Wine Words & Video Tape

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Château Marquis de Terme

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Address: B.P. 11, 33460 Margaux

Telephone: +33 (0)5 57 88 30 01

E-mail: mdt@chateau-marquis-de-terme.com

Website: www.chateau-marquis-de-terme.com

Classified as a fourth growth in 1855, recent wines at Château Marquis de Terme have been much improved. Ludovic David recently took over the administration of the Château and his first vintage, the 2009, is a very big, modern styled Margaux with richness and concentration. Maybe there is a little too much emphasis on super-ripe jammy characters here and between 2011-2013 there has been a rather worryingly over-extracted feel to the wines. Still 2014 looks very impressive and 2015 is even better with Ludovic David believing it to be the best wine he has yet made since taking the helm.

Vineyard/Soil: 40 hectares on gravel in the communes of Margaux and Cantenac, comprising 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Vine density 10000 per hectare and average age is 30 years. Grape hand picked and sorted in the vineyard.

Winemaking/Elevage: Fermentation in cement vats. Aged 18 months in oak barrels of which 35-50% are new. Fined with egg white.

  • 2015 Deep and saturated looking; arterial; very full and ripe Margaux; cassis; blackcurrant jam; lush and unctuously styled; lots of creamy fruit on the palate with depth and chew; quite extracted currently on the finish but will settle. Ludovic David reckons this is his best vintage since he took charge of the property in 2009. [60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot]. Drink 2020-2032. 91-93+
  • 2014 Deep and saturated look; opaque at centre; legs; ripe and lifted; cassis and blackcurrants with black cherry spices; sweet but attractive; spicy menthol tones too; loads of fruit here; attractive and crafted very nicely – really polished; some oak on the back end of the palate but should integrate; depth and perfume too; textured and very enjoyable. Well done! [60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot]. Drink 2019-2030. Tasted 31 March, 2015 at UGC. 90-92+
  • 2013 Mid depth; attractive forward and ripe feeling aromatics; some red fruits; feels forward and glossy; sweet fruit initially then the obvious structure; still this should meld as it has material but it will always be chewy. Dry finish. [60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot]. Tasted UGCB 2013. Drink 2018-2025. 84-86
  • 2012 Deep and saturated looking; colour tight to the rim again; quite unctuously styled with plenty of very ripe fruit on the nose; palate ripe and full; with nice depth. Good effort here at Marquis de Terme. Drink 2016-2025. 90 UGC Oct ’14 [Earlier note] Deep and saturated; red fruits – strawberry, redcurrant; bit jammy; sweet ripe entry on the palate and then drying palate; tannic; feels stretched and over-extracted to me. Lacks freshness and feels stretched. 86-88? Tasted UGC Thursday April 11, 2013. [Earlier note] Deep and saturated; quite melded, lush and lifted; red fruits and jam; worked; lots of oak on the palate; chewy red fruits and oak; forward and pushed tannins at the back. Oak tannin on the end too. Too forced and worked relative to the fruit. 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot. 87-88? Tasted UGC April 9, 2013. Drink 2018-2030
  • 2011 Mid depth; jammy and lifted – even for an ’11; some earth; chewy and faintly exhausted on the palate; thick and overdone for me – for Margaux and for the vintage. Drink 2015-2022. 84 UGC Oct ’13 [Earlier note] Deep looking; red fruits, ripe end of the spectrum; jam and juicy style; not quite me; prefer the cooler spectrum of fruit; creamy palate, in check but feels very familiar – junior Magrez. That said, there is plenty of guts and extract. Will be ok – just not me. 87-89 Drink 2020-2030
  • 2010 Deep and saturated look; inky, liquorice; creamy notes; quite oak influenced; feels very ‘worked’; ripe palate, quite thick and pretty extracted; sawn wood note; very full, extracted and worked style. Not me though will appeal to some. May settle with time. 88/100 [Earlier] Deep and saturated; some cream and freshness with violets more cream and lift; creamy palate, very intense, layered but with saturation and extract and tannin too but plenty of sweet ripe fruit I feel. Should work out very well. 89-91/100 13.5 alc Tasted 5 April 2011 at UGC [Second tasting] deep and dense, clean, slightly cooler nose, some cassis and blackcurrants, black fruits and coffee; violets here too; dense palate but very good extraction and feels like it works. Chewy, dense but fresh. Very good. 90-92+/100 Tasted 7 April 2011 at UGC. Drink 2020-2030
  • 2009 Deep and saturated looking; bit farty and feral to start with; blackcurrant tones and tar; extracted and dry on the end. Bit pinched overall. Think this has been overdone in the cellar. I’m not getting this property at present. Drink 2016-2022. 86 MW Institute, Nov ’13 [Earlier note] Deep and dark, legs; immediately very jammy and opulent on the nose; strawberry and very ripe red fruits; maybe lacks a bit of depth on the palate and feels a bit hollow at present but remember there being a stack of fruit here en primeur so should come round. 90+/100 [Earlier] Very dark inky colour; really tight to the rim; very big and ripe nose; lashings of oak; Blimey! Big ripe palate, some spice, mulberry and blackcurrant. Coffee at edge. BIG tannins – chewy big wine.  Ripe tannins though. Will need lots of time 92-93+/100 [Second] Deep and black to the rim; very ripe, almost jammy element; intense cassis; stones; minerals too; violets later; very sweet attack; then followed by tannins – overdone?  Well very big sweet palate and lots of oak tannins. Blimey, very big here! 92-93/100 [13.5% alcohol, 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot]. Tasted 30th March and 1st April 2010. Drink now-2030+
  • 2008 Pretty deep looking; glossy; lifted strawberry and red fruits; unctuous style, very reduced; feels overworked to me; red fruits and resin is what I get. Chewy but feels overdone on the finish. 86 [Earlier] Dense, quite deep, purple at edge; ripe nose; some mulberries, strawberries full; quite fat palate but with structure and a bit of tannin at the back. Pretty extracted style but fruit is lush. This works. Good. 88/100 Drink now – 2020
  • 2007 Mid depth; some feral/earthy tones; tea and tobacco too; palate lacks fruit, feels tannic and lacks depth. 82/100 Drink now
  • 2006 Mid depth, red; [some VA lift here?], resin, strawberry, bit more high toned, some sweetness to the nose; palate feels a bit volatile and hard as nails, tannins also dominant. This is not attractive whatever it is. Tannic and sour edged wine – tried both bottles but the same notes. Confused. Very bad showing. 82?/100 Drink now-2020?

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