2020 | Vieux Château Certan | Pomerol (OWC of 3)

Extraordinary clarity and brilliance on the nose with ink and iodine, blackberry and blueberry. Really perfumed already. Full-bodied with fine tannins and superb depth and length. I love the complexity and the great texture. Energetic finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: The 2020 Vieux Château Certan is a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, picked on the 14th to the 24th of September for the Merlot, then on the 28th and 29th of September for the Cabernet Franc. The pH is 3.77 and the alcohol is 14.5%. Deep purple-black colored, it needs considerable coaxing, swirling and a lot of patience before it finally lets rip an intoxicating perfume of ripe, juicy black plums, Morello cherries, candied violets, black truffles and crushed rocks, giving way to hints of black tea, molten licorice and Sichuan pepper, plus a waft of dusty red soil. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers achingly ripe, silt-like tannins and shimmering freshness that melds with the black fruits and earthy layers with jaw-dropping seamlessness, finishing with layer upon layer of mineral and savory suggestions and, finally, a gorgeous floral whisper. There are going to be two ways to approach this: 1) Just let the remarkably sensual, inexplicable beauty of it wash over you or 2) Try to unravel all those intricate layers and have it blow you mind. Either way, this is simply an incredible achievement—bravo Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont!

• James Suckling: Extraordinary clarity and brilliance on the nose with ink and iodine, blackberry and blueberry. Really perfumed already. Full-bodied with fine tannins and superb depth and length. I love the complexity and the great texture. Energetic finish.

Producer Information

Vieux Château Certan is a wine estate in the Pomerol appellation on Bordeaux's Right Bank, known for its rich, deeply colored red wine (usually) based on Merlot. It is consistently rated by judges and the press as one of the very best wines in the world, and achieves correspondingly high prices at auction. The vineyard covers 14 hectares (35 acres) and is one of the largest single block sites in the Right Bank. Many of the vines are 50 years old, with one parcel dating back to 1932. Vieux Château Certan neighbors Pétrus at the top and center of the Pomerol plateau. Most of the vines sit on the famed Gunz gravel terrace, which is made up of large pebbles and clay over an iron-rich subsoil. This is quite fertile, so care must be taken to limit vine vigor in favor of ripening grapes. Around 30 percent of the property lies on deeper clay soils. Merlot makes up 65 percent of plantings, split between the clay and clay-gravel soils. 30 percent is Cabernet Franc, which is judged to perform particularly well in the clay-gravel. The remaining 5 percent – the most gravelly areas – is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon. The proportions in the finished grand vin can vary widely from these numbers. For example the 2016 was 85 percent Merlot, while the 2011 included 29 percent Cabernet Franc. Fortunately the château has the reputation of producing great wines in those vintages where both Merlot and Cabernet Franc did well, and in Merlot-dominant years. That said, the hot-weather 2003 is a special case, with 80 percent Cabernet Franc. The 1993 (a moderate year across much of Bordeaux), contains 50 percent of that variety. Fermentation takes place in temperature controlled oak vats, set at 28C (82.4F). Lots selected for the grand vin are aged for up to 22 months in new French oak. A second wine, La Gravette de Certan, is also produced from young vines. Total annual production for the estate averages around 5000 cases.

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