1970 Château Montrose St. Estèphe Bordeaux France Wine Tasting Note
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1970
Château Montrose (St. Estèphe)
Old-school, hard, rustic, crisp, and crunchy with a strong herb and cedar edge to the bright red fruits on the nose and palate. If you are seeking a Bordeaux showing how wine was made in years gone by, this is probably a good example. Drink from 2022-2025. 2,820 Views Tasted Nov 2, 2022With its tobacco, forest floor, cassis and cedar perfume, the wine showed promise. On the palate, tart cranberry, bright sweet and sour cherries and hard tannins made me want to go back the perfume. Not my style of Bordeaux. The wine was produced from a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. 6,280 Views Tasted Dec 1, 20131970 Chateau Montrose is an austere, lean, hard style of Bordeaux with a tannic, tough, cassis, cedar , forest floor and cigar filled personality. There is no hurry to drink this. But I doubt it’s going to improve much from here. This was more interesting on the complex nose than the old school palate. 6,300 Views Tasted Oct 28, 2012Brawny, tannic, beefy and masculine, this cassis, tobacco, spice and truffle scented wine is tough and even after almost 4 decades, tannic. Full bodied, rustic and showing years younger, this reminds me of an 86 Medoc. 4,444 Views Tasted Jul 7, 2007 |
When to Drink Chateau Montrose, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time
Chateau Montrose is a wine that demands time in the cellar. Due to the large amount of tannins, concentration, and structure, the wine is always better with at least 10-20 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage.
Chateau Montrose offers its best drinking and should reach peak maturity between 15-50 or more years after the vintage. Young vintages should be decanted for at least 2-4 hours. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment
Chateau Montrose Style and Character of the Wine
Chateau Montrose at its best is powerful, refined, masculine, elegant, and complex. The fruit has a richness that fills your mouth and coats your palate. But the wines are also firm and tannic.
The wine of Chateau Montrose can age and evolve for decades. In fact, purchasers should know, that in the best vintages, the wine requires decades to develop. Chateau Montrose is seldom a wine that is fun to taste in its youth. It's a very long, lived wine.
The 1921 Montrose tasted recently was still in top form! If you've ever wondered why Chateau Montrose is prized by Bordeaux lovers all over the world, 1989 Chateau Montrose is the wine to buy.
That being said, for a Montrose to age, the 2009 Chateau Montrose is off the charts, deserving its 100 Pt score and a place in your cellar, if you can afford it! Chateau Montrose has been one of the top producers in Bordeaux for decades. However, under the direction of Herve Berland, it looks like the best is yet to come.
Serving Chateau Montrose with Wine, Food, Pairing Tips
Chateau Montrose is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.
Chateau Montrose is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, and grilled dishes. Chateau Montrose is a perfect match with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms, and pasta as well as cheese.