Wine Advisor
Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux 2005
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2005 Pavillon Rouge is in a beautiful spot right now where it is just beginning to show signs of aromatic complexity and nuance. At fifteen years of age, the DNA of the vintage remains - Pavillon Rouge is a potent, hulking wine. Sweet tobacco, cedar, mint, dried flowers and anise add layers of nuance. Readers lucky enough to own the 2005 should be delighted. I imagine the 2005 will drink beautifully for another decade or more. Today it is positively stellar. The more it opens in the glass, the more classic it becomes.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(48% each merlot and cabernet sauvignon plus 4% petit verdot) Bright ruby-red. Very pure aromas of blackberry, cassis, violet and spicy oak. Very ripe and rich in the mouth, with a much more pliant texture than the grand vin Quite chewy on the back end, finishing with broad, sweet tannins and a touch of warmth. This has alcohol in the 14% range, or a full point higher than Chateau Margaux's 13%.
About the Producer
Sold under the name of “Château Margaux 2nd wine”, it took its permanent name of Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux in 1908. After an eclipse between the thirties and the mid-seventies, its production restarted on the arrival of André Mentzelopoulos in 1977 and at first greatly increased in order to improve the quality of the first wine. From the mid – 1990s, the creation of a third wine in its turn, allowed for a more and more rigorous selection for Pavillon Rouge. For a few years now, a third of the harvest has gone into the first wine, barely 30% into the Pavillon Rouge, and the remainder is divided between the third and fourth wines. The quality of Pavillon Rouge has become very close to that of the first wine because all the plots involved contributed to the blending of Château Margaux not so long ago. Of course there isn’t the same complexity, the same depth, the same “magic” but the flavours are close and the balance in the mouth leads to the same subtle senses of power and softness. In general it is ready to drink a little earlier whilst retaining an excellent potential to age largely beyond 30 or 40 years.
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Package Size
1 x 3L
