Deep, unctuous and concentrated, the 2017 is wonderfully rich from start to finish. Inky dark cherry, chocolate, licorice and cloves all open up in the glass. The 2017 is going to need a few years to soften, as the tannins are pretty imposing, and yet all the elements are in place for it to develop into a great wine.
Reviews:
- Wine Advocate: Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Le Tertre Roteboeuf offers up gorgeous wild blueberries, crushed blackcurrants and redcurrants notes with touches of lavender, violets, Sichuan pepper and cloves plus a waft of anise. The medium to full-bodied palate is very firm with ripe, grainy tannins and wonderful freshness and depth, finishing very long with some exotic spices coming through.
- Jeb Dunnuck: One of the wines of the vintage is the 2017 Chateau Tertre Roteboeuf, which has much more fruit, opulence, and sexiness than just about every other wine out there. Based on 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc from a fabulous terroir on the famed Saint-Emilion Cote Pavie, it reveals a saturated purple color as well as awesome notes of black raspberries, cassis, jammy blackberries, white chocolate, and tobacco. With plenty of classy oak, full-bodied richness, and a dense, powerful style on the palate, it needs at least 4-6 years of bottle age and will keep for 15-30 years or more. It’s a stunning effort from the genius of François Mitjavile.
Producer Information
Le Tertre-Rôteboeuf is a high-ranking Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé property. It makes a single wine from Merlot with a small amount of Cabernet Franc, which is known for being rich and intense in the best years. Around 2000 cases a year are produced from a tiny six hectare (14 acre) vineyard on a steep slope at the edge of Saint-Émilion’s famous limestone plateau. The terroir is slightly cooler than a majority of other Saint-Émilion properties and so the vines are trained closer to the ground. This microclimate means that Tertre-Rôteboeuf is usually one of the last in the region to finish picking, but also contributes to the richer style of wine produced. Yields are kept very low to ensure a concentrated wine and grapes are harvested by hand and fermented in temperature-controlled concrete tanks. The wine is then aged in new oak barrels for 18 to 24 months. The estate is owned by François Mitjaville, who also owns Château Roc de Cambes in the Côtes de Bourg, and L’Aurage in Côtes de Castillon. Mitjaville added the ‘Rôteboeuf’ to the property name in 1975 to make it more distinctive. The wine tends not to be sold through the traditional negociant system, but instead is sold directly to importers and wine merchants. While Tertre-Rôteboeuf could easily achieve Premier Cru Classé status, the proprietors prefer to remain unclassified. Market prices suggest that this is not a particularly costly decision.
