CHÂTEAU MONBOUSQUET

This is a hugely oaky wine with a deep, dark, sooty core of fruit and rather terrifying and potent tannins. I have seen this many times over the years, but there is also a 2020 signature here which gives this wine some hope. There is freshness and slight mintiness here which in other wines, particularly those found on the Left Bank in 2020, signals unripeness and when this is coupled with a lighter-framed wine, often Cabernet-dominant, it throws the wine out of balance. But in Monbousquet it works, just about bringing this wine back into line! Rating: 16.5+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Jun 2021)

The 2020 Monbousquet is a heady, exotic wine. Blackberry jam, bittersweet chocolate, spice, new leather and espresso are all kicked up. Explosive and deep, the Monbousquet packs a serious punch. The tannins are pretty imposing today, but élevage should take care of that. Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 90-92 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jun 2021)

The 2020 Monbousquet was cropped at 30hl/ha and underwent a five-week cuvaison and maturation in 50% new oak. Deep in color, it has an intense nose of multilayered black plum, loganberry, wild hedgerow and crushed violet scents. The new oak imparts a vanilla-y veneer, but that should be assimilated by the time this is bottled. The palate is medium-bodied with gritty tannins, quite a structured Monbousquet, the 15% Cabernet Sauvignon contributing graphite notes toward the fresh, seaweed-tinged, slightly bitter finish, which has a powdery texture. This is an intriguing Monbousquet made in a more classical style compared to recent vintages. Drinking range: 2026 - 2040 Rating: 90-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2021)