La Dame de Montrose 2025 Saint-Estèphe - OWC6

Jeb Dunnuck
93-95 punten
A Merlot-heavy blend of 82% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot, and 3% Cabernet Franc, mostly from clay and limestone soils and resting in 30% new oak with 20% foudre, the 2025 La Dame De Montrose is medium-bodied, round, and supple, with a beautiful sense of elegance. Ripe framboise, juicy currants, violets, and sappy flower nuances all shine on the nose, and it's almost impossible to resist today, with remarkable purity and gorgeous tannins.

James Suckling
93-94 punten
A brightness and freshness, with red currants and oyster shells. Medium body, with fine tannins and a crunchy, crisp finish. A blend of 82% merlot, 10% cabernet sauvignon, 5% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc.

Decanter
93 punten
Incredible colour in the glass, bright pink-purple rim. Wild blue and black bramble berries with a salty tangy aspect on the nose - fresh and fragrant. Cool too. Smooth and shiny, this is sleek, really lively and upfront with such a juicy, fresh core. Quite lightly presented - definitely fine, delicate and refined with a soft edge of liquorice and clove. Really quite a hands-off style but there’s power surging through without the muscle. Quite impressive. 3.5pH. 76 IPT. 8% press. Ageing 12 months: 15% new oak, 20% foudre, 5% amphoras and the rest one-year-old barrels. 3% Cabernet Franc completes the blend.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown
92-94 punten
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2025 La Dame de Montrose skips out of the glass with bright, cheery notes of wild blueberries, red cherries, and black raspberries, plus hints of tar, roses, and dried mint. The medium-bodied palate is silky and elegant with bright, intense blue and red berry flavors and floral accents, lifted by a crisp line, finishing long and fragrant. Beautiful! The blend is 82% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. The alcohol is 13.7% with a pH of 3.5. It is aging in oak barrels, large and small, with 15% being new oak.

Antonio Galloni, Vinous
91-93 punten
The 2025 La Dame de Montrose is an elegant, gracious wine. Crushed flowers, red-toned fruit, cinnamon and pomegranate lend tons of aromatic presence. The fruit is so bright, focused and forward. This is an especially elegant, refined Dame. The blend is Merlot-driven. Élevage is 75% in French oak barrels (15% new), 20% in

Neal Martin, Vinous
90-92 punten
The 2025 La Dame de Montrose is matured in 15% new oak, lower than before and including some foudres and amphorae, and driven by the 82% Merlot. The nose offers red cherries and crushed strawberry fruit, iodine and violet aromas coming forth with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, slightly chalky, fine tension and a surfeit of freshness towards the finish. This will be wholly irresistible once in bottle and it will require minimal ageing to be enjoyed.

Jane Anson, Iniside Bordeaux
92 punten
Mouthwatering finish, plenty of slate character, pumice stone, rose bud, iris flowers, ripe but not overripe, clearly this is juicy with some bright fruits, but creamy underneath - a world away from the kind of exuberant 2022 vintage, so take your pick on which style you prefer. August 29 began harvesting the reds for the first time (in 2022 it was September 2), then continued until September 20 so almost one month harvest. Terrace 3 and young plants saw reduced canopy height to manage water stress, but on Terrace 4 (the main estate wine) they were able to work as normal. 30hl/ha yield. 15% new oak, 5% amphora. Lower new oak than usual so slightly shorter ageing is expected. Looking forward to tasting the new Terrace 3 wine which now sits in between La Dame and the main wine, not released En Primeur.

Wine Advocate
91-93 punten
Unwinding in the glass with notes of dark berries, fruitcake and spices, the 2025 La Dame de Montrose is medium- to full-bodied, deep and dense, with a lively and layered core of fruit, supple tannins and a bright, sapid finish. It's a blend of 82% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc, incorporating maturation in different vessels (20% foudre and 5% amphora) and fewer rackings to maintain a more reductive profile that is better suited to the Merlot-dominant blend.

Jancis Robinson
16.5/20 punten
Fragrant and fruity and a little more accessible than in the past. Supple and round on the palate but finely structured behind. Freshness and tension as well.