This great, predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon wine is typical of the Saint-Estephe appellation. With rigorous selection in both the vineyard and the winery, Chateau Montrose is structured and tannic, yet possesses the elegance and refinement of a Grand Cru Classe. With time, it develops a delicate and complex bouquet.

The best vintages of Montrose are exceptionally long-lived, with certain vintages (1921, 1929, 1982, 1990, and 2009) considered to be legendary. The blend is roughly equivalent to the vineyard plantings - 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, with the balance from Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The wine is matured for 18 months in 60% new oak barrels.

![2005 Montrose [Bordeaux Blend] 750](https://www.jjbuckley.com/permalink/bottle/image/2005-812-750)

**2005 Montrose [Bordeaux Blend] 750**

**Varietal:** Bordeaux Blend
**Vintage:** 2005
**Country:** France
**Region:** Bordeaux
**Sub-region:** St Estephe
**Producer:** Montrose
**Color:** Red
**Type:** Red
**Closure:** Cork
**Alcohol percent:** 13.0

The 2005 Montrose is a Bordeaux blend from the St Estephe sub-region of Bordeaux, France. This wine, produced by Montrose, stands out for its deep complexity and aging potential. It is composed of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, and features a 13.0% alcohol content.

Neal Martin's Wine Journal rated this wine 96 points, highlighting its "quite brilliant bouquet with intense blackberry, cedar, and tobacco scents." Martin describes it as a wine of "architecture" due to its "vaulted tannin, perfect acidity, and immense precision on the long finish." He concludes, "Everything here feels natural and effortless." James Suckling also scored it 96 points, noting its "loads of spices, berries, meat, cloves, and chocolate on the nose" and describing it as "full-bodied with soft, silky tannins and lots of rich fruit."

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate awarded the wine an impressive 98 points, remarking on its notes of "blackcurrant, red fruits, loamy soil, black truffles, and cigar ash." The review mentions that the wine is "brooding and tannic," with "lively acids and an imposing chassis of structuring extract." Jeb Dunnuck also gave it 97 points, calling it a "big, rich, gorgeous Montrose" with a "terrific sense of freshness, flawless balance, and remarkable purity and precision."

Decanter was equally impressed, scoring it 98 points and praising its "sappy chalky minerality and fully pliable tannins." Decanter noted the "smile-inducing purity of fruit expression and excellent persistency of exotic coffee notes."

Jeff Leve from TheWineCellarInsider.com also gave it 96 points, emphasizing its "powerful, concentrated, deep, long, intense, youthful, and tannic" character. Wine Spectator, with a 95-point score, described it as "still a bit dark and brooding, with a charcoal frame around well-steeped fig and black currant fruit."

The Wine Independent, with another 98-point rating, lauded its "fantastic perfume of blackcurrant pastilles, kirsch, raisin cake, and forest floor," and noted the "rock-solid backbone of firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness."

In summary, the 2005 Montrose is a remarkable Bordeaux blend praised for its complexity, structure, and aging potential, with consistent high scores from multiple reviewers.