and broad effort from the team at Château du Tertre, rich and broad on the palate, and it calls to mind the substance and structure of 2010 more than many in the commune. A success here; well done. The élevage here will be in 50% new oak. 92-94 points