I have had an on-and-off love affair with the wines from Saint Estephe over the years. However, I am most certainly head over heels in love with this 2019 wine from Chateau Haut Marbuze its unmistakable and easy to recognise it as a Bordeaux just from the first sniff & sip and so is the fine quality of this wine.
The blend
Merlot(55%), Cabernet Sauvignon(35%), Cabernet Franc (5%), Petit Verdot (5%).
Merlot(55%), Cabernet Sauvignon(35%), Cabernet Franc (5%), Petit Verdot (5%).
In the glass: The wine is rather dark almost like a bunch of black cherries shimmering in the sun light…(you will have to use your imagination here)
On the nose:
The perfume is soft and inviting with Cabernet Sauvignon and dark cherries being the most prominent with whiffs of purple flowers-intwined with forest floor, lined with onion brown leaves and hints of slightly damp soil.
In the mouth:
The dark colour of this wine flowed through to the palate filling the mouth with dark fruits and a pleasing wash of rich fruit tannins, lightly stained with new oak.
The wine leans more toward full-bodied in style yet it is only just over 4 years old and I find the acid and tannins to be well-integrated and very approachable even at this early stage. It will age beautifully however Im all for pulling the cork now, it is so dam easy to drink and enjoy!
As usual, I kept the meal simple enough with a thick chargrilled T-bone steak served medium with oven-fried cubed garlic potatoes.
The steak was a perfect foil for the wine’s acid and ripe fruit tannins and the garlic potatoes just brought the meal together blending with the old-world flavours of this wine.
Michael Lillis
the Rot has set in.
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