Winemaker Notes
The power of the ‘terroir’ tempered by the glistening fruit. The aromatic richness enhanced with elegant precision creates the perfect balance of elements that respond to one another.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2021 Troplong-Mondot is shockingly raw and untamed, but in the very best sense of those terms.A wine of energy and pure power, the 2021 is going to need a number of years to be at its best, but it is certainly very impressive in the early going.
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Decanter
Bright purple rim to the wine. So many aromas on the nose, really captivating and full - dark chocolate, pink flowers giving a soft perfume, cinnamon, raspberries, black cherries and liquorice too - all intensifying over twenty minutes in the glass. Super bright and charged on the palate, this is off like a firecracker from the initial impact, giving tangy strawberry, red cherry and raspberry fruit flavors. It's got power no doubt, but a delicate, light style, not so concentrated and intense more lifted and aerial with tension. So much energy here, the flavors come in waves on the palate, red fruits, cooling blue fruits, exotic spices, flowers and fresh minty, stone notes with a real mineral salinity on the finish. It's perhaps not so weighty or full in the mouth like previous more opulent vintages, but there is clarity and definition of elements on show. I love the mineral finish, so Troplong. Extremely refined. First vintage in the new cellar facilities which helped with precision.
Barrel Sample: 96 -
Wine Enthusiast
Spice, sandalwood and red-berry fruit aromas all come together to produce a fragrant, WINE ENTHUSIAST | 113 powerful and rich wine. Its tannins bring a firm structure to this dense wine. It is a luscious wine with a great future.
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James Suckling
Elegant and refined nose with a classy touch of spices and mineral to the red currants and berries. Very sleek and linear on the palate with super polished, immaculate tannins and a very long finish. Not a powerful vintage for sure, but this is all about finesse and subtlety. Already drinkable, but can hold for a decade.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 Troplong Mondot unwinds in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cherries and plums mingled with violets, exotic spices and smoke. Medium to full-bodied, deep and complete, the wine is layered and complex, with all the depth and authority that one expects from this clay-driven terroir, its concentrated core of fruit underpinned by sweet tannins and lively animating acids, concluding with a long, resonant finish. A blend of 85% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc with a remarkably low pH of 3.35, it's the first vintage produced in the estate's state-of-the-art new winery.
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Jeb Dunnuck
A blend of 85% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc, the 2021 Château Troplong Mondot was raised in 55% new oak, 21% in once-used, and the balance in foudre for 14 months. It's ruby, semi-opaque hue is followed by a beautiful perfume of smoky black raspberries, crunchy cherries, chalky minerality, rose, and spring flowers. It's medium-bodied, has ultra-fine tannins, nicely integrated acidity, and just a pretty, pure, seamless style. It clearly offers pleasure today but should be given 4-5 years, and it will evolve for two decades.
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Wine Spectator
Fresh, if a touch on the skinny side, with bitter cherry and pomegranate notes carried by a chalky structure, while savory accents dart around throughout. Pretty, silky finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025 through 2033.
Premier Grand Cru Classe in Saint-Emilion, Chateau Troplong Mondot stands out with refinement, boasting a strong wine identity, a perfectly-controlled vineyard and an innate sense of welcoming. Located on the highet point of Saint-Emilion's famous limestone plateau, the 43-hectare estate held in one piece stands on some of the most enviable and unique terroirs of the Right Bank, with ideal geological conditions and exposure, The unique diversity of the soils is revealed through balanced wines combining strength and elegance, complexity and precision. Troplong Mondot's history has been enriched with charismatic and cultured figures who have led the estate towards excellence with a different vision. By trusting Aymeric de Gironde for the executive management, the company SCOR bring a fresh boost since 2017 while respecting the values and spirit of the estate.
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.