The Montlandrie is a blend of 75% Merlot picked from 20th until 23rd September and 25% Cabernet Franc picked between 24th and 26th September aged in 50% new oak. It has a very lifted bouquet with mulberry fruit a touch of oyster shell and orange blossom. It unfurls nicely over five minutes for this is certainly a sample that needs time. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grip on the entry. It is a bold Cotes de Castillon wine quite sinewy with firm grip but it keeps it freshness from start to finish. Very fine. Tasted April 2012.

A thrilling offering from proprietor Denis Durantou (who also owns Pomerol’s l’Eglise-Clinet), this blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc is a surprisingly large-scaled Cotes de Bordeaux Castillon revealing a dense ruby/purple color as well as lots of sweet mulberry, kirsch, black currant, licorice, spring flower and graphite notes. Medium to full-bodied as well as remarkably concentrated, this wine outperforms many of Bordeaux’s more famous names in this vintage. A stunner in quality and value, it can be enjoyed over the next 10+ years. It is a sleeper of the vintage. - Robert M. Parker, Jr.