Montrose - Saint-Estèphe 2023

Jeb DUNNUCK

100

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/31/2026

One of the wines of the vintage, the 2023 Château Montrose sports a vivid purple hue as well as awesome aromatics of crème de cassis, fresh blackcurrants, graphite, crushed stone, tobacco, and violets. It's medium to full-bodied and has a concentrated, layered, seamless mouthfeel, flawless balance, fine polished tannins, and a blockbuster of a finish. Based on 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc and aged 18 months in 60% new French oak, it stays in the more aristocratic style of the vintage and is an utterly sensational, deep, multi-dimensional Montrose. It's one for the ages, yet I suspect it will be approachable within a reasonable time frame as well. Drink 2030-2078.

The Wine Cellar Insider

100

byJeff Levethe3/30/2026

Simply off the hook in every sense of the word, this is what great wine is all about. For those that crave more details, in the aromatics, with little effort you find smoke, mint, licorice, exotic spices, flowers, crushed rocks, black raspberry, blackberries and currants On the show-stopping palate, there is a gorgeous sense of purity, as well as power, balanced with lift, and elegance. The wine is long, complex, and refined. The wine is intense and refined, with a lingering, expansive finish that hits the 60 second mark and keeps on going as it builds and escalates. The wine is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. Drink from 2030-2065.

Vinous

96

byAntonio Gallonithe3/16/2026

The 2023 Montrose represents just 35% of the estate's property. It is one of the most finessed Grand Vins I have tasted here. Specifically, the tannins are so refined, so well integrated into the wine's fabric. Dark-toned fruit, grilled herbs, new leather, cedar and mocha add to an impression of virile intensity.

Vinous

97

byNeal Martinthe2/1/2026

The 2023 Montrose was one of my favourite wines from barrel. Now in bottle since July, this fulfils its promise with an intense nose of blackberry, violet and mint, giving it a subtle Pauillac-like allure. The fruit is incredibly pure here. The palate is medium-bodied with chiselled, pliant tannins that lend this Montrose a little more fluidity than I estimated from barrel. Very harmonious, really poised and long, this remains one of the finest Left Bank 2023s.

Jamessuckling.com

100

byJames Sucklingthe1/27/2026

A new benchmark for Montrose. Extremely aromatic and beautiful, with lavender, violets, pencil shavings and black currants on the nose. Complex and medium-bodied. The muscular structure and intensity are something else. The purity of fruit is dreamy. Marks a new era for Montrose. It is now made from only 45 hectares of vineyards right in front of the chateau instead of about 60 hectares before. From organically grown grapes. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 21% merlot and 4% cabernet franc. Best after 2030.

My Bettane + Desseauve

94-95

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/15/2024

Ferme, minéral, grande garde probable pour un montrose fidèle à sa classe habituelle. La propriété a décidé de recentrer les origines de son grand vin sur le cœur de son terroir.

Yvesbeck.wine

99-100

byYves Beckthe5/14/2024

Das Bouquet von Montrose hat eine sehr klare, gut lesbare Botschaft, mit einer Selbstverständlichkeit, die Glück, Authentizität und Komplexität vereint. So viel Frische, Frucht, Intensität und vor allem Harmonie. Selbst in einem Kontext der Intensität hat jede Komponente ihren Platz, keine ist dominant... außer dem außergewöhnlichen Niveau vielleicht! Eine subtile Symbiose aus Terroir, dunklen Beeren, Pfefferminze und u.v.a. Am Gaumen positioniert sich Montrose auf imposante Weise, nicht indem er seine Stimme erhebt, sondern indem er klar und gelassen vermittelt, wer er ist und wohin er zu gehen gedenkt. Die kräftigen Tannine stehen bestens im Einklang mit der Spannung, die die Säurestruktur verleiht. Sie bildet eine schöne Frische und fördert die aromatische Intensität des Abgangs, der zudem lang anhaltend ist. Ein Wein von seltener Finesse und stiller Kraft. Er ist ein sehr großer Wein und zählt zu den ganz großen 2023ern von Bordeaux!

Jeb DUNNUCK

97-100

byJeb Dunnuckthe5/13/2024

Made from a strict selection of only the best terroirs (terrace 4) around the estate and the oldest vines, the 2023 Château Montrose is a more Cabernet Sauvignon-driven wine than normal and is based on 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc that will see 18 months in 60% new French oak. The result is a more plush, deep, opulent wine that has classic Montrose darker, almost blue fruits, violets, chocolate, and damp earth-like aromas and flavors. Deep, rich, full-bodied, and expansive on the palate, it has more richness, breadth, and concentration than just about every other wine in the vintage. The 2023 hit 13.5% natural alcohol with a pH of 3.7. It has some similarities to the 2010 (or 2016?) and might end up being the wine of the vintage.

Decanter.com

98

byGeorgina Hindlethe5/7/2024

So floral and aromatic, really inviting and welcoming on the nose, more aromatic than some. Smooth and intense, clearly concentrated but supple and bouncy, there’s movement to this, it’s not strict. So precise, and finessed, you can feel the edges of the fine tannins - well executed with a mineral grip underneath. You can tell there’s power here, it has muscles but sinew also. Quite demonstrative really - it’s flexing but keeps such a clear line of focus and cool blue fruit with graphite and liquorice too. Round and penetrating with an excellent weight and balance of acidity in the mouth while keeping harmony alongside a hint of sweet and just-ripe strawberries mostly with crunchy cranberry too. A lot to like here. Great effort, classy and comfortable - multi-faceted while still being so juicy and approachable. 60% new oak, ageing in barrels only for 18 months. 3.7pH. 13.6% press wine (300 barrels of press split into seven qualities). 35% grand vin in total, mainly from the old vines which is 45% of the vineyard but 35% of the crop. 48hl/ha yield.

The Drinks Business

98-100

byColin Haythe5/7/2024

Montrose (St-Estèphe; 75% Cabernet Sauvignon; 21% Merlot; 4% Cabernet Franc; for the first time at least in recent history the grand vin in 2023 is sourced exclusively from the 45 hectares of vines planted on Terrace 4, the historic core of the vineyard as classified in 1855; a wine from the 12 hectares planted on Terrace 3 will be released separately; with such a strict self-imposed selection just 35 per cent of the total production enters into the grand vin). Divine. Limpid, lithe and incredible in both its hue and radiant clarity in the glass. Cassis. Blueberry. Bramble and assorted dark berry fruits. Damson and damson skin. Walnut. Olive oil and black pepper. A wine of such incredible purity and elegance, a most intense and refined fruit, so picture perfectly pixilated in its precision. Not overly ample, with quite a tight and well-formed frame at first but with the more gorgeously glacial and crystalline texture and such intensity and layering. A miraculous mirror pool, charged with energy and a wondrous elegance. So pure. So fine. So audacious. So utterly breath-taking. The potential wine of the vintage. Poetry. 

The Wine Independent

97-99

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe5/7/2024

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Montrose gallops out of the glass with intense scents of crushed blackcurrants, fresh blackberries, and raspberries along with nuances of licorice, crushed rocks, and mossy tree bark plus a hint of iron ore. The medium-bodied palate has impressive tension and tight-knit black and red berry flavors intertwined with mineral accents, framed by fine-grained tannins, finishing long and sparkly. The first wine accounted for only 35% of the estate's production this year. The blend is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc, with pH 3.70.

The Wine Cellar Insider

97-99

byJeff Levethe5/6/2024

The complex perfume displays its flowers, crushed rock, black raspberry, and currants with just a swirl or two. There is freshness, with a sense of purity, lift, and elegance on the palate. The wine is long, complex, and refined. This is not a blockbuster styled vintage. Instead, it is focused, harmonious, balanced, and long, with sweetness, spice, and energy that lingers in the finish. The wine is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. 13.6% ABV, pH 3.7. Harvesting took place September 5 - September 28. Drink from 2030-2065. 96-98 Pts.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

98

byJane Ansonthe5/6/2024

Gorgeously dark and vibrant fruit, with gunsmoke and campfire, concentrated cassis and blackberry pastille, grilled almond, saffron and pomegrante, luscious but measured, showing the inky character that seems to be at the heart of the best Cabernets of this vintage, with their ripe but not overly exuberant classicism. Organic conversion, to be certified 2025. The first vintage this 1st wine of Montrose is coming only from the section of the vineyard located on Terrace 4 of the Médoc gravel banks that line the Garonne river along the peninsula. Following soil studies from Pierre Becheler, this comprises 35% of the overall production in 2023, or 45ha of vines, and is the historic heart of the property. Pierre Grafeuille director, Vincent Decup technical director.

Vinous

95-97

byAntonio Gallonithe4/30/2024

The 2023 Montrose is a dark, brooding powerhouse but with the elegance that is such a signature today. Black cherry, plum, leather, licorice, mocha, spice, tobacco and dried flowers infuse the 2023 with tons of character. The Cabernet Sauvignon is so expressive here. Readers will have to be patient, as this is a wine built for the cellar. It's not especially showy today, but all the ingredients are there. The 2023 is quite the bruiser. In other words, it’s classic Montrose. In the end, that's not terribly surprising, as the winemaking team relied exclusively on the original holdings of about 45 hectares from what the estate calls the 'grand plateau' or 'Terrace 4', essentially the historic core of the property. Harvest ran from September 5 to 28. There was some rain on the 21st, but 15mm of precipitation after a heat spike was not meaningful. The 2023 is magnificent in every way.

Vinous

96-98

byNeal Martinthe4/29/2024

The 2023 Montrose is focused on the original terroir of the estate, known as Terrace 4, located in front of the river. It comprises 45 hectares, around 12 to 15 hectares less than previous vintages so as to capture the expression of Montrose classified in 1855. Picked from September 5 to 28 and matured in 60% new oak, this has a very intense and focused bouquet: pure black fruit with just a touch of strawberry, hints of violet petals developing in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins—very pure, with pitch-perfect acidity. This gains depth toward the finish but maintains a sense of linearity that ensures it is one of the vintage’s finest contributions from the Left Bank. Magnificent.

Falstaff

95

byPeter Moserthe4/29/2024

Deep dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, delicate edge brightening. Black forest berry fruit with a delicate tobacco background, fine nuances of blackberry and cherry, candied orange zest underneath. Complex, juicy, fine dark fruit nuances, ripe tannins, delicate minerality, already well developed, an elegant food companion with certain ageing potential.

Alexandre Ma

97-98

byAlexandre Mathe4/28/2024

Wine Advocate

97-100

byWilliam Kelleythe4/26/2024

The 2023 Montrose is another brilliant wine from an estate that's now routinely among Bordeaux's very best, year in, year out. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, derived exclusively from the estate's historic core on the fourth terrace situated just in front of the château itself, it unwinds in the glass with aromas of cassis and wild berries mingled with notions of lilac, violet and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, deep and layered, with a textural attack that segues into a dense, multidimensional mid-palate framed by beautifully ripe tannins and lively acids, it concludes with a long, resonant finish. It will be worth a special effort to seek out.

Jamessuckling.com

99-100

byJames Sucklingthe4/25/2024

Wow. This is the essence of Montrose, with blackberry, blackcurrant, crushed stone and earth. I have not tasted a Montrose like this in 42 years of my career. It has a much more vertical nature to it, with layered tannins that go very deep and long, The muscular structure and intensity is something else. This is a new era for Montrose. It is now made from only 45 hectares of vineyards right in front of the chateau, instead of about 60 before. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 21% merlot and 4% cabernet franc.