Montrose 2003 (1.5L)

99 RP / 98 WA / 98 WCI / 97 JS / 96 WI / 95 WS / 95 WE / 19 JR

A candidate for a perfect score, the 2003 Montrose has been a superstar since the first time I tasted it in barrel. Showing no signs of weakening, it is an amazing wine from this fabulous terroir. It boasts a deep blue/purple color as well as a stunning perfume of blueberries, black currants, blackberries, licorice and camphor. Dense, full-bodied and rich with an unctuous texture, well-integrated, melted tannins, and a long, heady finish, this big, brawny, super-intense, gorgeous 2003 is just beginning to enter its plateau of full maturity. It should remain there for at least two decades. - Robert M. Parker, Jr.

The 2003 Montrose was served blind in Bordeaux on two occasions. Picked between 11 to 26 September, it is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. It remains one of the outstanding wines of a very black and white vintage. Without knowledge of the vintage, I was hesitant to suggest 2003, because though there is clearly fruit intensity locked up inside this Saint Estèphe, it is counterbalanced by the estate's trademark masculinity and austerity. So both on the nose and the palate it reaches this happy medium: pure blackberry, graphite and roasted herbs on the nose, perhaps even more elegant than I have observed on previous bottles. The palate is medium-bodied rather than full bodied with sturdy tannins couched in layers of seamless blackberry and cassis fruit, offset by scents of tobacco and graphite. As usual it has immense length and depth, a Montrose that is really just a few chapters into what is sure to be a longer "book" than many other 2003s. It is not a perfect Montrose, but a couple of hairs' breadth away. Tasted February 2017. - Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate  

Showy flamboyant, rich, lush, ripe, and packed with layers of deep, dark, red, and black fruits, opulent textures, and a finish that keeps on going. This is simply great now and could be even better with a 3-5 more years of bottle age.-Jeff Leve, Wine Cellar Insider, tasted 05/22  

After the 2009, this is the most exciting Montrose ever made, with intense aromas and flavors of plums, blueberries, spices, tobacco and cedar. It’s full-bodied with extremely refined tannins but a dense, delicious palate. Better in 2016, but why wait? - James Suckling

This was an extreme vintage, with very little water and very hot. The 2003 Montrose is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-brick in color, it is a little closed to start off, soon unfurling to deliver evocative creme de cassis, blackberry preserves, and fruitcake scents, giving way to hints of tobacco leaf, new leather, dusty soil, and fennel seed. The medium-bodied palate is completely coated with black fruit and savory layers, supported by firm, chewy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing earthy.-Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Independent

This is hard to distinguish as an '03, as an austere, racy profile of charcoal, black currant and iron reigns. Taut and focused, with a sense of freshness from buried bay leaf and tobacco accents, this is set apart in the vintage by drive and cut. Still a bit tight. The insider's wine in this vintage. -- Blind '01/'03/'05 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2017). Best from 2020 through 2040-James Molesworth, Wine Spectator

Thought by many tasters to be the wine of the vintage at the time of the 2004 barrel tastings. Has it retained that status? It is certainly a hugely powerful wine, monumental even. It is also finely balanced, with great dark tannins working in partnership with brooding black fruit. The question is whether it is too big, too powerful: only time will tell. Imported by Diageo Chateau & Estates.-Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast

Fabulous stuff. Extremely deep purple. Very deep and dense in every way yet with wonderful freshness and vivacity. Rich, animal and meaty at first on the nose but then on the palate it's miraculously well defined and delineated. Great opulence but without a hint of overripeness (the Charmolues distinguish it from their popular 1990 in this respect). Great clarity. The tannins are beautifully ripe and carry through the tasting experience as opposed to sneaking in nastily at the end. There is a beginning, middle and end to this wine that is so refreshing it's like an energiser. Young Charmolue seemed to view his 2003 with the same sort of stunned amazement as one might finding one has given birth to a prodigy-Jancis Robinson