Montblanc The legend of Zodiacs Red Chine Ink-- Review

Montblanc is well known for releasing beautiful, well formulated inks in limited quantities. This time Montblanc has released a workhorse red ink that is perfect for editing and collectors of red ink-- the Montblanc legends of Zodiacs Red Chine.

We tested this ink out on three types of paper-- Rhodia (white, grid), Tomoe River (white), and Copy Paper (Georgia Pacific Standard Multipurpose Paper). We were delighted by the vivid red ink with a slight tinge of orange. When we first used the we initially thought it was a bit "washed out" compared to other red inks. After some mileage it really grew on us as a red outside of the burgundy category and the firehouse category. Think of a red paper lantern at a Chinese restaurant or grocery store that has been in the sun for a few years-- this ink is just that color-- a beautiful, matte red that is just a tad weather-worn.

Red Chine is on the drier side of the ink spectrum. Of the three types of paper we tried with the Red Chine, the clear best match was on the Tomoe River paper which showed through as a true red with slightly maroon undertones.

On the white Rhodia paper the ink looked on the orangey pink side which is a delightful color, but not what we were expecting from a red.

We were particularly impressed with how the ink handled on copy paper. On the bright white of the copy paper the ink dried very quickly and had minimal feathering and hardly any show-through. The color is the perfect color for grading. We highly suggest this ink for people who want a red for grading papers or editing.

The ink comes in a ribbed, square glass 50 ml bottle with a black plastic cap with an inset Montblanc white star at the top. This bottle is a delight to see sitting atop a desk or on the shelf of a study. The packaging is a glossy, extremely sturdy, cardboard box that is red and white with Year of the Dog imagery on the sides (in the office we refer to it as the "Dog Ink"). As with all of their ink bottle packaging, the glass bottle sits in a box that slides out of a larger outer box, which is always a delightful tactile experience when opening and storing your new ink.

Red Chine is a delightful red that is delicate and rather unique in that it's not a maroon or a hot-red ink. It sits firmly in the true-red category with slight orange leanings. We think Red Chine is an excellent ink for grading or editing documents because it plays so well with copy paper and also dries quickly. We currently have stock of Red Chine ink so place your order today with us!