Château Montlandrie 2021

Plenty of clarity and freshness in this one, with raspberries, light toast, chocolate and dried flowers. Medium body. Salty. Crunchy and lightly chewy, with limestone firmness. 75% merlot, 20% cabernet franc and 5% cabernet sauvignon. Drink or hold.

Textured, nicely direct and well defined in the mouth. This has an instant appeal with bright, shiny and concentrated strawberry and red cherry fruit with a sleek frame, high acidity and freshness on the finish. It's not weighty, it's gentle but still carrying tons of flavour. A solid effort where they got ripeness and didn't overdo the extraction or oak. Very charming and appealing still with bite, touches of spice and oak giving it good ageing potential.

The 2021 Montlandrie, a blend of 75% Merlot (picked between the 30th of September and the 8th of October), 20% Cabernet Franc (picked on the 4th of October), and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon (picked on the 7th of October), reveals a dark, somber character with aromas of spices, pencil lead, licorice and wild dark berries. Enrobing and structuring with a medium-bodied palate, it’s elegantly concentrated with a fleshy core of fruit and a mineral, saline finish. Recommended.

One of the standouts of the Durantou family releases is the 2021 Château Montlandrie, which is 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon coming from the limestone soils in the Castillon region, just east of Saint-Emilion. Ripe black cherries, bay leaf, spice, spring flowers, and a kiss of classic limestone chalky minerality all define the aromatics, and it's medium-bodied on the palate, with a layered, balanced, nicely concentrated style that will evolve for at least 8-10 years. This soft, supple, already delicious 2021 is well worth your time and money.