Tertre Roteboeuf - Saint Emilion Grand Cru red 2018

Wine Region: Bordeaux - France

Grape: Merlot 85%, Cabernet Franc 15%

Tasting notes:Francois Mitjavile's brilliant and unique wine has a different character from that of all its Saint Emilion rivals. There is almost a Pinot Noir sweetness and exceptional purity. Only available in very limited quantities. Our visit to the unassuming cellars with their mud floors and dirty walls is always fascinating and a highlight of our trips to Bordeaux. Production is around 2000 cases annually with elevage in 100% new "Radoux blend" fine grain barrels. The south-facing vineyard produces wines that are ripe but never jammy. They frequently remind us of Le Pin and sometimes even of Musigny. A top performer at the annual Southwold blind tastings.

Vinous 96/100
"The 2018 Tertre-Roteboeuf is a rich, heady Saint-Emilion. Ripe, flamboyant and creamy, the 2018 captures all of the opulence of the vintage. Black fruit, bittersweet chocolate, spice, new leather and tobacco gradually open in the glass, but the 2018 is a dense, plush wine that needs time to show all it has to offer. The bouquet displays a bit of reduction, so opening the wine in advance and possibly decanting, are advisable. As always, Francois Mitjavile crafts one of the most distinctive wines in all of Bordeaux. [Antonio Galloni, 29/03/2021]

JancisRobinson.com 18/20 
Luscious, sweet, verging on liquorice-coated rose petals. Big and apparently soft and hugely distinctive. More intense than most. Love/hate wine! [19/01/2022]

Jeb Dunnuck 97/100
The 2018 Tertre Roteboeuf is another powerful, opulent wine from this estate that reminds me a little of the 2005 with its density and tannic structure. Cassis, graphite, black raspberries, and tons of classy oak all emerge from this full-bodied beauty that has tons of fruit and texture, a stacked mid-palate, and a big finish. It’s a massive, sumptuous, and lavishly oaked and fruited wine that’s going to benefit from 3-5 years of bottle age and keep for 25-30 years.

About the Winery: 

At the end of the 1970s, François Mitjavile took over the reins of the estate that his wife Emilie had inherited from her father. This vineyard, which was then called Château du Tertre, had long since lost its lustre and reputation. The presence of vines goes back a long way, to Roman times.

The estate is also referenced in the 1929 edition of the Féret guide, the "bible" of the Bordeaux vineyard. François Mitjavile renamed the estate Le Tertre Roteboeuf, adding to the original name that of one of the localities on which the vineyard is located: "Roteboeuf", in old French, translates the difficulty with which the oxen climbed the arid and hard hill.

This is a unique terroir: located on the edge of the slopes, near Pavie, the vines grow on arid soil, burned and dried out by the summer heat. A disciple of Emile Peynaud, François Mitjavile decided to resurrect the sleeping beauty and brought back to life old techniques. He was the first in the region to re-establish permanent grassing on his estate and reduced the height of the vines to allow the fruit to benefit fully from the warmth of the soil. After vinification, the wines are carefully aged for 22 months, punctuated by frequent racking.