Château Margaux 2016

The complexity of an exceptional red wine from Margaux

The estate

With origins dating back to the 12th century, Château Margaux is among those Grands Crus that built the legend of the great wines of Bordeaux around the world. In 1855 the estate attained the title of Premier Grand Cru Classé and was the only one of the four châteaux presented to receive a score of twenty out of twenty. With the acquisition of the estate by André Mentzelopoulos in 1977, Château Margaux began a new chapter in its history. Elevating the Grand Vin de Château Margaux to the highest level, he reintroduced the estate’s Second Wine, Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux, first created in 1908. Following in her father’s footsteps after his untimely passing, Corinne Mentzelopoulos took up the family standard with energy and passion to maintain the standing of Château Margaux, which had become a Bordeaux masterpiece, instantly recognizable by its neo-Palladian style. Vintage after vintage, the estate’s wines rank among the greatest in the world.

The vineyard

The vineyard of Château Margaux owes its distinctiveness to its rare and unique terroir, situated on a gravelly rise. The estate’s varietal makeup gives pride of place to Cabernet Sauvignon, without overlooking Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Franc. The domaine’s clay-limestone soils give rise to legendary wines, with a racy and sensual character, so representative of the Margaux appellation.

The wine

Following the bottle of Château Margaux 2015, the prestigious estate chose a darker livery to adorn its bottles starting with the 2016 vintage. The capsules were redesigned and now feature a matte brown color. The new typeface chosen for the lettering is inspired by the one used in 1865. This modernization of the presentation of the Grand Vin du Château Margaux also extends to the packaging. The 6-bottle cases are now made of radiata pine, while the top of the case is stamped with the Château Margaux logo.

The vintage

The exceptional weather conditions of 2016 forged the identity of a truly great vintage. A mild and particularly rainy winter was followed by an equally wet spring. The dry, warm summer promoted beautiful ripeness in the grapes while preserving great freshness and acidity thanks to alternating warm days and cool nights during September. Beginning on September 23 and ending on October 18, the 2016 harvest was the most extended in the estate’s history.

Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon (94%)
Cabernet Franc (3%)
Merlot (2%)
Petit Verdot (1%).

Characteristics and tasting advice for Château Margaux 2016

Tasting

The result of meticulous craftsmanship, this Château Margaux 2016 displays the complex, deep aromatic signature that distinguishes the great vintages.

As the saying goes, “Great wines are born of great terroirs.” A perfect understanding of each parcel by Château Margaux’s technical teams and an uncompromising selection of the best grapes revealed the expression of this exceptional terroir, conveying the typicity of the varietals in the blend. The Cabernet Sauvignon, grown on the estate’s finest parcels, brings indisputable elegance. The Merlot and Cabernet Franc endow the wine with great aromatic complexity, softening the structure of the tannins. The final touch of Petit Verdot ensures remarkable density and volume on the palate.