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Château Margaux 1961

Château Margaux, Bordeaux, France

Château Margaux
Bordeaux France
  • 99
    Points
  • The 265 best
    of 3 290 954
    wines globally
  • 26 Pros of
    26 recommend
    this wine
969 99
  • Taste
  • Moment

  • Country ranking ?

    226

  • Producer ranking ?

    14

  • Decanting time

    2h

  • When to drink

    now to 2025

  • Food Pairing

    Espresso Braised Beef

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Medium/full bodied, elegant, refined, soft and silky, the wine relies on its freshness and delicate nuances, instead of power and structure. Complex, captivating and caressing on the palate, this is at or probably slightly past its peak of maturity. 93 Points" - 93/100, Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider

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The Story

Since the 17th Century, the first wine of Château Margaux has been recognised as being one of the greatest wines in the entire world. It owes its unique qualities to the genius of its terroir as well as to the passionate work of a succession of generations. It’s a remarkable wine that comes from a combination of characteristics that are only rarely found: finesse, elegance, complexity, density, intensity, length and freshness. Although its tan...

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Wine Information

1961 vintage by Château/ It has sometimes been said that 1961 was the greatest vintage since 1900. Our memory does not always serve us well, but there is no doubt that this vintage displays quite extraordinary qualities, which we were not to find again, in any case, until the 1982 vintage. 1961 not only benefited from remarkable weather conditions, but also from the first achievements of what was called \modern oenology\" under the inspiration...

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Vintage 1961

1961 - the greatest Bordeaux vintage of all time?

I am writing this during the primeur campaign and I notice that Bordeaux château owners and merchants have been exceptionally quiet this year. I've been following this part of the market remotely for almost 30 years now and have been told about a lot of the "vintages of the century". Once wines are bottled and sold or vice versa, as is the case in Bordeaux, these claims tend to be changed.

...

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Average Bottle Price

2024 2020 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2005 2000
1 580€ +27.5% 1 239€ +56.8% 790€ -3.8% 821€ -10.9% 921€ +13.6% 811€ -1.7% 825€ -3.7% 857€ +23.7% 693€ +54.7% 448€

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

Full, Brick red and Cloudy

ending

Long, Smooth and Lingering

flavors

Blackcurrant, Coffee, Vegetal, Toasty, Leather and Mineral

nose

Intense, Complex and Rich

recommend

Yes

taste

Average in Acidity, Warming, Medium tannin, Complex, Perfectly balanced, Balanced, Developing, Medium-bodied, Elegant, Harmonious, Rich and Silky tannins

Verdict

Transparent and nice but not special

Written Notes

The superb 1961 vintage begun with a spring frost and due to a cold spell that was followed by very exceptional "coulure" reducing the crop size drastically. Luckily the wonderful weather conditions with hot and dry weather during the summer enabled this small crop to reach really extraordinary ripeness and concentration. 
Dark, deep and youthful colour. The nose is very complex, elegant and fragrant bouquet with layers of ripe fruit, flowers and oak. On the palate the wine is wide open and expanding. Refined gentle tannins and soft and silky texture. A multitude of flavour nuances. Rich and harmonious wine with smooth and elegant tannins. A well-balanced and elegant wine that is mature but there is no hurry. The aftertaste is impressively persistent.  

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  • 97p
The third wine had a delicious nose, with sweet fruits and tender aromas of wheat. It was blacker in style, gamy with a pinch of BBQ. Its palate was round, rich and long, certainly deserving outstanding status. The wine was heavy yet dancing with a bit of zip. Buttery and decadent, this was clearly a special wine. One of the educated ladies guessed, ‘Spanish,’ but it was a magnum of 1961 Margaux. This was sweet, outstanding stuff. It was then noted that if Parker hasn’t had a great bottle/note of an old Bordeaux, it was like it didn’t exist, kind of like the ’61 Margaux (96M).
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  • 96p

It has sometimes been said that 1961 was the greatest vintage since 1900. Our memory does not always serve us well, but there is no doubt that this vintage displays quite extraordinary qualities, which we would not find again until the 1982 vintage. 1961 not only benefited from remarkable weather conditions, but also from the first achievements of what was called \modern oenology\" under the inspiration of Professor Ribereau Gayon and Doctor Emile Peynaud. Château Margaux 1961 is a sumptuous wine, at the same time tender, harmonious, rich, very dense and full of freshness. Its bouquet is unique : over the smell of undergrowth, so characteristic of the great wines of that era, comes a layer of indescribable fruity and floral fragrance... Smelling this wine is a moment of unforgettable excitement, of pure emotion! The sensations that come through on the palate are a harmonious match to the aromatic festival on the nose : its tannic density asserts itself smoothly and delicately, the finish is a strong and yet tender caress. A really wonderful wine. Today, the 1961 has lost none of its freshness, even though the magnums are starting to show more consistency than the bottles. Of course, it can be opened now, but it was built for eternity...

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1961 Chateau Margaux: Amazing color. Maturing but youthful for its age. Extremely rich color. Nose: Excellent. Classic. Very perfect condition. Developed very well. Beautiful nose. Like old leather armchairs. Amazing finesse. Palate: Spectacular. Beautiful sweetness. Perfection for age. Three hours later: Evolved into a magnificent barnyardy nose, like old horse stables with strong odors of leather harnesses and slightly horsey straw. With a sweet, incredible finish. My father, Michael Broadbent, had once written of this wine after tasting it in 1970 “1961: I tasted first in 1964 and predicted 20 years of development. In fact, a further 20 years later, at a cellar lunch at the chateau, I noted it’s ‘hallmark’, an exquisite bouquet; on the palate, sweet, brambly, with a sort of a singed fragrance. Last tasted in 1970; hopeless really to describe its unique enchantment. Maturing of course, but if well-cellared, perfection. At least five stars.” In fact, he names it among the Top 10 Bordeaux wines. Today, the provenance of the bottle was one of the greatest wine cellars in the world, perfect conditions since, no doubt, en primeur sale. It was all there and more. My father only marks wines at of 5 stars, less than a half dozen might have been 6 stars, this being one of them.

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  • 100p

Low-shoulder bottle, no signs of seepage, cork outside almost black, greasy but inside good looking. 

I did not expect much from this bottle but as often an old classified Bordeaux with low level will offer a big surprise. When I pulled the cork certain sweet flavours came up but as well leather, old furniture, shoe polish aromas. The promising fact: NO traces of vinegar or sherry at all. The cork did not come out in one piece. This bottle of 1961 Margaux had a dark mahagony colour, clear without any cloudiness. From the first moment it showed as a great Bordeaux from a great vintage. Seductive flavours of cedar, underbrush, decent sweetness. Amazing freshness, if tasted blind my guess would be from the 80's, perhaps 1985. It developed nicely with air, medium body, very elegant, fine, a little fragile fruit, simply an outstanding Bordeaux and I am not sure if a bottle with much better level would provide much more pleasure. A bottle to remember.

Food: Iberico blade shoulder, grilled, no sauce

Music: Bob Dylan: Forever young

 

 

 

         

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  • 94p

The most impressive wine of the tasting combining elegance and persistence. Intense garnet red colour. Elegant and persistent aroma reminiscent of mild spices, vanilla, hints of roasted aroma, fine fruit in the background, elegant minerality. On the palate excellent balance, fine tannins, freshness and great length. A wonderful wine with long lingering aftertaste and great elegance. Close to perfection.

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  • 99p

Very complex and intense, immense depth and supporting tannin and lush fruit. Wonderful balance, elegance and finesse. A truly great wine!

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  • 96p
Worryingly low fill!? Just above mid shoulder, ruby wit thin orange rim. Staring out with intense floral notes, violets, blackcurrant's, plums, cigar, tobacco, perfumed, seductive and flirting, with another ten minutes, licorice, layers upon layers. Very elegant body and texture, fresh acidity, ripe tannins, beautiful balance, enormous elegance, after two hours gaining in body, getting more fruit, turns out the low level can't have had any negative influence, its difficult to believe there can be a much better bottle, after even more time, mint, eucalyptus, opens up hugely, enormous complexity, rose-garden, figs, long and elegant finish. Getting even better after five hours.
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  • 97p
D 2 h / G 2 h Moderately deep tawny colour. Intense and complex nose with rich coffee aromas and high concentration with vegetal nuances. Firm, medium-bodied wine with lively acidity and minerality, supple tannins, and surprisingly intense fruitiness. Very vibrant and energic wine with great balance and finesse in the lingering finish. Still very youthful, so no hurry to uncork. Keep well another 10-12 years.
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  • 96p
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Information

Origin

Margaux, Bordeaux

Vintage Quality

Extraordinary

Value For Money

Very good

Investment potential

Good

Fake factory

Serious

Inside Information

Bordeaux Book, 3rd Edition 
Jan 1998		 Robert M. Parker, Jr. 93 Drink: 1991 - 2001 $1250-$3140
An intense bouquet filled with the scents of ripe plums, flowers, toasted walnuts, and oak is divine. This expansive wine is silky, rich, very generously flavored, long, and full bodied on the palate. It is fully mature, but there is little chance of this wine falling apart for at least another decade. I have high hopes that the 1982, 1983, and 1986 will ultimately surpass this vintage of Margaux. The 1961 is a top-flight wine and unquestionably the last great Margaux until the Mentzelopoulos era began its remarkable string of great Margaux in 1978.Anticipated maturity: Now. Last tasted, 4/91.
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