2016 CHÂTEAU D'ISSAN 3ème Cru Classé Margaux, Lea & Sandeman

CHÂTEAU D'ISSAN

2017 3ème Cru Classé Margaux

Grapes Merlot, Cab Sauv
Colour Red
Origin France, Bordeaux
Sub-district Haut Médoc
Village Margaux
Classification 3ème Cru Classé
ABV 14%

65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot. Thanks to the proximity of the Gironde and (possibly) the protective walled 'clos', d'Issan was spared the frost. The rest of the season was benign and early - the earliest harvest since 2003. The result is a Margaux typically full of fragrance, refreshment and finesse. They make much of their historic links at this Château, including supplying the wine for the marriage of Henry Plantagenet and Eleanor of Aquitaine. As a result, the moto on the glittering gold label is 'Regum Mensis Aris Que Deorum' (for the table of kings and the altar of the gods). I imagine this 2017 would please both!  Drinking range: 2023 - 2040 Rating: 91-93 L&S (Apr 2018)


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The 2017 d'Issan is pliant, supple and nuanced. This is an especially rich, voluptuous style, with a real feeling of lushness from the Merlot. Dark plum, tobacco, leather, cedar, licorice and spice build into a creamy, racy finish wrapped with silky tannins. Creamy and textured, with impeccable balance, the 2017 Issan is a winner from Emmanuel Cruse and his team. Drinking range: 2025 - 2037 Rating: 93 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Mar 2020)

The 2017 d’Issan was bottled in May 2019. The wine has a pretty, floral bouquet, transparent and open, with blackberry leaf mixed with cranberry and hints of lavender. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins, crunchy black fruit and a structured, almost Pauillac-like finish that might suggest a higher proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon than there actually is. Good tension and persistence here, though maybe it needs a little more grip on the finish. Very fine, medium-term drinking. Tasted twice with consistent notes. Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2020)

The 2017 d’Issan was picked from 18 September to 3 October, the earliest since 2003. It was cropped at 43hl/ha and matured in 50% new oak. It has an elegant and understated bouquet with blackberry, black truffle and pencil lead aromas, quite Pauillac in style compared to previous vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with fine definition, quite saline in the mouth with black fruit, tar and minerals towards the lightly spiced finish that lingers in the mouth. It will benefit from several years in bottle but this continues a purple patch for this historic Margaux. Drinking range: 2021 - 2040 Rating: 90-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)

Château d'Issan

Margaux Troisième cru 1855 When Pierre l'Essenault inherited what became Château d'Issan through his marriage in the mid-17th Century, he knocked down the old castle that stood on the site and built the present château. He also gave it its name, these days somewhat abridged. During the 18th Century, part of the estate was divided away and became today's Château Palmer. In 1945, Château d'Issan was bought by Emmanuel Cruse who bought a run-down estate, ravaged by Depression and War with only 2ha of working vineyard. The vineyards now occupy 53ha, planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot. Wines typically spend 18 months in wood. In 2013 Jacky Lorenzetti, who owns Lilian Ladouys, bought 50% of d'Issan to become co-owner with the Cruse family. Château d'Issan is among the fullest and richest Margaux's, a facet which sometimes in the past has suggested a lack of charm. Indeed, the Cruse family's care and attention to d'Issan has taken many years to bear fruit, with the wines only returning to top-flight quality in the latter years of the 20th Century. They are now among the better wines in the appellation and well worth their 3rd Growth status. There is a second wine at Château d'Issan called Blason d'Issan. Château d'Issan also includes some vines which fall outside the Margaux appellation - Château de Candale, Haut-Médoc and Moulin d'Issan, Bordeaux Supérieur.

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