2017 Malescasse

The 2017 Malescasse is composed of 63% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot. It was aged for 12-16 months in French oak barrels, 40% new. Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, it opens with notes of asphalt, tar and chargrill over a core of baked plums and redcurrant jelly plus a waft of wild sage. Medium-bodied, the palate has a chewy frame with a slightly hollow middle, finishing earthy.

The 2017 Malescasse showed potential in barrel and I have no reason to alter that view now in bottle. It still possesses those attractive blackberry and bilberry scents on the nose laced with black pepper, plenty of fruit concentration. The palate is medium-bodied with (again) more than enough fruit intensity: blackberry and dark plum laced with graphite and white pepper with a fresh, ample finish. This Haut-Médoc has the pliancy to suggest that it will not require too much bottle age. On the other hand, the tannins are sufficiently fine that broaching one in the next couple of years will not deserve a slap on the wrist.

A consistently solid wine, the 2017 Chateau Malescasse is mostly Merlot yet includes 31% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, all raised in 40% new oak. Its deep ruby/plum color gives way to a medium-bodied, rounded, supple 2017 that has plenty of earthy dark fruits and underbrush notes, light tannins, no hard edges, and a clean finish. It's very much in the classic, elegant style of this vintage and is ideal for drinking over the coming 4-6 years.