2025 Montrose (St-Estephe)

The 2025 Montrose only comes from the Terrace IV, as has been the way since the 2023 vintage. It was picked from August 29 and finished not until September 20, so quite a long harvest, 16 days of picking between those dates. This vintage is matured in 60% new oak. This has another very intense nose with a potent graphite element that infuses the black fruit, beautifully defined but unapologetically classical in style. Wow. The purity of fruit is exceptional. The palate is medium-bodied with supple, very chiselled tannins, exquisite black fruit loaded with mineralite. So much freshness and vibrancy, gentle but insistent grip, very precise and refined on the finish, this is a Montrose that will rank as one for the ages. Wow (again). 98-100 points

Deep and nuanced plum fruit on the opening, vivid ruby in colour with tension, lift and estate signature. An extremely classic Montrose, love the lift with the depth of cassis, cocoa bean, liquorice, crushed mint leaf, squid ink, crayon, a supremely Left Bank wine, very much in the 2023 vein for me, which was a vintage I adored. This has precision and beauty, the kind of En Primeur sample where you feel fresh and energised at the end of tasting it. 60% new oak for ageing, Pierre Graffeuille director. 97 points

The 2025 Montrose is a very quiet, sophisticated Montrose. Silky tannins, lifted aromatics and mid-weight structure are the signatures. Time in the glass brings out lovely red-toned fruit character, along with hints of spice, blood orange, cedar and sweet pipe tobacco. It will be interesting to see how the 2025 develops with elevage. Today, it is a bit on the lighter side relative to the norm here. Some of that may be attributable to winemaking. 95-97 points

A timeless classic in the making, the 2025 Montrose unfurls in the glass with notes of dark berries, black truffle, burning embers and violets, gaining in range and detail with aeration. Full-bodied, dense and elegantly muscular, it`s layered and multidimensional, with a prodigiously concentrated core of fruit, exceptional quality of tannin and a long, resonant finish. The 2025 is a blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc, derived exclusively from the estate`s historic core on the fourth terrace situated just in front of the chateau itself. With a pH of 3.65 and 13.4% alcohol, it remains classically balanced despite its impressive power and intensity. Readers will have a fascinating time parsing the nuances of style and quality between the 2025, 2023 and 2022 over the decades to come! 98-100 points