Chateau Margaux 2025 Margaux 1er Grand Cru Classe - OWC1

Falstaff
100 punten
Deep dark ruby garnet, violet reflections, delicate rim brightening. Ripe heart cherries with a delicate floral underlay, fine cassis, rose petals, multi-faceted bouquet, a hint of precious wood, multi-layered aromas. Textured, elegant, fine extract sweetness, fine fruit, silky, supporting tannins, incredibly complex, mineral, freshly structured, lingers for minutes, sure aging potential for many decades. The ideal image of a classic Margaux for the new era.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux
98-100 punten
More dense and yet more soft than the Pavillon Rouge, fully anchored in place and yet rising through the palate, with rose petals, pomegranate, cassis and damson fruits, so juicy and full of character, slate and crushed rocks, peony and iris, with volume that is expansive and striking. These guys held on to harvest after the rains and have been rewarded for it - can't have been easy as everyone was picking around them, but this was a great decision that shows just what was capable in this vintage. 22hl/ha yield across the vineyard, harvest September 8 for young Merlot, then Cabernet Sauvignon began September 19 and finished September 29. 14% press wine, so a little less than usual because of the natural concentration. 22hl/ha yield across the vineyard, IPT81,3.76ph. 37% 1st wine. I dont give 100 points En Primeur, but if I did, this would get it. It's a slam dunk.

Jeb Dunnuck
98-100 punten
A heavenly, magical wine that has perfection written all over it, the 2025 Château Margaux is based on 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, raised entirely in new barrels. Similar in its gorgeous aromatics to the Pavillon Rouge, it shows cassis, blue fruits, and spice, but with a touch more freshness and floral character. It's absolutely seamless on the palate, with full body, a deep, layered, pure, graceful mouthfeel, velvety, polished tannins, flawless balance, and sensational length. Hitting 13.8% alcohol with a pH of 3.72, they took a chance harvesting very late in September, finishing on the 29th, and it unquestionably paid off. While many of the wines of the vintage are beautiful in their richness and elegance, this hits another level of opulence and depth. It reminds me of the 2009 on the palate and is a legendary Margaux in the making.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown
98-100 punten
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2025 Château Margaux charges out with bold notes of black currant jelly, juicy plums, and fresh boysenberries, giving way to an undercurrent of tilled soil, tar, licorice, and violets, with a touch of graphite. The medium-bodied palate is so graceful and elegant with super-intense black fruit layers and very fine-grained tannins, supported by plenty of tension, finishing long and fragrant. There's so much energy and restrained power here-exhilarating! The blend is 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. It has a pH of 3.72 and the alcohol is 13.8%. The IPT is 81. This is 37% of production-usually it is around 40%. Yields were just 20 hl/ha.

Decanter
98(-100) punten
Easily one of the wines of the vintage and clear contender for a 100-point wine that benefited from slightly later picking after the rain with the Cabernets harvested from the 19 September. So floral, what a wonderful bouquet of aromas with wild flowers, medicinal herbs and touches of eucalyptus. Crushed velvet, round and enveloping, so balanced with energy and flair. Juicy and alive, bright with fresh strawberries and cherries and a chalky backbone. Grippy with lovely salinity and focus. Feels incredibly sophisticated, a touch firm but pure and precise with refinement. You can feel the structure - it has concentration but an almost aerial quality that just glides over the tongue. So delicate for so much concentration - really a powerful yet almost understated wine with plenty of Margaux charm, ripe but cool fruit and aromatic purity. So perfect and nothing missing. 37% grand vin (lowest production since 1856 with yields of just 22hl/ha). 1% Petit Verdot completes the blend. 3.72pH. 81 IPT.

The Wine Cellar Insider
98-100 punten
The vast array of floral aromas doesn't require a single swirl before you're ensconced in their bouquet. Black cherries, cocoa, exotic spices, currants, espresso, and blackberries follow aromatically. On the palate, length, width, and depth are present in spades. The concentration is intense, yet the wine feels almost weightless on your palate. The fruits, with an almost racy quality, paired with sweetness, energy, and length, hit all the right notes. Balanced between cerebral and opulent, this is a great vintage of Chateau Margaux. The hallmark of the vintage is the fruit's ability to provide ripeness with density. The wine blends 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot. 13.8% ABV. 3.72 pH, 14% press wine. Yields were only 22 hectoliters per hectare. Picking took place September 8 - September 29. Drink from 2032-2075.

Wine Advocate
97-100 punten
A blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2025 Château Margaux is a deep, authoritative wine that represents some 37% of the estate's production this year. Unwinding in the glass with notes of dark berries, violets, lilac and pencil shavings, framed by a deft touch of new oak, it's medium- to full-bodied, dense and layered, with a concentrated core of fruit framed by sweet, powdery tannins and lively acids. This will certainly require some patience, but it is a prodigious Château Margaux in the making. It checks in at 13.8% alcohol and a pH of 3.72.

James Suckling
98-99 punten
The texture of this wine is exceptional, with black currant, dark plum, chocolate and orange blossom aromas. Full-bodied with round and creamy tannins that fill the mouth and give a caressing texture. Very long and seductive. Gentle at the end. It's lush, velvety and luxurious. 89% cabernet sauvignon, 6% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot.

Antonio Galloni, Vinous
97-99 punten
The 2025 Château Margaux is shaping up to be one of the wines of this young vintage. Dark and layered, almost mysterious in bearing, the 2025 is going to have a lot to say over the coming decades as it grows up. Today, its superb persistence and exceptional balance are the harbingers. Here, too, there's a ton of tannin, but also more than enough fruit and overall density to keep things in balance.

Jancis Robinson 
18/20 punten
Deep colour. Real Margaux elegance on the nose – a floral fragrance with notes of violet and peony. Aromatic on the palate as well. Plush texture with plenty of grippy tannins behind but finer than those of Pavillon. Really quite seductive. Almost drinkable now.