Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
walnut and cocoa powder. Crushed stones, too. It’s full and layered with round tannins and a juicy and plush texture. Crushed velvet that turns to silk. Very cool and long. Plenty going on here. Give it three to four years to come together. But will age beautifully for years to come. A blend of 65% cabernet sauvignon and 35% merlot.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Giscours has turned out very well in bottle, wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet berries, cherries, burning embers, lilac and violets framed by a discreet patina of new oak. Full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's polished and perfumed, with a velvety, seamless profile and bright animating acids, concluding with a long, resonant finish. Alexandre Van Beek and his team are taking this estate to heights it hasn't hit since the 1970s, and this is another of the great bargains of the 2019 en primeur campaign.
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Decanter
This is a serious Giscours, with medium intensity violet-edged ruby colour. High aromatics on the nose with cumin and cloves, followed by black cherry and cassis fruits that do a good job of filling the palate, and a cooling menthol finish as the tannins close in. Enjoyable overall, succulent yet with precision. Harvest lasted for an entire month, from September 11 to October 12, the longest ever at the estate and a reflection of more precise plot-by-plot work, with vines separated according to age and terroir.
Barrel Sample: 94 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Checking in as a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot, the 2019 Château Giscours is one heck of an impressive Margaux. Deep purple-hued, with a great nose of both black and blue fruits as well as sappy herbs, tobacco, and flowers, it has nicely integrated oak, medium to full body, ripe yet certainly present tannins, and a great finish. It's beautifully done. Hide bottles for 4-6 years and enjoy over the following two decades or so. Rating: 94+
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Wine Spectator
Really solid for the vintage, with a fresh edge to the mix of black currant, blackberry and fig paste flavors. This wine's energy extends through the finish, where humus, singed cedar, savory and iron-tinged minerality add range and cut. Still shows the vintage's excessive heat, but this manages it better than most of its peers. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
Château Giscours, a Grand Cru Classé, is one of the very few estates with vineyards planted in a single stretch, at the heart of an unspoiled ecosystem of 400 hectares of meadows and forest. The 100-hectare estate in the Margaux appellation boasts an ideal location on the magnificent Labarde and Arsac plateau.
Château Giscours, one of the oldest seigneuries in the Médoc, has reinvented itself constantly over the centuries. Pierre de Lhomme, Marc Promis, Jean-Pierre Pescatore, Edouard Cruse and Nicolas Tari were all ambitious and visionary estate owners who were passionate about pulling together the estate's land and giving this vineyard a reputation for excellence. These efforts were rewarded by the official classification in 1855, when Giscours was named a third Grand Cru Classé.
In 1995, a new chapter began with Dutch businessman Eric Albada Jelgersma, who oversaw a meticulous rehabilitation of the vineyards and buildings. It took a lengthy process, patience, and unfailing technical and commercial organization for Giscours to retain a strong identity and become the embodiment of a flourishing estate that has successfully transcended change.
Today, his children are following in their father's footsteps as they enable the estate to develop whilst also preserving its rich ecosystem.
This well-arranged land is a winemaker's dream. Deep Garonne gravel hilltops with slight variations give Giscours wines their structure and elegance. This exceptional terroir suits our vines, which offer up the best of themselves under the influence of the oceanic climate.
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.