CHÂTEAU MONTROSE
2023 2ème Cru Classé Saint Estèphe
The 2023 Montrose is another brilliant wine from an estate that's now routinely among Bordeaux's very best, year in, year out. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc, derived exclusively from the estate's historic core on the fourth terrace situated just in front of the château itself, it unwinds in the glass with aromas of cassis and wild berries mingled with notions of lilac, violet and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, deep and layered, with a textural attack that segues into a dense, multidimensional mid-palate framed by beautifully ripe tannins and lively acids, it concludes with a long, resonant finish. It will be worth a special effort to seek out. Rating: 97-100 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2024)
75cl bottles (wood case of 6)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Wow. This is the essence of Montrose, with blackberry, blackcurrant, crushed stone and earth. I have not tasted a Montrose like this in 42 years of my career. It has a much more vertical nature to it, with layered tannins that go very deep and long, The muscular structure and intensity is something else. This is a new era for Montrose. It is now made from only 45 hectares of vineyards right in front of the chateau, instead of about 60 before. 75% cabernet sauvignon, 21% merlot and 4% cabernet franc. Rating: 99-100 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2024)
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Montrose gallops out of the glass with intense scents of crushed blackcurrants, fresh blackberries, and raspberries along with nuances of licorice, crushed rocks, and mossy tree bark plus a hint of iron ore. The medium-bodied palate has impressive tension and tight-knit black and red berry flavors intertwined with mineral accents, framed by fine-grained tannins, finishing long and sparkly. The first wine accounted for only 35% of the estate's production this year. The blend is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc, with pH 3.70. Drinking range: 2030 - 2060 Rating: 97-99 Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent (May 2024)
Gorgeously dark and vibrant fruit, with gunsmoke and campfire, concentrated cassis and blackberry pastille, grilled almond, saffron and pomegrante, luscious but measured, showing the inky character that seems to be at the heart of the best Cabernets of this vintage, with their ripe but not overly exuberant classicism. Organic conversion, to be certified 2025. The first vintage this 1st wine of Montrose is coming only from the section of the vineyard located on Terrace 4 of the Médoc gravel banks that line the Garonne river along the peninsula. Following soil studies from Pierre Becheler, this comprises 35% of the overall production in 2023, or 45ha of vines, and is the historic heart of the property. Pierre Grafeuille director, Vincent Decup technical director. Rating: 98 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)
The 2023 Montrose is focused on the original terroir of the estate, known as Terrace 4, located in front of the river. It comprises 45 hectares, around 12 to 15 hectares less than previous vintages so as to capture the expression of Montrose classified in 1855. Picked from September 5 to 28 and matured in 60% new oak, this has a very intense and focused bouquet: pure black fruit with just a touch of strawberry, hints of violet petals developing in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins—very pure, with pitch-perfect acidity. This gains depth toward the finish but maintains a sense of linearity that ensures it is one of the vintage’s finest contributions from the Left Bank. Magnificent. Drinking range: 2033 - 2075 Rating: 96-98 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2024)
The 2023 Montrose is a dark, brooding powerhouse but with the elegance that is such a signature today. Black cherry, plum, leather, licorice, mocha, spice, tobacco and dried flowers infuse the 2023 with tons of character. The Cabernet Sauvignon is so expressive here. Readers will have to be patient, as this is a wine built for the cellar. It's not especially showy today, but all the ingredients are there. The 2023 is quite the bruiser. In other words, it’s classic Montrose. In the end, that's not terribly surprising, as the winemaking team relied exclusively on the original holdings of about 45 hectares from what the estate calls the 'grand plateau' or 'Terrace 4', essentially the historic core of the property. Harvest ran from September 5 to 28. There was some rain on the 21st, but 15mm of precipitation after a heat spike was not meaningful. The 2023 is magnificent in every way. Drinking range: 2032 - 2063 Rating: 95-97 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (May 2024)
The blend in 2023 is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc, with a big focus on the parcels on terrace four, the historic Montrose vineyard, which were picked from September 5th, finishing the 28th. This takes 35% of the crop in this vintage. I don’t normally comment on colour, but this has a striking black tulip hue (a British Leyland colour from the 1960s – it looks great on an MGB too) which certainly inspires interest. And the nose is just mind-blowing, blackcurrants, black olives, black cherries, currants but also white peach, charcoal and white freesia. This starts with a superb softly polished entry, with a confident medium-bodied texture through the middle, no falling away of substance here, with the same dark and floral fruits layered with a little toast, and supported by a rich and tightly knit core of tobacco-infused tannins. This is just super, and it concludes with a harmonious finish, with dark fruit and polished tannin working together. A stunning Montrose, fresh but with balanced rather than overly prominent acidity. Top work! The alcohol here is 13.6%. Rating: 97-100 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)
Château Montrose
St Estèphe Deuxième cru 1855 Wine production St Estèphe developed much later than further south in the Haut-Médoc - indeed, the vineyards of Château Montrose were not planted until 1815, when it was then part of the Calon-Ségur estate. Only 40 years later, not only had Montrose seperated from its parent, it had surpassed it, being one of only two St Estèphe estates to be awarded 2nd Growth status in the 1855 classification. Montrose sits nearer the river than Cos d'Estournel on classic Haut-Médoc gravel soil - the last outcrop as you head north. The 65ha of vines are 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The Grand Vin spends 18 months in wood (70% new). A second wine was introduced in 1983 - La Dame de Montrose - aged in wood for 12 months (20% new). Montrose is a noted performer in weaker vintages, possibly because of a generous micro-climate which allows slightly earlier picking than most of the Haut-Médoc. The wines age brilliantly.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those on the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do contact our private client team via email or on 020 7018 0187.
Ordering
Prices are all in bond by the case size stated.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment to buy wines on release, as long as the release price is within the upper and lower price bands set by you on the pre-order form. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability but providing this firm commitment to buy effectively gives you priority and is a good idea for the most desirable wines.
Wines listed on the website can be ordered in the usual way via the website wishlist order form. You can also send orders directly to our private client team via email. Please note that, for the most sought-after wines, priority will be given to those who ordered the same wines last year and to those that have pre-ordered.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of email confirmation. Pre-orders are not binding if the release price is above your upper price band.
Invoices are all raised at the in bond price (excluding any duty and VAT) which will become payable at the prevailing rates when the wines arrive in the UK, should you wish to take duty paid delivery.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We regret we cannot accept credit cards for en primeur orders. We reserve the right to apply a dunning charge of 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (at LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £500. Orders below this total will be charged an administration and handling fee of £16.50+ VAT when invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery of 2023 Bordeaux bought en primeur is expected during 2026. Delivery dates may vary as wines are shipped from Bordeaux at different times.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes). Immediate payment of invoices is then required by cash, cheque, debit card or bank transfer. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option but please note that confirmed orders are still binding even if the final invoice has not yet been issued.
Please specify on your wishlist order form where you would like the wines shipped on arrival in the UK. If this is to a third-party bonded warehouse, please specify the relevant account details. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue a second invoice for duty and VAT at the prevailing rate when the wines are available for delivery.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the format you want. While most of our listings are for 75cl bottles, we can source wines in any format that is offered by the Château. Please note that format requests cannot be changed once wines have been invoiced. Additional charges for special formats do apply and are as follows:-
- +£18.00 per case of 12 half-bottles
- +£30.00 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£7.50 per case of 3 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£11.00 per case of 6 Magnums
- +£45.00 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£60.00 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.
Storage Options:
Wines bought en primeur won't arrive in the UK until 2026. If you do not wish to take home delivery at that point, you may wish to consider where you would like the wines shipped. Lea & Sandeman offers duty paid and in bond storage through a dedicated storage company called Elephant Storage. For more details on the terms and fees associated with storage please go to our Storage Homepage or contact our private client team for more information.