Winemaker Notes
Blend: 69% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
Very perfumed and beautiful with violet and lavender aromas. Pretty ripe fruit. Subtle. Medium to full body, extremely silky tannins and a savory aftertaste. Linear and racy. Drink in 2020.
-
Wine Enthusiast
This rich wine has a good proportion (31%) of Cabernet Franc to give it a perfumed structured character. It is dense and with considerable tannins at this stage. By contrast, the fruit has enormous potential with rich blackberry and black-plum flavors. This chateau has made a considerable stride in this vintage. Drink from 2022.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2014 Château Quintus is a small step back from the 2015. Dense purple/plum colored, with terrific notes of currants, cassis, new leather, and toasted spices, this beauty shines on the palate and is medium to full-bodied, seamless, sexy, and ready to go. It’s already hard to resist but will keep for 10-15 years.
-
Wine Spectator
A pure, focused style, with a core of plum and cassis notes caressed by light floral and tobacco accents. Ends with a chalky thread through the refined finish. Best from 2018 through 2026.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Quintus was quite backward and tight-lipped when I tasted it from bottle: broody black cherries and black plum, a touch of clove and fresh mint eventually surfacing. The palate is silky smooth on the entry, a Saint Emilion that caresses and seduces the senses. It is very pure with lovely black cherry, blueberry and white pepper notes, although I would be seeking a little more structure and tension on the finish. It is a wine that goes out to give pleasure, but I hope there is more personality and terroir expression that will develop in the future.
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.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.