2019

Château
Quintus

Château Quintus is the 5th child within the Domaine Clarence Dillon family of wines. Its name is a tribute to the Gallo-Romans, creators of Saint-Emilion’s vineyards, who had the custom of naming their fifth child Quintus.

Tasting notes

This Quintus is a deep red colour with crimson highlights.
The bouquet is powerful, intense and complex, and bursting with notes of ripe,
black fruit, particularly blackcurrant. Spicy, subtle overtones are already perceptible.
Starts out broad-based and fleshy, with a remarkably caressing sensation,
becoming full-bodied, with smooth, creamy fine-grained tannins mid-palate.
The finish is long, without any hardness whatsoever. A perfect marriage between
Merlot and Cabernet Franc, whereby the qualities of each grape variety are
expressed to the full. This 2019 Quintus is clearly a tremendous success.

The weather

The winter of 2018-2019 was mild and dry. Cool temperatures in spring slowed down vine growth. Flowering took place in ideal conditions, without coulure (shot berries) nor millerandage (abnormal fruit set). Storm Miguel swept across the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on the 7th of June, although our grapes were fortunately spared. Heavy, regular rainfall was conducive to vegetative growth, leading the vines to develop an impressive leaf canopy. The rain came to a sudden halt on the 22nd of June, and a series of successive heatwaves ensued. July was the third hottest in history after 2006 and 2013, with temperatures reaching a record-breaking 42°C on the 23rd. Fortunately, rain fell on the 26th, followed by cool nights in August, propitious to the synthesis of anthocyanins. Véraison (colour change) was slow but uninterrupted. September was marked by fine, dry and sunny conditions, interspersed by welcome rainfall. Thanks to this ideal spell of weather, all the grape varieties were harvested at peak ripeness and at a leisurely pace.

A few figures

  • Harvest dates

    19 September to 9 October

  • Blend

    Merlot: 55.4%
    Cabernet Franc: 44.6%

  • New barrels

    38.2%

  • Alcohol content

    15.5%

  • Bottling date

    April 19th and 20th 2021

Château Quintus