Chateau Montrose Saint-Estephe Grand Cru Classe 2015 (Pre-Arrival)

Château Montrose is a classic Saint-Estephe producer that has long been considered a supreme value for top-growth Bordeaux. 98 points for a Second Growth shows its quality and pedigree...but under $160? That’s a great price for such a Bordeaux as this – but only 8 cases are available! This beauty will land in early Spring 2024, but grab yours today!

Château Montrose was founded by Etienne Théodore Dumoulin, as he discovered a patch of forgotten heathland whilst exploring the family holdings following his father’s death. The land had been sold to the family by Nicolas Alexandre de Ségur – Bordeaux’s legendary “Prince of Vines” who had also served as owner to a few estates you may have heard of… namely, Château Lafite, Château Latour, Château Mouton, and Château Calon-Ségur. Etienne cleared the heather and planted the first vineyards, creating the Montrose estate in 1815. A mere 40 years later, Montrose was awarded Second Growth status in the 1855 Bordeaux Classification – a huge surprise among many of the long-standing great estates of the day. Two centuries of excellence have affirmed the selection, and Château Montrose remains one of Bordeaux’s greatest values.

Set in Saint-Estèphe along the Gironde estuary, in the northernmost commune of Bordeaux lies Château Montrose. The close proximity to the Atlantic and the greater width of the Gironde at this point makes for a cool, yet moderated climate, with the vines flourishing on the rocky and gravelly alluvial soil deposits on this Left Bank site. The blend here is a rather classic 67% cabernet sauvignon, 29% merlot, and 4% cabernet franc – from a vintage that is primed to be an all-time Bordeaux great!

This wine pulses with a dense and deep color, followed by an intensely complex, perfumed, and elegant nose. The aromas of violets, lavender, and peonies lead into flavors of blackcurrant, blackberry berry, and rich plums, with additional notes of smoke, graphite, and creamy mocha and chocolate. The wine possesses a precise attack – where velvety tannins and a smooth, dense mid-palate are loaded with nuanced and expressive flavors, leading into a long and elegant finish that finishes with a flash of oak and a bite of toasted anise seed. This is a wine of pure class, extraordinary elegance, and admirable poise that is just entering the prime of its easily three-decade long drinking window. If you’re looking for the newest addition to your cellar, or just an amazing bottle of wine to have at a special dinner a few years from now – look no further!