CHATEAU GISCOURS 3eme Grand Cru Classe, Margaux 2023 Bottle

Description

Château Giscours 2023 opens with poised intensity: blackcurrant, Morello cherry and bramble, with violet, rose petal, graphite and cedar spice. Air reveals tobacco, cigar box and wild herbs. Medium–full-bodied, it has a silky entry, taut acidity and fine-grained tannins that give structure without weight. Pure dark-berry and bilberry fruit is framed by savoury black olive and hint of liquorice; mid-palate unfurls baking spice, bitter chocolate and a mineral seam that drives the finish. Oak is measured and supportive. Texture is polished, balancing finesse and grip, finishing saline with a floral echo and nervy terroir clarity. Drink now, decant or cellar 10–15 years. Serve 16–18°C with lamb or mature cheeses. Top scores: Vinous 96–98; James Suckling 96–97; The Wine Advocate 94–96.

VINOUS 96-98 points
The 2023 Giscours is the very best wine I have ever tasted here. Giscours has been knocking on the door of Bordeaux's elite for a few years now. Two thousand twenty-three is the year in which Giscours joins the region's big boys and girls. A towering, majestic Margaux, the 2023 dazzles from start to finish. What a wine! - Antonio Galloni

JAMES SUCKLING ***** Score: 96-97 Points
12 Apr, 2024 – This really expands in the mouth, with tight tannins that are polished and velvety. The fruit shows depth and purity. Medium to full body. Juicy center-palate. Like the ripe fruit in the center palate. The quality of the tannins in this rises to a new level. The tannins pull you through the wine. 71% cabernet sauvignon, 7% cabernet franc and the rest merlot.

THE WINE ADVOCATE (94-96) points
Reviewed by: William Kelley
The 2023 Giscours is one of the real successes of the vintage, unwinding in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cherries and red fruits mingled with hints of undergrowth, violets and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's seamless and concentrated, with a fleshy core of fruit framed by ripe, powdery tannins and succulent acids, concluding with a long, broad finish. It's a blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc.

DECANTER 95 points
Tasted by: Georgina Hindle (at Bordeaux, 10 Apr 2024) Part of Best Margaux 2023 wines tasted en primeur
Drinking Window: 2030 - 2049
Some clear Cabernet notes on the nose, herbal elements, blackcurrant leaf and cranberry fruit. Smells ripe and cool with gorgeous milk chocolate elements. Energy is the first thing that springs to mind. There’s power here but there’s precision and velvety tannins to this too which gives both structure and brightness. Excellent harmony, this has roundness and depth, not too lean, with crunchy and really present chalky, wet stone tannins. Cranberry and strawberry with blueberry. Still lean, it’s straight but finessed with long, lingering flavours. It’s not as soft and plush as Giscours can be, not as naturally sexy, it’s more serious, but there’s suaveness here. Excellent effort. 3.75pH. Ageing 50% new oak. 70% grand vin production.

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ABOUT CHATEAU GISCOURS
Château Giscours, a 3ème Grand Cru Classé from the 1855 classification, is a historic Margaux estate where heritage and modernity converge to produce wines of poise and longevity. Set within expansive parkland on the gravelly rises typical of Margaux, the property benefits from excellent drainage and a temperate, maritime influenced climate that favours Cabernet Sauvignon while allowing Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot to contribute complexity and aromatic breadth. The vineyards are managed parcel by parcel, with attention to rootstock, vine age and soil variation, yields are controlled to ensure concentration and clarity of expression, and sustainable practices underpin both vineyard health and fruit quality.

In the winery, traditional savoir faire is combined with contemporary precision. Grapes are subject to meticulous sorting before fermentation in temperature controlled vats, where careful maceration regimes extract balanced tannin and flavour. After fermentation, élevage takes place in French oak, a proportion of which is new each vintage to provide structure and subtle spice without overwhelming varietal purity. The estate’s historic cellars and restored château set the scene for winemaking that respects lineage while embracing technological improvements aimed at consistency and finesse.

The Grand Vin of Giscours typically displays Margaux’s signature perfume, lifted floral notes, red and black berry fruit and delicate spice, framed by a supple refined tannic structure that allows the wine to evolve gracefully over years. Secondary cuvées and occasional single parcel selections offer earlier approachability while reflecting the estate’s stylistic emphasis on elegance and balance. Over recent decades, investment in vine replanting, clonal selection and sorting facilities has sharpened the estate’s quality profile, reinforcing its reputation among the Médoc’s established names.

Beyond the bottle, Château Giscours presents a cultivated estate experience, its parkland, historic architecture and cellars speak to continuity and stewardship. Attentive to terroir, respectful of tradition and committed to measured innovation, Giscours continues to articulate Margaux’s refined character, producing wines that marry aromatic finesse with the structural depth and ageing potential expected of a classified growth.