CHÂTEAU MONBRISON

2017 Cru Bourgeois Supérieur Margaux

EN PRIMEUR

The 2017 Monbrison was cropped from 18 to 27 September aged entirely in new oak. It has an extravagant bouquet for Monbrison that feels as if it is wearing a bit too much “maquillage”. It is not unattractive but it does not really convey the essence of Margaux. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin, crisp acidity, the oak a little domineering towards the short finish. I just feel that there is too much winemaking here. Drinking range: 2021 - 2030 Rating: 87-89 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)

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Deep crimson, with aromas of both black fruit and cassis leaf. Supple, juicy, lightish but here there is harmony with enough fruit in the middle to hold the lightish chalky tannins apart. Juicy and fresh on the finish. Drinking range: 2022 - 2030 Rating: 16 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2018)

What should be an outstanding wine, the 2017 Château Monbrison offers a fresh, medium-bodied style as well as loads of red fruits, cedary spice, and loamy earth. It picks up some floral notes with time in the glass, is impeccably balanced, and has a terrific sense of elegance. It should keep for 10-15 years. Rating: 90-92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Apr 2018)

Elegantly styled, with a sanguine thread running through the core of gently mulled plum and cherry fruit. Light sandalwood and black teas notes weave in. Rating: 89-92 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2018)

I find a nose of fresh raspberry leaf here, with a little overlay of minty toffee. The palate feels loose, lightly textured, with a little core of chalky tannins at its heart, around which dances the flavours of raspberry leaf, crunchy cherry stone and tart pomegranate fruits. The finish shows some grip, a lightly chewy substance, a little more than the rather delicate palate deserves really, and a short finish. This may provide some pretty short-term drinking. Rating: 87-89 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2018)

Château Monbrison is in the commune of Arsac, a near neighbour of Château du Tertre. Robert Davis, an American, bought the estate in 1921 when he married into a local family.

Owning a Bordeaux estate was not always an easy thing at a time of World Wars and Depression, and Monbrison’s vineyards were pulled up in 1939. Fortunately, Robert’s daughter Elizabeth had the foresight to replant the vineyards in 1963, initially selling the produce to Château Prieuré-Lichine but from the mid-1970’s producing wines of Château Monbrison in their own right. Today the estate is owned and run by Robert Davis’s grandson Laurent Vonderheyden.

Vineyards are planted with 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.