Winemaker Notes
The 2025 vintage shows remarkable balance, with an alcohol level of 13.73% vol. and an elegant, well-defined tannic structure, driven by fully achieved phenolic ripeness. The result is a harmonious wine combining concentration, finesse and controlled power. A wine of character, built for ageing, yet already irresistibly appealing in its youth.
Blend: 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 2% Malbec, 2% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A tight and juicy red with blackberry, cherry, plum and spice aromas and flavors. It’s medium-bodied with a creamy texture and a crunchy finish. Refined for the vintage, with plenty of character and length.
Barrel Sample: 96-97 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Cassis, black cherries, smoky tobacco, graphite, and a chalky minerality all shine from the 2025 Château D'Issan, a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 2% Malbec, and 2% Petit Verdot that's being raised in 50% new barriques with the balance in once-used barrels. Reminding me slightly of the 2016 with its balance and elegance, it's medium to full-bodied on the palate, with a pure, graceful mouthfeel, fine tannins, and outstanding length. It builds beautifully with time in the glass, and checking in at 13.73% alcohol with a pH of 3.63, this is going to be an incredibly satisfying, classic, complex Margaux that exudes class and elegance.
Barrel Sample: 94-96 -
Vinous
The 2025 d'Issan is fabulous. Inky and racy to the core, the 2025 Issan has so much to offer. Crème de cassis, menthol, licorice, cloves, gravel and mocha all meld together in the glass. Sumptuous and seamless with exceptional balance, the 2025 is a real stunner. This is an especially dense d'Issan that reflects the intensity of the year. Tasted two times. –Antonio Galloni
Barrel Sample: 94-96 -
Decanter
Violets and iris notes on the nose. Supple and succulent with a drop of sweet strawberries balanced against quite fresh blackcurrants, liquorice and cola. I love the texture – streamlined, focused, detailed, so smooth and sophisticated. Maybe a more dark profile than recent vintages but feels so well constructed with a firm frame and cool drive from start to finish. It has layers, this isn’t lacking in any power or muscle but it doesn’t have any heaviness or chew and in that respect it gives a lot of wine without much weight at all. Grippy, fun, interesting, captivating and so easy to drink. Potential upscore in bottle. 2% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc complete the blend. 3.63pH. A yield of 29hl/ha.
Barrel Sample: 95 -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Marked by a spicy, oaky profile, the 2025 D'Issan reveals aromas of lead pencil, tobacco and dark berries. Medium- to full-bodied, structured and dense, it’s built around an assertive tannic frame and concludes with a long, spicy finish. Quite introverted at this stage, it will need to gain in elegance and harmony with élevage.
Barrel Sample: 90-92
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Silky, seductive and polished are the words that characterize the best wines from Margaux, the most inland appellation of the Médoc on the Left Bank of Bordeaux.
Margaux’s gravel soils are the thinnest of the Médoc, making them most penetrable by vine roots—some reaching down over 23 feet for water. The best sites are said to be on gentle outcrops, or croupes, where more gravel facilitates good drainage.
The Left Bank of Bordeaux subscribes to an arguably outdated method of classification but it is nonetheless important in regards to history of the area. In 1855 the finest chateaux were deemed on the basis of reputation and trading price—at that time. In 1855, Chateau Margaux achieved first growth status, yet it has been Chateau Palmer (officially third growth from the 1855 classification) that has consistently outperformed others throughout the 20th century.
Chateau Margaux in top vintages is capable of producing red Cabernet Sauvignon based wines described as pure, intense, spell-binding, refined and profound with flavors and aromas of black currant, violets, roses, orange peel, black tea and incense.
Other top producers worthy of noting include Chateau Rauzan-Ségla, Lascombes, Brane-Cantenac, and d’Issan, among others.
The best wines of Margaux combine a deep ruby color with a polished structure, concentration and an unrivaled elegance.