2011 Château la Croix de Gay, Pomerol, Bordeaux
Critics reviews
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - 30/04/2014
(James Molesworth, Wine Spectator, April 5, 2012 )
Medium to full-bodied, rich and powerful (13.5% alcohol), it has enough up-front precocious fruit, glycerin and charm to be drunk young or cellared for 10+ years.
(Robert Parker - Wine Advocate #200 Apr 2012)
About this WINE
Chateau la Croix-de-Gay
Frequently producing one of the great wine values Pomerol of the appellation, Château la Croix-de-Gay, managed by Alain Raynaud and Chantal Lebreton. The chateau benefits from a privileged site on the plateau of Pomerol, made up of 13 hectares of vines, mostly Merlot (80%) and a little Cabernet Franc.
The wines are fresh, medium-bodied, elegant and alluring in a sensual, seductive style.
Pomerol
Pomerol is the smallest of Bordeaux's major appellations, with about 150 producers and approximately 740 hectares of vineyards. It is home to many bijou domaines, many of which produce little more than 1,000 cases per annum.
Both the topography and architecture of the region is unremarkable, but the style of the wines is most individual. The finest vineyards are planted on a seam of rich clay which extends across the gently-elevated plateau of Pomerol, which runs from the north-eastern boundary of St Emilion. On the sides of the plateau, the soil becomes sandier and the wines lighter.
There is one satellite region to the immediate north, Lalande-de-Pomerol whose wines are stylistically very similar, if sometimes lacking the finesse of its neighbour. There has never been a classification of Pomerol wines.
Recommended Châteaux : Ch. Pétrus, Vieux Ch. Certan, Le Pin, Ch. L’Eglise-Clinet, Ch. La Conseillante, Ch. L’Evangile, Ch. Lafleur, Trotanoy, Ch. Nenin, Ch. Beauregard, Ch. Feytit-Clinet, Le Gay.
Merlot
The most widely planted grape in Bordeaux and a grape that has been on a relentless expansion drive throughout the world in the last decade. Merlot is adaptable to most soils and is relatively simple to cultivate. It is a vigorous naturally high yielding grape that requires savage pruning - over-cropped Merlot-based wines are dilute and bland. It is also vital to pick at optimum ripeness as Merlot can quickly lose its varietal characteristics if harvested overripe.
In St.Emilion and Pomerol it withstands the moist clay rich soils far better than Cabernet grapes, and at it best produces opulently rich, plummy clarets with succulent fruitcake-like nuances. Le Pin, Pétrus and Clinet are examples of hedonistically rich Merlot wines at their very best. It also plays a key supporting role in filling out the middle palate of the Cabernet-dominated wines of the Médoc and Graves.
Merlot is now grown in virtually all wine growing countries and is particularly successful in California, Chile and Northern Italy.
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Description
A deep ruby color is followed by a big, sweet nose of cherry jam and spice, but this wine quickly loses its energy and staying power on the mid-palate and finish. Drink it over the next 5-6 years.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - 30/04/2014
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