CHÂTEAU MONTROSE
2015 2ème Cru Classé Saint Estèphe
67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc. 37% of crop in first wine, with 40% in the 'Dame'. Purple edge to opaque black. Subtle dusky bosky fruit nose. Very suave and pure, with good volume and typical textural richness. Has all the supple richness that is slightly missing in the 'Dame'. Continues fresh and harmonious, with power building to the finish, although this is not too massive by any means - a tightening grip on the finish. This is a class act, and the fruit does go on very well on the finish Very good if maybe not absolutely great Montrose. Rating: 93-94 L&S (Apr 2016)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Intensity and clarity of fruit is so insane. Blackberries, spices such as cloves, blueberries, sandalwood and dried lavender. Full body and such a beautiful, dense center palate with perfectly polished tannins. Extremely long and beautiful. One of the best young Montroses in a long, long time. Drinking range: 2024 - Rating: 98 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Feb 2018)
Well, well, well. How good is this? St. Estèphe was supposed to be the least favoured commune in the Médoc in 2015, but this is a brilliant wine that’s up there with the best releases of the vintage. Perfumed, dense and super concentrated, with compact tannins, notes of cassis, blueberry and liquorice and very fine tannins. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 96 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (May 2016)
The assemblage here is 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. This is 36% of the crop. Alcohol 13.4%. The nose is redolent of fresh but dark fruits, with a slightly floral character, reminiscent of violets and perfumed black cherries. This is all laid over a rich blackcurrant base, with a lightly desiccated edge. A little vanilla cream too. The palate is very well defined, very pure, with a polished style, tense and tautly framed rather than the creamed presence of the right bank. The fruit is clean, dark, with plenty of blackcurrants and dried damsons, with a firm bed of ripe, grippy tannins sitting nicely within the wine. A very impressive wine considering the difficulties that came later on during the season. Rating: 16.5-17.5/20 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2016)
67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc. Very dark and very dramatic. Even a hint of overripeness on the nose. A little stodgy. Could do with a little more lift. A little dry at present. Clearly fashioned for the very long term. Kerpow! Very much in the style of the old Montroses in terms of sheer concentration. Drinking range: 2027 - 2042 Rating: 17+ Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2016)
Deep florality and wonderful black fruit. Surprisingly smooth and silky at first then the classic firmness becomes plain towards the finish. It has more natural richness than most in 2015 – a superbly made wine from a great terroir. Drinking range: 2023 - 2045 Rating: 96 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2016)
The 2015 Montrose is a blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc that was picked between 15 September and 8 October, the fruit sorted three times using three sorting tables, then an optical sorting machine and finally by hand. Matured in 65% new oak, it possesses some of the best aromatics you will find in the appéllation - billowing blackberry, cassis and boysenberry scents all beautifully defined and seamlessly integrated with the new oak. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, commendable depth and a vibrant bead of acidity that lends this Montrose tension from start to finish. The class comes through strongly in this wine, perhaps the best Saint Estèphe this year. Give this a decade in bottle, more if you can, since Montrose tends to repay cellaring. Drinking range: 2025 - 2060 Rating: 93-95 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2016)
The 2015 Montrose is silky, super-finessed and nuanced, all qualities that are unusual for a wine that is usually much more of a powerhouse. Black cherry, smoke, leather, graphite, crème de cassis and licorice notes open up in the glass, yet the wine comes across as raw and not fully formed. The 2015 appeared to put on a bit of weight over the two weeks I followed it, but I don't see the depth, structure and personality of the very best versions. Rating: 90-93 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2016)
Blueberry, black currant, fresh basil and lemon grass flavors. Full body, velvety tannins, clean finish. Spices. Depth. Rating: 93-94 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2016)
Château Montrose
St Estèphe Deuxième cru 1855 Wine production St Estèphe developed much later than further south in the Haut-Médoc - indeed, the vineyards of Château Montrose were not planted until 1815, when it was then part of the Calon-Ségur estate. Only 40 years later, not only had Montrose seperated from its parent, it had surpassed it, being one of only two St Estèphe estates to be awarded 2nd Growth status in the 1855 classification. Montrose sits nearer the river than Cos d'Estournel on classic Haut-Médoc gravel soil - the last outcrop as you head north. The 65ha of vines are 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The Grand Vin spends 18 months in wood (70% new). A second wine was introduced in 1983 - La Dame de Montrose - aged in wood for 12 months (20% new). Montrose is a noted performer in weaker vintages, possibly because of a generous micro-climate which allows slightly earlier picking than most of the Haut-Médoc. The wines age brilliantly.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.