CHÂTEAU GLORIA
2017 Cru Bourgeois Saint Julien
The 2017 Gloria, tasted from a new barrel though the final blend will include 50% new oak and the remainder one-year old, has a straightforward but pure bouquet with blackberry, briary and cedar aromas accompanied by a distant whiff off the estuary. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe tannin, crisp acidity, a little “brittle” in the mouth, but quite precise towards the finish. It actually ends much better than it begins so I will expand my banded score to indicate potential upgrade in quality. Let’s see. Drinking range: 2022 - 2038 Rating: 89-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)
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Mid crimson. Lifted cassis and cassis leaf. A little austere but very fresh and with fine-line purity. Dry, dark-chocolate finish that leaves your mouth feeling clean. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 16.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2018)
The 2017 Gloria is deep garnet-purple in color and scented of warm plums and blueberry pie with hints of potpourri, tilled soil and espresso. The palate is medium-bodied with just enough expressive fruit and a fine, approachable frame. The blend is currently 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 8% Petit Verdot. Rating: 89-91 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Apr 2018)
Tight but plentiful fruit extraction. The expression is a little less full than in 2016, but there is both finesse and grip to the fine, firmly held tannins as they travel through the palate, accompanying cassis, fern, rosemary, heather and cigar box notes. Enjoyable stuff. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 92 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2018)
From another estate that’s on an upward trajectory, the 2017 Château Gloria boasts a deep ruby/purple color as well as a sensational bouquet of sweet crème de cassis, crushed violets, spicy oak, and graphite. It’s medium-bodied, has a rounded, opulent texture, ripe tannin, and more mid-palate density and depth than most in the vintage. It’s already hard to resist yet should cruise for 12-15 years. The blend is 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 8% Petit Verdot and the rest Cabernet Franc, all brought up in 40% new wood. Rating: 90-92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Apr 2018)
A tight and focused red with currants, dark berries and hints of mushrooms. Medium body, firm and silky tannins and a juicy finish. Rating: 90-91 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2018)
Plum, blackberry and black currant fruit has melded nicely with graphite and anise notes in this red, which shows good energy, with a mouthwatering tar note on the finish. Really solid. Rating: 91-94 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2018)
This old favourite has a dark and rather muted nose, with perhaps a little pine needle and pomegranate freshness, but otherwise it isn't really saying that much. The palate shows a nicely reposed texture, medium-bodied, light and perhaps a little juicy, with red cherry and redcurrant fruits coming to the fore here. It feels a little grippy, slightly austere even, with a little chalky edge to the tannins as they linger in the juicy finish. To me this lacks a little conviction, and I wonder whether the Gloria vineyards haven’t been disadvantaged in this vintage. Rating: 89-91 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2018)
Château Gloria
Château Gloria is an unclassified St-Julien property that produces clarets that equal in quality those from the more prestigious classed growths. Henri Martin, a cooper by upbringing, took over the property in 1942 and began purchasing plots of vineyards from classed growth properties such as Gruaud-Larose, Talbot, Lagrange and Léoville-Barton. By the mid 1960s he had 50 hectares spread across the appellation. In 1982 he purchased Château St-Pierre and thus realised his lifetime ambition of owning a Grand Cru Classé property. Henri Martin died in 1991 and Gloria is now run by his son-in-law Jean-Louis Triaud. The wine is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. It is aged in a combination of large oak foudres and small oak barrels (50% new). Gloria produces a wine that is typically deep in colour and rich, cassis-laden and cedary on the palate. It normally needs 7-10 years of bottle age to show at its best.