Château Malescot St Exupéry 2005

The greatest of modern-day Malescot, with magnificent brilliance.

The Château Malescot St. Exupery 2005 has a deep garnet colour. The nose is quite austere at first and then once it gets to know you, it flourishes with brambly black fruit, wild strawberry, cedar and graphite - like many, almost Pauillac-like in style. The palate is medium-bodied with dense ripe tannin. There is enormous weight and presence here, layers of powerful spicy red fruit, a very fine line of acidity and a killer line of graphite on the finish. This is an excellent Margaux that deserves another 4 or 5 years in the cellar.

Exhibits blackberry, mineral, currant and dark chocolate. Full and velvety, with lots of fruit and chewy tannins. Long and caressing, with incredibly sweet fruit and tannins on the finish. Goes on for minutes. A thoroughly gorgeous wine. Best after 2015. 6,615 cases made.

91-93 Barrel sample. Big, ripe and juicy—a Dolly Parton wine. With exuberant fruitiness this is attractive now, but there are solid, firm tannins, so the wine will perhaps grow up.

This under-the-radar third growth Margaux produced a lovely wine in 2005. The blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot presents aromas of dark plum and blackberry fruit with notes of spice, sweet chocolate, and a firmly earthy edge. The texture on the palate features plenty of well-managed tannins, lovely density, and satisfying length. This has the substance to age for another 20 years.

Deep, dark and rich, unctuous, lush, and round, the dark red and black fruits are perfectly ripe with nuances of flowers, espresso, tobacco leaf, thyme, and a hint of blue fruit in the background. While the wine is fleshy and opulent in nature, there is also ample freshness so this offers lift, length, and energy. Drink from 2022-2045.

Dark wine-red with a purple sheen. Deep bouquet, gently oaky in terms of spice, dried plums, fine leather notes. Firm, full palate, showing ripe yet still astringent tannins, muscular; here too, the vintage has helped produce one of the best wines in recent years. (17/20). 14: At a lunch at the Château. Peppery, compact fruit, stewed redcurrants, light tobacco, very tightly knit. On the palate, sweetness and mineral verve; it has gained well and will soon be great fun, yet can also age for decades.

A fruity, sweet, spicy, mineral bouquet with stewed berries, vanilla, cedar and flint. A classic, aromatic, mineral palate with sweet fruit, fine sandy tannins, a well-structured, bony frame, and a long, spicy finish. 17/20 drink through 2028.

Dark ruby in colour, slight pinking on the edges but still very much in the zone of a young wine visually. Serious stuff, has the core of 2005 in terms of energy and power, and is still young, with dense fruits, a zip of minerality and lift, and remains juicy on the finish. Liqourice, cigar box, raspberry, white pepper and sage spice. This is a great example of the vintage, and at a great moment to drink but going absolutely nowhere. A special occasion wine. 80% new oak.

Deep garnet-brick in color, the 2005 Malescot St. Exupery offers up a compelling perfume of roses, cinnamon stick, dusty soil, and unsmoked cigars over a kirsch and redcurrant jelly core with a waft of iron ore. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a chewy texture supporting the generous fruit, lifted by just enough acidity, finishing long and fragrant. A stunning performance from this property, it is drinking beautifully now and should continue to give another 20 years of pleasure.

6 bottles opened for an evening.. This wine is strikingly similar to a Right Bank wine. The nose is creamy and the palate evokes Merlot. The structure of fine Cabernet Sauvignon is missing on the finish. An easy-drinking wine.