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Montrose 2008

St Estephe, Second Growth

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Tasting Notes

The 2008 Montrose has a lifted perfumed bouquet with blackberry, bilberry, iris and limestone scents, nicely defined and opening with time. The palate is medium-bodied with a firm backbone, layers of cedar-tinged black fruit, spicebox and white pepper, leading to a persistent, structured finish that probably needs another year or two to soft. Impressive.

Score: 94

Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2020-2050 01 February 2018

Tasted at the château, the 2008 Montrose is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot picked between 29 September and 15 October. It has a far superior bouquet compared to the underperforming 2006 with black fruit, minerals, fern and briary. It is very composed, almost understated, yet clearly with great potential. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannin, a fine line of acidity, powerful for the finish but with impressive mineralité and tension on the persistence finish. It is quite an audacious 2008 and one of the finest wines of the vintage. Tasted September 2016.

Score: 94

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2055 31 March 2017

Fairly deep color. Gorgeous nose gets us off on a very high note. It’s fragrant, spicy, smoky, and classic Bordeaux, with scents of mint, leather, shoe polish, and bloody black cherries. Big and tannic on entry; this is a VERY young wine! It’s a four-square, concentrated, powerful wine that is not giving much in terms of nuance and delineation. There’s well-extracted dark berry fruit lurking, with decent acidity and length and a bit of alcohol showing. It does open somewhat as it sits in the glass, but this bottle was opened way too soon. The bouquet, however, was stunning!

Score: 90

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 05 March 2012

A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, cropped at 44hl/ha and representing 60% of production. It has a deep garnet core. The bouquet is very - classic- rather aloof and austere. Again, there are dominant sous-bois and tobacco aromas. Moderate vigour: conservative. The palate is medium-bodied, quite sharp on the entry, austere and foursquare. Holding something back perhaps? A touch of salt and pepper on the finish. Very linear. A serious Montrose that could do with more joie-de-vivre. I regret being able to taste this just once, as others are more positive about this wine.

Score: 88 - 90

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 01 April 2009

Bright ruby-red. Fresh black fruits and licorice on the nose. Juicy and penetrating, with excellent focus and purity to the flavors of blueberry, blackberry and minerals. Tightly wound and very firm on the aftertaste, with suave tannins and excellent length. An excellent Montrose with a modern touch.

Score: 90

Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar 01 July 2011

One of the superstars of the vintage, this classic Montrose is not as showy or opulent as the 2010, 2009 or 2003, but it offers a dense purple color followed by gorgeously sweet black raspberry and black currant fruit intermixed with loamy, earthy, forest floor notes, a floral component and a long, full-bodied finish. The 2008 was fashioned from yields of 44 hectoliters per hectare which is slightly less than the 2010's 45 hectoliters per hectare. Forget it for 5-8 years and drink it over the following 20+.

Score: 95

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2016-2036 03 May 2011

An undeniably great Montrose, after some time in wood, the 2008 should achieve the heights of the 2003, 1990, and 1989. Stylistically different from those wines, the 2008 harvest took place between September 29 and October 15, and yields were a modest 44 hectoliters per hectare. This superb terroir west of the Gironde River possesses a remarkable amount of gravel in the soil base. Sixty percent of the production made it into the 2008 Montrose, and the person responsible for so many great Haut-Brions, Jean-Bernard Delmas, came out of retirement to take charge over the last several vintages for proprietor Martin Bouygues. An inky/purple color is accompanied by sweet, pure aromas of black fruits and spice. This full-bodied wine exhibits superb concentration, sweet tannin, and a multilayered, textured, full-bodied mouthfeel with no hard edges. The sweetness of the tannin, the extraordinary purity of fruit, and the intense aromatics suggest a year of great ripeness. The difference between the 2008 and the 2003, 1990, or 1989 is the freshness and purity of expression. This should be a long-lived wine (35+ years), yet it will drink surprisingly well at a young age. For some reason, it comes across like an even more pure example of the 1989, even though there is nothing essentially comparable between the two harvests.

Score: 95 - 97

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 30 April 2009

Shows blackberry and black licorice, with hints of mint. Full-bodied and fruity, with very fine tannins, good acidity and a nice intensity of mineral and spices.

Score: 88 - 91

James Suckling, Wine Spectator 01 April 2009

Satin crimson and deep. Some richness on the nose. Mellifluous initially and then quite dry and tough. Aggressive tannins and not much flesh in the middle. Very dry and almost glorying in its austerity and unfriendliness. Very dry finish. Picked from 29 Sep to 15 Oct - some of the fruit picked just a bit too early perhaps? Very hard finish.

Score: 16

Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2016-2030 01 April 2009