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Tasting Notes
The 2021 Quintus is a pretty and perfumed expression of this estate. It’s the first vintage to combine the vineyards of what was Ch. Grand Pontet, alongside the plots of what was Ch. Tertre Daugay and Ch. l’Arrosée. These new vineyards have brought with it some Malbec – with a tiny portion making it into the blend this year. At 13.3% natural alcohol, this is a seamless wine – with a lifted nose of crushed raspberry, chalk and parma violets. On the palate, it’s sleek – with an elegance and lightness of tough, fine-grained tannins to complement a core of fresh and vibrant red berry fruit. Yields were a normal 35hl/ha. Blend: 68% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec
Critic Scores
Average Score
William Kelley, Wine Advocate
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Quintus is the most elegant wine I have ever tasted here, by a wide measure. Nearly half of this fruit is from the former Grand Pontet property, and that fruit seems to bring a measure of aromatic intensity and freshness these wines have lacked in some vintages. All the elements are so well balanced. Bright saline notes linger on the finish. This is impressive for the year.
Deeply colored, the wine is packed with nuances of crushed rocks, black raspberries, flowers, plums and forest leaves. Extremely poised and polished, the silky palate offers purity in the fruit, length and the sense of minerality, finishing with an array of red pit fruits, cocoa and salty tannins. This is the first vintage to include from the recently purchased vineyards formerly belonging to Grand Pontet. The wine blends 58% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Franc and 1% Malbec. 13.3% ABV.
The 2021 Quintus shows considerable promise, displaying more concentration and character than the 2017, combined with appreciably lower alcohol than intervening vintages. Unwinding in the glass with aromas of dark berries, plums, loamy soil, raw cocoa and a deft framing of new oak, it's medium to full-bodied, velvety and layered, with good concentration and a seamless, complete profile. It's a blend of around 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc from the limestone slopes.
About the producer
Ch. Quintus is the flagship Saint-Emilion estate of Domaine Clarence Dillon (owners of Ch. Haut-Brion and Ch. la Mission Haut-Brion). Following the purchase of Ch. Tertre Daugay in 2011 and Ch. l’Arrosée in 2013, the two were merged to form Ch. Quintus. The first vintage of the wine was 2011.