Château Tronquoy 2015

Critic scores

• James Suckling94
• Vinous94
• Jeb Dunnuck92
• Wine Enthusiast91
• Decanter90

The 2015 vintage in Saint-Estèphe

Vintage benchmark: 93/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: A hot summer tempered by August rains gave expansive wines, with rounded tannins and generous fruit.

Overall reading of the year’s season across Saint-Estèphe. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.

Tasting

Good deep red colour with slight purple reflections. Fruity nose with aromas of blackcurrant and black cherry, discreetly oaked with a subtle note of menthol. Clean and full attack on the palate. Good concentration with smooth and well-structured tannins. A long finish, very elegant and upright. This wine can be enjoyed in its youth while offering good potential for ageing.

Blend of the 2015 vintage

Terroir

The terroir of Tronquoy-Lalande has a soil ideally suited to the flourishing of Merlot. This variety accounts for the majority of the plantings (52%) and points to a distinctive feature that sets Tronquoy-Lalande apart from its neighbours, where Cabernet Sauvignon dominates. Cabernet Sauvignon follows at 39%, then Petit Verdot (6%) and Cabernet Franc (3%). The vineyard enjoys an ideal exposure, very favourable to the ripening of the grapes. The soil is composed of a mixture of gravel and clay more than 8 metres thick. Gravel has the particular quality of being very free-draining, while clay holds water at depth and releases it according to need. The vineyard lies 23 metres above sea level. The gravel rises formed naturally over the centuries encourage the drainage of rainwater. In addition, the Gironde estuary, very close by, acts as a thermal regulator.