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  • Country ranking ?

    490
  • Producer ranking ?

    10
  • Decanting time

    2h
  • When to drink

    now to 2035
  • Food Pairing

    Braised lamb

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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“For many years I have vehemently argued that the 1989 Montrose is a benchmark wine for the estate. Having tasted it several times over the last couple of months, I have never found a single occasion to alter that view. Tasted at the vertical in London, it continues to shine, having never lost any of its luster in recent years. It is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc that was picked from 11 to 28 Sep-tember. Lucid in color, the aromatics do not hold back with vibrant blackberry, blueberry and black truffle, hints of sous-bois, all with sensational precision that few can match in this vintage (indeed, its precision lends it a ve- neer of modernity since “precision” is now more com- monplace across Bordeaux). The palate is brilliantly bal- anced with filigree tannin. There is wonderful backbone here, extremely fresh and tensile, crystalline even with an exceptional detail, mineral-rich finish that lingers in the mouth. Difficult to fault, this might well be the greatest 1989 Montrose that I have tasted, and certainly wishing to take nothing away from the 1990 Montrose that I tasted alongside, the 1989 is now the one I would pick. Is this the greatest Saint Estèphe of the 1980s? I would put it within the top five Bordeaux of the 1980s. Could this be inching its way to perfection???”(100pts) RP

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The Story

The result of rigorous selection at each stage of production, in both the vineyard and the winery, this great, predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon wine is typical of the Saint-Estèphe appellation. Structured and tannic but with all the elegance and refinement of a Grand Cru Classé, with time it develops a delicate and complex bouquet.

The wines have considerable ageing potential and are exceptionally long-lived. Certain vintages (1921, 1929, 1982, 1990, 2009, 2016) are considered legendary. 

Matured for 18 months in 60% new oak barrels, the premium wine accounts on average for 55% of the estate’s total production.

 

The 95-hectare vineyard in one single block, extremely unusual in the Medoc, is located on a very well exposed gravelly land, by the Gironde. The vineyard hence overlooks the estuary. The proximity to this vast body of water locally called “river” has a very smoothing climatic impact on the vineyard. The river and its tide mitigate and moderate the climate’s rigor: by mollifying the frost and refreshing blazing summer heat.

60 % of new french oak barrels, supplied by several carefully- selected coopers are used in Montrose, and 40 % in one year old barrels. The average ageing period is 16 to 18 months.

For our second wine, DAME DE MONTROSE, the proportion of new french oak barrels reaches about 15 to 20 %. The average ageing is 12 months; so begins a long process of racking rhythm.

This is a very natural process of slow wine decanting, to isolate the fine particles still present in the wine. All the wines are finely racked every 3 months, a very traditional method.

The wine is moved from one barrel to the other by gravity. Once the barrel’s bottom is reached, the workers carefully view, with a candle, the lees coming off the clear part of the wine. The fining is made traditionally, in barrels, with fresh egg whites, in order to refine the wine and to soften the tannins.

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Wine Information

This year proved to be particularly hot, sunny and dry, an ideal condition for bud burst, blossoming, « veraison », ripening, and great vintage.This exceptional year gave a splendid wine.

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Vintage 1989

Bordeaux: The 2nd in a trio of great vintages and which produced a large harvest of ripe, rich and fleshy wines which generally possess soft, silky tannins, accompanied by a high alcohol level. It was the hottest summer since 1949 and the harvest began on August 28, the earliest since 1893. The grapes were harvested in dry conditions, the only concern being that some acidity levels were low, which which has led to suggestions that some wines would not be suitable for long-term aging. Ten years later, these fears have proven to be largely unfounded, as the best wines are now showing extremely well, showing concentration and great complexity.

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Average Bottle Price

2020 2015 2010 2005 2000 1995
490€ +11.4% 440€ +37.5% 320€ +93.9% 165€ +37.5% 120€ +150.0% 48€

This data comes from the FINE Auction Index, a composite of average prices for wines sold at commercial auctions in 20 countries. The average prices from each year have been collected since 1990. This chart plots the index value of the average price of the wines.

Tasting note

color

Deep, Brick red and Healthy

ending

Medium, Gentle and Flavorful

flavors

Blackberry, Vanilla, Voluptuous, Toasty, Leather and Truffles

nose

Intense, Fresh, Seductive and Refined

recommend

Yes

taste

Warming, Balanced, Well-structured, Good texture, Mature, Medium-bodied, Round, Focused, Elegant and Silky tannins

Verdict

Well-rounded and Sophisticated

Written Notes

Good looking normal size bottle and has by the neck level. Colour is brick red, and looking healthy and deep. On the nose it is open, intense, fresh, seductive and refined. The taste is fragrant, round, focused, elegant, warming, with silky tannins, medium-bodied, with satin texture, well-structured, balanced structure and mature. On the palate it is layered and has dried-fruit, perfumed, truffles, toasty, leather, violet, blackberry and vanilla flavours. The finish is medium long, gentle, lingering and flavorful. This wine is sophisticated,well-rounded and fine. I paid around 200-500€ a bottle. Perfectly stored bottles are still very worthy and will last well for another 10-15 years and decant at least 2h before tasting. Good value for money. I do recommend.
  • 94p

Ruby, thin garnet rim. Leather, cedar, tobacco, spices, figs, blueberries, intense nose, detailed, touch of mint, layered, quite rich nose. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, fruity, figs, cherries, spices, leather, tobacco, intense, detailed, black tea, almost leaps out of the mouth, powerful, long. 97

  • 97p
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Information

Origin

St. Estephe, Bordeaux

Vintage Quality

Excellent

Value For Money

Very good

Investment potential

Below Average

Fake factory

None
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