CHATEAU TROPLONG MONDOT 1er Grand Cru Classe, Saint-Emilion 2022 Bottle

Description

The 2022 Château Troplong Mondot has garnered exceptional acclaim, receiving a perfect 100 points from The Wine Advocate, which highlights its complex aromas of mulberries, blackberries, licorice, and rose petals, alongside its full-bodied, layered character and harmonious finish. Decanter awarded it 99 points, praising its aromatic profile of dried herbs, tobacco, and mint, emphasizing its sumptuous texture and finesse. Vinous rated it 98+ points, showcasing its elegance and precision, with flavours of crushed flowers, blood orange, and spice, declaring it one of the silkiest wines of the vintage. James Suckling also recognised it with 98 points, noting the hyper-precision from minerality, alongside berries and spiced dark cherries, recommending enjoyment after a few years of cellaring to further enhance its character.

*****

Château Troplong Mondot is a St. Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classé property that has in the last decade been producing wines that are the equal of many 1er Grand Cru Classé estates. Its handsome château dates back to 1745 and Troplong-Mondot was originally part of one sizeable domaine which included the vineyards of Château Pavie. It became autonomous in 1850 when it was acquired by Raymond Troplong. Later on, it was bought by Alexandre Valette and today it is owned and run by his great-granddaughter, Christine and her husband Xavier Pariente.

Troplong Mondot has 30 hectares of vineyards well-sited alongside the hill of Mondot to the north-east of the St-Emilion appellation. The soils are rich in limestone clay and are planted with Merlot (90%), Cabernet Franc (5%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (5%). The grapes are hand-harvested and then fermented in temperature-controlled, stainless steel tanks. The wine is then aged in oak barriques (75% new) for 18 months. It is bottled unfiltered.

Guru oenologist Michel Rolland has been a consultant at Troplong Mondot since the mid 1980s.

THE WINE ADVOCATE 100 points
Reviewed by: William Kelley
Drink Date: 2028 - 2055
The 2022 Troplong Mondot has turned out brilliantly in bottle. Wafting from the glass with aromas of mulberries and blackberries mingled with notions of licorice, rose petals, incense and pencil shavings, it's full-bodied, layered and multidimensional, with huge mid-palate volume, superb integration and an ineffable sense of completeness. This site always delivers power, but I've never tasted a Troplong that's simultaneously quite so powerful or quite so harmonious and suave. Concluding with a broad, violet-inflected finish, the 2022 represents the essence of this remarkable site.

DECANTER 99 points
Tasted by: Georgina Hindle
(at Bordeaux, 09 Jan 2025)
Part of The best St-Emilion 2022 in bottle
Drinking Window: 2030 - 2050
Glorious aromatics burst out of the glass with scents of dried herbs, tobacco, mint and blackcurrant. Sumptuous and filling in the best way, the texture, weight and depth of the flavours here is seriously impressive - round and wide but so finessed so that it doesn't feel too heavy. Restrained power with such confidence. Balanced, harmonious and totally moreish, this is an incredible wine that already feels so approachable. Tannins are flawless and the juicy berry fruit with soft salted liquorice edges give nuance and interest. Still a little shy but such potential here. Wonderful.

VINOUS 98+ points
Drinking Window 2030 - 2052
From: 2022 Bordeaux in Bottle: Living in the Present (Jan 2025)
A wine of elegance and precision, the 2022 Troplong Mondot is exquisite. Crushed flowers, red berry fruit, blood orange, spice and menthol race across the palate. Troplong Mondot is without question one of the silkiest, most refined wines of the vintage. Absolutely nothing is out of place. Tasted two times. - By Antonio Galloni on January 2025

JAMES SUCKLING 98 Points
Hyper precision from the crushed-stone minerality here, with berries, spiced dark cherries, hibiscus and fresh plums. Extremely polished, caressing yet vivid, with fibrous, chalky tannins emitting vibrations before dissolving into a lengthy finish drenched with fruit. Concentrated but effortless. Already alluring but better in 3-4 years.