Mission Codename De-facto
“Insiders know Montrose as one of the top vineyards in all of Bordeaux, along with Latour.” – Wine Spectator
Let’s face it. Greatness in Bordeaux goes property by property.
Château Montrose is a bona fide legend, there is no room for discussion there. This is why there are vintages of the stuff that just range from great, to extraordinary. It appears that what was thought as a ‘good’ vintage, 2013, got the benefit of time and by now it’s a VERY good 2nd growth (if you ask Wine Advocate Montrose is a “de-facto 1st growth”) to enjoy over the next decade.
And wait! We buried the lead…
There’s the whole ‘$95 for 95 points’ factor…
Heck, good luck finding ANY Montrose under $100. Try $135 and up for the ‘weakest’ vintages, and over $300 for the best. Silky tannins, check! Deep dark fruits, check! Long and complex finish? Check, and check! It should come as no surprise that this beauty was elevated by the magic touch of Jean-Bernard Delmas of Château Haut-Brion fame.
It took us 3 trips to Bordeaux, AND a night at the Château recently to secure you this unfathomable deal. So we advise you, in true Operative fashion, to ask less about the how and buy more of the now.
Below is the best tasting note we found to help explain how well it drinks today, but there’s other praise too, such as “a great effort for the vintage” per Wine Spectator and “2013 Montrose is making a very strong case for itself as one of the wines of the vintage” per Vinous along with this barrel review by Neal Martin for Wine Advocate looking into a crystal ball, he predicted that “you actually warm to it the longer it lingers, gathering momentum so to speak, so I’m keeping the faith.”
And faith pays off, while it lasts!
95 Points, Cellar Selection – Wine Enthusiast
“This is a firm wine although with superb fruit. It is structured and dense, dark with tarry tannins as well as juicy fruitiness. It is a powerful wine that certainly has the freshness of the year while also having dark, dense tannins. Drink from 2025.”
What the Winery Says
2013 St.-Estèphe
- Consulting winemaker
- Jean-Bernard Delmas
- Technical director
- Vincent Decup
- Proprietors
- The Bouygues Family
- Varietals
- 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc
- Vintage
- 2013
- Alcohol
- 13.4%
- Appellation
- St.-Estèphe, Haut-Médoc
- Vineyard Size
- 95 ha
- Soils
- Calcareous sandstone and shale
- Harvest dates
- September 26 - October 16, 2013
- Maceration
- 30 days
- Aging
- 18 months
- Barrels
- 60% new French oak