Montrose 2016

The 2016 Montrose has a more backward bouquet than its peers, but there is real complexity and nuance here: blackberry mixed with tobacco and light pencil shaving scents. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, very supple and harmonious, caressing the mouth towards the classy finish so that you almost do not notice the depth and precision. Class Drink 2030-2065.

The floral and fresh aromas to this are mesmerizing. Roses and lilacs galore. The pure cab aromas coming from the glass – blackcurrants and blackberries – are so memorable. Full-bodied, deep and profound. The ultra-fine tannins on the palate are so polished and fine-grained. The finish goes on for minutes with subtle yet superb fruit. It’s all about precision and form here. A modern classic for Montrose. Better after 2026.

Tasted blind. Very dark crimson. Tight and dense and dramatic and utterly convincing. With a little bit of richness. Fruit covers the tannin. Really very glorious. Dry finish. Reverberant. Salty.Drink 2026 – 2055

Brooding black fruits the nose has a powerful mix of flavours the palate depth with firm black cherry and cassis backed by liquorice. Underpinning the rich fruit mid bramble gives a lighter fresher feel the tannins are firm but integrated and there is sweetness and richness at the back. 2025-44

One of the wines that should carry a sign saying “come back in a decade”, this is a dark, brooding, seriously backward Montrose with masses of sturdy tannins, super concentrated damson and dark berry fruit and a patina of aromatic oak. 2026-36

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2016 Montrose is a little youthfully shy to begin, but with coaxing, it unfurls to reveal the most beguiling scents of wilted roses, oolong tea, crushed rocks, wild sage, star anise and candied violets over a wonderfully pristine, well-defined core of crushed blackcurrants, black raspberries and kirsch plus wafts of pencil lead and wood smoke. The taut, muscular, medium to full-bodied palate straddles jaw-dropping intensity and finesse superbly, featuring a solid backbone of ripe tannins and giving a firm frame right through the incredibly long, exquisitely nuanced finish. Drink 2025-2060.

The 2016 Montrose has a tightly wound bouquet that is extremely well focused. This is one of the most pixelated aromatics I can remember on a Montrose at this stage, featuring blackberry, boysenberry and cedar and real mineralité underneath. The palate is medium-bodied with fine density and wonderful salinity. There is tremendous precision with razor-sharp tannin, and a brightness on the finish that is exceptional. This is a Montrose that will comfortably sit alongside the canon of great vintages from this Saint-Estèphe estate. As my score implies, it’s up there with the first growths. Stunning. Drink 2026-2075

A blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 7% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Montrose is deep garnet-purple in color. It is very closed and reticent at this stage, requiring a lot of coaxing to bring out notions of crème de cassis, plum preserves, and juicy boysenberries, plus hints of cedar chest, candied violets, and pencil lead, with a hint of crushed rocks. Medium-bodied, the palate is jam-packed with black fruit and mineral layers, framed by beautifully ripe, grainy tannins and wonderful freshness, finishing long and earthy. It needs a lot of time, but this is going to be a jaw dropper!

Right from the first nose, you start salivating in anticipation. Has the exact right amount of sweet black cherry and cassis fruit, the tug of tannins that are confident and perfectly placed, ready to soften soon, but not quite yet. Velvet texture, with turmeric, black chocolate and violet notes, crushed mint on the finish. You know is going to last decades, and is a bottle that falls bang into that rare category of age-defying wines. The definition and the structure of this is right at the top of what Montrose can deliver. Harvest September 23 to October 14.

The 2016 Montrose is a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc (no Petit Verdot this year) picked between 23 September to 14 October and matured in 60% new oak. It has a very sophisticated bouquet with blackberry, briary, a touch of blue fruit and violets. Sometimes this Saint Estèphe can be a little broody at en primeur, but this certainly is more expressive, maintaining very fine delineation and precision, unfolding with each swirl of the glass and revealing a hidden graphite/marine influence. The palate is very fresh on the entry. The first facet of this wine that strikes you is the freshness that lasts from start to finish. This is an animated, vivacious Montrose that starts in almost understated fashion yet builds in the mouth towards what is almost a sensual finish, not a descriptor often applied to Montrose. It is a disarmingly and hauntingly beautiful 2016, extremely long and the aftertaste lasting two or three minutes. NB This is one example where I felt my second visit, over a fortnight after the first, revealed a wine with much greater potential, and I therefore raised my banded score accordingly. Drink 2026 - 2060.

A solid and tight Montrose with a linear structure of ripe tannins that gives wonderful length and energy. Full-bodied, yet reserved and toned. Stone and mineral character underneath is impressive. Beautiful center palate. The class and focus are marvelous. Better than 2015. This is what Montrose is all about.

In many ways this is a Bordeaux vintage for lovers of great Burgundy - it has the depth and intensity but also a floral, fragrant edge to it; something that is encapsulated perfectly in the classicism of Montrose. This needs some time in the glass as its structure is long and straight, true to the signature of the property. It shows clear depth and precision, and gorgeously placed spice with the sweetness of the black cherry and wild fig stealing in along the side of the palate. The young vines suffered at Montrose because the estate has lots of gravelly, well drained soils, but the proximity to the river provided cooling nights and you can feel far more waves of vibrant freshness than in the 2015 vintage, even with the same tannin index of 80IPT (compared to 70IPT in 2014). An excellent wine which represents 37% of overall production. 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc.Drinking Window 2027 - 2050

Very dark blackish crimson. Great, fresh, minerally savour on the nose. Lots of intensity initially. Sweet start – quite a surprise in a way – and then lots of structure. Doesn't quite hang together yet but there is masses of potential. Sweet, fresh ink. Good raciness. Quite muscular but not at all heavy. An edge of acidity is evident without the strong stoniness of St-Estèphe. Just a little bit stringy on the end. Lots of life and freshness (clays help). Pretty glamorous. 13.2%Drink 2028-2048

Deep ruby/purple-colored, the 2016 Montrose might be the wine of the vintage and offers an extraordinary bouquet of crème de cassis, dried flowers, underbrush, blueberries, and graphite. Gorgeously concentrated, pure, elegant and balanced on the palate, it has incredible purity of fruit, building, ripe tannin and a great, great finish. Reminding me of the 2003, yet more fresh, vibrant and delineated, this awesome 2016 is going to require patience, yet should rival the truly great vintages from this estate.