With a national holiday yesterday in France for Ascension day, we saw just the releases from Francois Mitjavile, including his amazing 2025 Château Le Tertre Rôteboeuf, offered at £774 per six and scoring 98 points from Jane Anson. In this tiny vintage it's in incredibly short supply so initial allocations will go to buyers of the 2024. But do let us know if you would be interested in a case and we will try and prise some more out of the château.
Slightly easier to obtain, and in very much the same style, is Mitjavile's Côte de Bourg, Château Roc de Cambes, offered at £264 per six and with 93-95 points from Jeb Dunnock.
They produce a second wine from here, made precisley in the same way, but from grapes grown just outside the Côte de Bourg appellation. Labelled Domaine de Cambes, it is a fantastic introduction to the 'house style' and receives a massive 94-96 points from Jeb Dunnock, for just £185 per six bottles.
Somehow Francois and two of his children, Nina and Henri, succeed in making superb wines both in great vintages and in 'off-years' (as anyone who has recently tasted his 2013s will testify), and as we regularly say of them, scores aside we think these are among are the most unique and beguiling wines in the whole of Bordeaux and easily justify their offer prices. Do consider adding them to your cellar.
Offered en primeur, landing spring 2028.
Magnums available with £25 ex-VAT bottling surcharge per six, please enquire re other formats.
Producer Profile
Château Le Tertre Rôteboeuf
Visiting Le Tertre Rôteboeuf is like being transported to an ancient, mould-lined cellar in the Côte de Nuits. The estate has been in the Mitjavile family since the '60s but it was Francois who made its name, learning his trade at Figeac in the early '70s. His first vintage was in 1978 and by the '89 vintage the reputation of this 6 hectare estate was established alongside the best in St-Émilion.
Farmed organically, Le Tertre Rôteboeuf is geographically close to Troplong Mondot and Pavie, but a world away in style. The etymology of the name derives from the days when the land was used for cattle grazing, and broadly translates as 'the hill of the belching beef'.
The cool soils here slow the ripening process and this is routinely one of the last estates to finish harvest. Training the Merlot and Cabernet Franc vines close to the ground (see picture above) maximises the warmth radiated from the soil at the end of the ripening season. This contributes to the silky, glycerin texture on the palate and aromatic complexity, particularly from the Cabernet Franc.
| RED | 2025 | Château Le Tertre Roteboeuf | 75cl | £774 per case of 6 | Château Le Tertre Roteboeuf 2025 / / 75cl £774 per case of 6 |
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Tasting Notes"80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. Cask sample. Inimitable Mitjavile style. Red fruit, blood orange, chocolate and toasted notes – the ripe fruit and those Radoux barrels doing the work. Sweet with a silky texture and perhaps a bit more freshness than usual. Right on-key for followers of this wine. 17 points" jancisrobinson.com (JL)------"The 2025 Tertre Roteboeuf was the only sample taken directly from barrel a la Burgundy. It was picked on September 23 and 24, which, to my knowledge, was the latest among the Right Bank wines tasted during my time in the region. Matured in 100% new ook, it actually has quite a Pinot-like bouquet, with mocerated small red cherries, raspberry coulis, a touch of pencil lead and crushed stone. Nicely controlled. The palate is medium-bodied and, as expected, displays a veneer of new oak. Modest depth, gentle grip, quite lactic towards the finish, with a patina of dark chocolate. Very typical of Tertre-Rôteboeufs style, as always, have a cellar and the patience of a saint. 93-95 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com------"The 2025 Tertre Roteboeuf is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine. Silky and seamless on the palate, with exceptional finesse, the 2025 marries power with elegance in grand style. Crushed flowers, blue-toned fruit, mocha and a kiss of French aak expand in the glass. Tertre Röteboeuf is quite rich and deep, as it always is, but the 2025 also offers superb freshness and energy to match. It's a gorgeous Saint-Emilion in the making. 95-97 points" Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com------"Cassis, sweet tobacco, graphite, and lead pencil notes all shine from the 2025 Château Tertre Roteboeuf, and it's just brilliant, offering everything you look for in a great bottle of wine. Full-bodied on the palate, it has an elegant, seamless mouthfeel, ultra-fine tannins, and that freshness and purity of the vintage. 96-98 points" Jebdunnuck.com------"This is right up there at the top of the vintage, there is still the roasted plum aspect of Tertre Roteboeuf but you feel the juice and salinity of the vintage running through it. These guys stick to their beliefs and their style, and we are all the better for it. 14, 3.8ph. September 23, earlier than usual. 100% new oak. 98 points" janeanson.com |
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