Chateau Montrose 2003

JEB DUNNUCK: "A prodigious beast of a wine that's now starting to shed just a touch of its considerable baby fat, the 2003 Château Montrose is based on 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot. It shows the richness of the vintage with its ripe, opulent core of fruit, yet it freshens up noticeably with time in the glass, offering currants, mulberries, smoked tobacco, minty herbs, and licorice. Full-bodied, deep, and powerful on the palate, it still has classic Bordeaux focus and structure. It's drinking brilliantly today with a decant and has another 20-30 years of prime drinking."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2003 Montrose was served blind in Bordeaux on two occasions. Picked between 11 to 26 September, it is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. It remains one of the outstanding wines of a very black and white vintage. Without knowledge of the vintage, I was hesitant to suggest 2003, because though there is clearly fruit intensity locked up inside this Saint Estèphe, it is counterbalanced by the estate's trademark masculinity and austerity. So both on the nose and the palate it reaches this happy medium: pure blackberry, graphite and roasted herbs on the nose, perhaps even more elegant than I have observed on previous bottles. The palate is medium-bodied rather than full bodied with sturdy tannins couched in layers of seamless blackberry and cassis fruit, offset by scents of tobacco and graphite. As usual it has immense length and depth, a Montrose that is really just a few chapters into what is sure to be a longer "book" than many other 2003s. It is not a perfect Montrose, but a couple of hairs' breadth away. Tasted February 2017."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Opulent, rich, full-bodied, showy and intense, this feels just great as layers of perfectly ripe, sensuous black and red fruits glide over your palate. There is no heat, jamminess or overripe characteristics. What you do experience with all its lush, velvety, showy fruit is layer after layer of intensity, richness and pleasure. Decanted about 90 minutes, this rock star hits all the right notes."

JAMES SUCKLING: "After the 2009, this is the most exciting Montrose ever made, with intense aromas and flavors of plums, blueberries, spices, tobacco and cedar. It’s full-bodied with extremely refined tannins but a dense, delicious palate. Better in 2016, but why wait?"

WEINWISSER: "Sattes, fast undurchdringliches Granat mit Purpur und violetten Reflexen am Rand. Aromatisches, tiefgründiges Bouquet, momentan noch etwas hölzern, satte Dichte, florale Cabernet-Noten, dahinter schwarze Beeren, Lakritze, noch zurückhaltend im Ansatz. Fleischiger Gaumen, trotz aktiver Gerbstoffpräsenz, pfeffrige Note im Extrakt, raubeiniger Charme, sehr viel Geduld brauchend, erste richtige Flaschenreife in etwa 15 Jahren. Einer der tiefgründigsten und charaktervollsten St-Estèphe, der die Tannine aber noch verdauen muss, um zu voller Grösse heranzureifen, kann dann vielleicht den 1990er übertreffen, was der Wein von der Reintönigkeit heute schon tut."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Thought by many tasters to be the wine of the vintage at the time of the 2004 barrel tastings. Has it retained that status? It is certainly a hugely powerful wine, monumental even. It is also finely balanced, with great dark tannins working in partnership with brooding black fruit. The question is whether it is too big, too powerful: only time will tell."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This is hard to distinguish as an '03, as an austere, racy profile of charcoal, black currant and iron reigns. Taut and focused, with a sense of freshness from buried bay leaf and tobacco accents, this is set apart in the vintage by drive and cut. Still a bit tight. The insider's wine in this vintage.—Blind '01/'03/'05 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2017). Best from 2020 through 2040. 15,830 cases made."

DECANTER: "A year when those cooling breezes from the estuary were essential. This displays sweeter, spicier fruit character than some years, and you can feel a more exotic style of oak. You get caramel and toffee on the nose with some dark spice on the palate, but there is a seam of menthol freshness running through it and the tannins are more than holding on. This shows the quality of Montrose in spades. 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. Drinking Window 2017 - 2035"

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Fragrant red and dark fruit, some oak spice and a slight leafiness. Fresh, lively and leafy on the palate. More Pauillac than St-Estèphe?"