CHÂTEAU KIRWAN

2017 3ème Cru Classé Margaux

EN PRIMEUR

The 2017 Kirwan has a slightly smudged bouquet that does not quite deliver the detail of its peers: raspberry preserve and crushed strawberry at first, then light sous-bois and smoke aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly angular tannin, not as cohesive as I would have liked although I appreciate the cracked black pepper note on the aftertaste. This is a château that I feel can produce great Margaux however, the 2017 does not possess the nuance and complexity of the best examples from the appellation. Drinking range: 2021 - 2033 Rating: 89-91 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)

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Healthy cherry red. Sweet-smelling damson fruit. Darkly fragrant. Dry, chalky texture but smooth and in harmony if lacking a spark on the mid palate. Juicy finish. Drinking range: 2023 - 2035 Rating: 16.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2018)

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Kirwan has a warm blackberries and black raspberries nose with hints of kirsch, roses and sandalwood. The palate is medium-bodied with plush tannins and plenty of freshness supporting the elegant fruit, finishing perfumed and very pretty. Rating: 90-92 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Apr 2018)

This is well extracted, with dark berry fruits, attractive tobacco leaf and charcoal notes. It has that same savoury frame that so many from Margaux have this year, and the fruit character is not bursting with generosity but is still expressive and lyrical. It really does offer something for those looking for a more sculpted wine. Medium term drinking. Drinking range: 2024 - 2038 Rating: 91 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2018)

The 2017 Château Kirwan is another charming, high quality Margaux. Possessing terrific purity in its blue fruits, charcoal, graphite, and obvious minerality, it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, a fresh, vibrant texture, and a ripe, yet present tannin. Given its purity of fruit and overall charm, it should be drinkable with 2-3 years of bottle age and cruise for 15 years or more. Rating: 90-92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Apr 2018)

Some berry and sweet-tobacco character. Medium body, fresh fruit and a firm tannin backbone. Bright acidity. Rating: 89-90 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2018)

Bright and fresh, with fine acidity stretching out the elegant layers of cassis, blackberry, lilac and sandalwood. Pure and refined. Rating: 89-92 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2018)

This has a rather reserved, slightly cooked-fruit character on the nose, gridded raspberry, with a cherry stone grip. The palate starts off with a light textural presence, continuing through the middle with a medium body, a gentle but bitter grip of tannins, and fresh and bright acidity. There is a little substance here, certainly a sense of freshness, and a lightly griddled and sandy suggestion to the fruit, leading to a grippy, tannic finish which lingers a little longer than it does for some. A good effort from Kirwan for the vintage. Rating: 89-91 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2018)

Margaux Troisième cru 1855

The distinctively Irish name is derived from Mark Kirwan who, in 1751, married the daughter of Sir John Collingwood, who had purchased La Terre Noble de la Salle in 1710. Their Irish ancestory allowed the Kirwans to escape the worst privations of the Revolution and to emerge in the Napoleonic era bigger and better than before. Unusually for a Bordelais estate, the vineyard area at 37 hectares is unchanged since. Château Kirwan came into the hands of the Schÿler family in 1925, and they own it to this day.

Château Kirwan is in the village of Cantenac. The vineyards, with vines an average of 30 years old, are planted at 9000 vines per hectare with 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and an unusually high 8% Petit Verdot, planted on the classic Haut Médoc terroir of deep Pyrenean gravels up to six metres deep. Production is around 200,000 bottles, representing 40-45hl/ha. Picking is by hand, into small (6 kg) boxes for transport to the winery, where the grapes are double-sorted before fermentation in tulip-shaped concrete tanks, using selected yeasts and malolactic bacteria to ensure the alcoholic and malolactic fermentations happen simultaneously, over a period of 7 to 15 days at temperatures controlled not to exceed 25-26C. Pumping-over is used over the 18-25 day time in vat. The Grand Vin spends up to 18-21 months in barrel, of which around a third are new every year. The wines are racked every 3 or 4 months and fined with egg white.

Whilst not being among the cream of the Margaux crop, Château Kirwan is a steady producer and relatively good value. A tendency to slightly over-extracted fruit and lots of well-toasted oak has abated now that Eric Boissenot has taken over from Michel Rolland as consultant oenologist