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Sparring for wine of the vintage, this is an exceptional Ch Margaux and I totally concur with wine director Paul Pontallier equating it in style and quality to the great 1996. So many of the climatic conditions were the same in 2014 and the result is equally sensational. Ch Margaux is at its best when it has a large proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon as highlighted by this 90% blend, which balances an unctuous richness of fruit with huge drive and poise. Very long and very complete. A great wine in the making.
Sparring for wine of the vintage, this is an exceptional Ch Margaux and I totally concur with wine director Paul Pontallier equating it in style and quality to the great 1996. So many of the climatic conditions were the same in 2014 and the result is equally sensational. Ch Margaux is at its best when it has a large proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon as highlighted by this 90% blend, which balances an unctuous richness of fruit with huge drive and poise. Very long and very complete. A great wine in the making.
The 2014 Château Margaux, has a fragrant bouquet with blackberry, graphite and light violet aromas. This feels very refined, very Margaux as banal as that sounds. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, quite precise tannin. This is an unreservedly understated First Growth, more masculine then I remember from barrel and just after bottling, firming up a little for the long-haul. In some ways, the higher Cabernet Sauvignon renders this a little more Pauillac-like in flavour profile, although it has the finesse that is synonymous with this estate. Excellent. Tasted at the property.
The Château Margaux 2014, represents 36% of the year’s total production and is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. It has a distinctly floral bouquet, those trademark wilted violet scents soaring from the glass flanked by small dark cherries and a hint of cassis. It gains intensity in the glass but never puts the pedal to the floor. The palate is full-bodied with firm and bold tannins, very good density and presence. No, compared to the top flight vintages from the estate, it is unlikely to become a Château Margaux of compelling precision or finesse. Unusually for 2014 this is a grand vin bestowed with power and dimension. There is still a little tightness here, especially on the Pauillac-like finish, but it will turn into a great if not the greatest Château Margaux
The 2014 Margaux opens with a wonderfully aromatic, expressive bouquet. Gracious and medium in body, the 2014 is quite understated. Dark red cherry, plum, herbs, cedar, smoke and tobacco gradually come forward in a super-refined, totally polished wine. Today, the 2014 is holding back quite a bit of its potential, but the style is one of finesse rather than pure power.
This is a very, very muscular and toned Margaux with currants, firm tannins and stones. Full and chewy yet polished and intense. Bright acidity yet a strong and flexed style.
Striking black fruits from 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, yet restrained – even severe – with less charm and more firmness; the opposite of showy. With great natural density and tannins that do not overwhelm, this is a classical Château Margaux that will need time to fully open up. Drink: 2022-2045
(90 Cabernet Sauvignon, 5 Merlot, 3 Cabernet Franc, 2 Petit Verdot) Aurélien Valance, one of the best communicators in the region, took me through the wines with his characteristic, direct approach and lack of blather. He reported - good flowering, ok rainfall, cool August, and by the beginning of September the potential for making average wine only was on the cards. However, as we know, the Autumn was faultless, which left Margaux with ‘a vintage which is in between the great years and the rest’. This is a wine with very dense fruit and also beguiling freshness. It’s rather ripe, charming and it possesses higher alcohol than many (13.5% alc.) on the Left Bank. Only 36% production was chosen to go into the Grand Vin here which is a remarkably severe selection. Interestingly, only 24% went into the second wine, Pavillon Rouge (q.v.) and the rest was relegated into Margaux de Margaux (the third wine) and sold off in bulk. What is unusual about the Grand Vin this year is that it is very different from Pavillon Rouge, with a punch of drying tannin on the finish and a fairly austere air. Unlike Pavillon Rouge, which has the benchmark Margaux succulence and luxuriousness, Château Margaux has a stern, authoritative feel, like a distant strict uncle rather than, in the past, a doting father to the younger, fresher more forward Pavillon. I am not sure what to make of this lack of familial friendliness. There is no doubt that this wine is ‘grand’, it is also age-worthy and commanding, but it is also closed and introverted with very crisp tannins and more latent power than seems to fit into its frame. Without the overt sexiness (yet) of Pavillon this seems unnecessarily abrupt and gruff but it is critical to look to the core to remind yourself that there is a dimension of freshness and juiciness which will bear the wine out in time - patience is required.
36% of crop, as usual. No plots disappointed. 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. Petit Verdot was so good that one young lot almost made it into the first wine. Bright, glowing crimson. Very subtle, quite evolved nose. Far from intense but perfumed and relatively light. Fresher than the Pavillon Rouge. The acidity and tannin are more obvious in this than in the Pavillon Rouge. Quite transparent. Just a step up from the second wine but not a standout. Beautiful texture. Very refined and slow to open out. Recalls the build of a top red bordeaux from the 1960s and 1970s. 13.2% Drink 2026-2046
Paul Pontallier thinks his 2014 is “better balanced” than his 2005 and “not that far off in quality”, which is high praise. This is a very polished, charming Margaux, with impressive perfume, a backbone of tannin and acidity and transparent raspberry and cassis notes. The 100% new oak is deftly handled. Drink: 2022-35
A light savory cassis bush hint marks the Petit Verdot in this blend, but this is quickly consumed by the Cabernet Sauvignon, with a core of well-endowed cassis and plum fruit harnessed by very long, supple tannins. Gorgeous alder, lilac and iron notes begin to emerge on the finish, though this is still very primal. Sublime in feel, this offers a caressing power. A beauty in the making. Tasted non-blind.
Plump, silky and seductive are the words often used to describe wines from Margaux. Because of their style, they tend to be user friendly and more approachable when young. This is in part due to its terroir which is comprised of the thinnest soil as well as the highest proportion of chunky gravel in all of the Médoc. It drains well but also is it more susceptible to vintage variation. Margaux wines tend to have the highest proportions of Merlot within the core of the Médoc further adding to their ample roundness and openness. Margaux is home to the largest number of classified growths including its namesake first growth, Château Margaux, as well as third growths, Palmer and d'Issan.
