Château Montrose is one of the leading wine properties of St.Estéphe, and produces some of the longest-lived wines in the Médoc.
Montrose had been owned by Jean-Louis Charmolue from 1962 until 2006, when it was sold to Martin and Olivier Bouygues, owner of the eponymously named construction firm Bouygues, is located in the east of the appellation, just north of the hamlet of Marbuzet, on a gravel knoll only 800 metres from the Gironde estuary. The proximity of the estuary ensures a microclimate that protects against frost, and the vines, which lie on deep clay-gravel soils, benefit from a south-easterly aspect.
Montrose wines are traditionally deeply coloured, austere and powerful when young, yet possess superb ageing potential, and when mature are quintessential St.Estèphe. Montrose is classified as a 2ème Cru Classé.
La Dame de Montrose is their 2nd wine.
Made to the same rigorous standards as the first wine, from grapes grown in the same vineyard, La Dame de Montrose is the estate’s second label. Supple and silky Merlot generally predominates in the varietal mix. Its very pronounced red fruit aromas and flavours reflect another expression of the terroir in a distinctive style which is less elaborately complex than that of the first wine.
Consistently reliable and reaching maturity sooner, the wine was created in 1983 in tribute to Yvonne Charmolue, who ran Château Montrose single-handedly from 1944 to 1960. Production varies from one year to another but accounts on average for 30% of the total production of the Montrose vineyard.
Blend – 52% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc