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The 2019 Vieux-Château-Certan has a fabulous bouquet with stunning delineation, a complex array of red and black fruit, sous-bois, truffle and Seville orange marmalade. The palate is medium-bodied and very precise, with fine-grain tannins, a superb bead of acidity and a peacock's tail on the finish lingering long in the mouth. I knew this was an awesome Pomerol...but maybe not this awesome! Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. Drink 2026-2060.
The 2019 Vieux-Château-Certan has a fabulous bouquet with stunning delineation, a complex array of red and black fruit, sous-bois, truffle and Seville orange marmalade. The palate is medium-bodied and very precise, with fine-grain tannins, a superb bead of acidity and a peacock's tail on the finish lingering long in the mouth. I knew this was an awesome Pomerol...but maybe not this awesome! Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. Drink 2026-2060.
The 2019 Vieux Château Certan is deep in colour. It has a fabulous, very intense nose that explodes from the glass with billowing scents of black cherries, freshly shaved black truffles, raspberry and light rose petal aromas. The palate is so sensual and seductive on the entry, its creamy texture irresistible and completely disguising the structure underneath. Interestingly this VCC really comes into its own after 12-hours of opening, revealing more quintessential Pomerol characteristics and more grip on the finish. Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont fashioned a brilliant follow-up to the glorious 2018. Drink 2025 - 2055
The 2019 Vieux Château Certan is a heady, rich wine that captures all of the exoticism of the year. Crème de cassis, graphite, crushed rocks, lavender and spice are some of the many aromas and flavors that run through the 2019. This is an especially ripe, unctuous style for VCC. It will be interesting to see what aging brings, as there is plenty of grip and structure underneath a core of dense fruit that remains remarkably primary.
Very deep purple-black in color, the 2019 Vieux Château Certan slowly opens out to reveal a heart-stopping perfume of red roses, kirsch, black raspberries, violets and star anise over a powerful core of plum preserves, blueberry pie and boysenberries plus hints of cardamom, sandalwood and Ceylon tea. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is achingly graceful, featuring tightly wound layers of crunchy blue and black fruits with tannins so ripe and finely grained, you really have to look for them. The acidity here is absolutely seamless, and the finish explodes into an array of mineral sparks. Be prepared to fall head over heals for this one.
The nose is so beautiful, offering dried flowers, white pepper and other spices. Yet,there’s also bright, blue fruit. Tar, too. Love the depth of fruit here. The wine flows across the palate with so well integrated tannins. You just want to drink it. Glorious. The cabernet in this makes it almost Medoc-like. A blend of 78% merlot, 15% cabernet franc and 7% cabernet sauvignon.
A wonderful wine, great depth of black fruit but extremely balanced, lace and satin. The aromatics open up almost immediately to show raspberry and redcurrant fruits. It's extremely complete; but mainly it just makes you want to enjoy it - no aggression to these tannins. 66% new oak, all the estate's Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc grapes are here (with the 2nd wine 100% Merlot), and it surely helps give this sapidity and flavoursome savoury character. 3.75pH. A yield of 42hl/ha, so a good quantity, around the same as in 2018. 2026-2042
Dark crimson hue. Complex and intense on the nose with dark fruit, tea and floral notes. Oak just perceptible but well integrated. Touch of sweetness on the attack (oak again?) but the palate remains juicy, lively and fresh, the tannins rounded and refined. A classic VCC that’s sapid and digeste, the finish long, dry and clean. Drink 2030-2050 (JL)
Flowers, black raspberry, plum liqueur, truffle, wet earth, forest floor and cherry blossoms are in the nose. Rich, intense, full-bodied, deep and velvety, the wine is loaded with dark chocolate, black cherries and the essence of dark plums. The decadent finish sticks with you for close to 60 seconds, which is a good thing, because the wine is so texturally sensual, you do not want it to end. Blending 78% Merlot with 15% Cabernet Franc and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine reached 14.5% alcohol with a pH of 3.75. Picking took place September 23 -September 27 for the old vine Merlot and October 2-October 3 for the Cabernet. The wine is aging in about 67% new, French oak barrels.
The small sub-region of Pomerol is situated north-east of the industrious city of Libourne. Pomerol's soils are predominately iron-rich clay with a smattering of gravel that produce wines with extraordinary power and depth. As a result of this clay-dominance, it has the highest percentage of Merlot planted in all of Bordeaux. Certain châteaux are produced exclusively from this grape, but most incorporate smaller quantities of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc as well. Despite its hefty (if not exclusive) proportion of Merlot, many people think of wines from this region as separate entities. As one wine aficionado stated recently, "It's not Merlot. It's Pomerol." Despite the region's small size, Pomerol contains some of the world's most sought after (and expensive) wines including Pétrus, Le Pin, Lafleur, l'Evangile and Vieux Château Certan. Unlike other Bordelais subregions, there is no system of classification. The châteaux are traded on reputation alone.
