Château Troplong Mondot 2002

From bottle, the 2002 appears to have gone to sleep. Nevertheless, it is a fine effort exhibiting a dense ruby/purple color along with notes of roasted coffee intermixed with melted licorice, black currants, dried herbs, and earth. Spicy and medium-bodied, with moderate concentration, this beautifully made, elegant offering can be drunk early in life, but is capable of evolving for 10-13 years. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2016.

Attractive berry, sweet tobacco and olive aromas follow through to a full-bodied palate, with silky, tight tannins and a long, refined finish. Pretty. Best after 2008. 5,165 cases made.

Crimson. Very ripe and pushed to the limit. Not particularly refreshing and a bit bitter on the finish. Not graceful. Hot on the finish. (JR)

Forest floor, old wood, cherry, earth, strawberry and smoke-filled aromas lead to a soft, red cherry-filled wine that is drinking beautifully today. From 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, this is quite nice for this cooler vintage.

Deep purple, dense at the core. Spicy nose with an intensely grapey bouquet, initially a gently compoted fruit, notes of plum. Full-bodied palate, with very firm and hard extract, again hints of slightly jammy fruit adding a pleasant sweetness to the extract; the finish is rather rough and probing, radiating plenty of power while showing very little finesse. We wonder whether this is the right direction for Troplong-Mondot.

02: Deep purple; dense at the core. Spicy, intensely grapey bouquet; the fruit feels gently compote-like at first, showing a strong plum note. Broad, structured palate, very firm, hard extraction, again slight jammy fruit nuances that bring a nice sweetness, with a finish that’s rather rough and probing. Lots of muscular, somewhat arrogant power, but very little finesse. Is Troplong-Mondot really on the right path? 16/20 2007–2018

Deep, dense, heavy, sweet bouquet with black berries and chocolate. Dense, fruity, sweet, over-extracted palate with a tight structure and plenty of firm tannins. 17/20 2010 - 2020

Touches of reduction at first, with dominant, confident tannins that fill out through the mid-palate even as they close things down on the finish. This is an architectural wine; it reflects the terroir and reminds me once again that I never really understood Troplong until I had walked the vineyards and seen the clay that sits over the limestone. As it opens, a salty cracker salinity comes in, a signature of Troplong, and this is ready to drink, though it still has a good decade or more ahead. As ever, under the previous owners, I feel Troplong does better in the slightly more challenging years, when nature reins in the excess but the excellence of the site still speaks. 100% new oak, Michel Rolland consultant.

Deep color, ripe red and black fruit on the nose, silky length, with mellow depth.

I detect nuances of very ripe black berries, plums, and a hint of graphite (which I had already noted during a tasting in 2019). On the palate, the wine is driven by compact, powerful tannins that tighten the finish a little. A wine with assertive extraction, but it seems to have bounced back nicely! The meal accompanying it will smooth out the edges 😉

Dark color, medium intensity and slightly evolved. Intense, fruity and rather delicate nose. Early signs of bouquet development. With swirling, more complex and integrated nuances of truffle, coffee and tar emerge. Supple on the attack, very aromatic mid-palate, juicy, the wine offers noble texture, with a medium body and a juicy finish that is still a touch tannic (too much oak), of normal length.