Winemaker Notes
Blend: 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
There can be no doubt that 1994 is generally a vintage to be forgotten for Bordeaux, particularly for the Left Bank. Incessant rain from mid-September caused huge problems in the vineyards and ultimately dilution in the wine. Though appellations such as Pomerol were spared the worst, I was surprised to find a wine from the Médoc so appealing from this year. It showed red spices such as cloves and dried mushrooms on the nose, leading to a medium body, firm tannins and a long finish. It was still pretty and fine, and you might describe it as real claret. I stumbled across it in London just before coming to Bordeaux, and later this afternoon I will be barrel tasting the 2014 release from Montrose. I’m sure it will be the better year ending in a four!
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.
Deeply colored, concentrated, and distinctive, St. Estephe is the go-to for great, age-worthy and reliable Bordeaux reds. Separated from Pauillac merely by a stream, St. Estephe is the farthest northwest of the highest classed villages of the Haut Medoc and is therefore subject to the most intense maritime influence of the Atlantic.
St. Estephe soils are rich in gravel like all of the best sites of the Haut Medoc but here the formation of gravel over clay creates a cooler atmosphere for its vines compared to those in the villages farther downstream. This results in delayed ripening and wines with higher acidity compared to the other villages.
While they can seem a bit austere when young, St. Estephe reds prove to live very long in the cellar. Traitionally dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, many producers now add a significant proportion of Merlot to the blend, which will soften any sharp edges of the more tannic, Cabernet.
The St. Estephe village contains two second growths, Chateau Montrose and Cos d’Estournel.