2005 Château la Clemence, Pomerol, Bordeaux
Critics reviews
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - Wine Advocate - eRobertParker.com #219 Jun 2015
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - Wine Advocate - eRobertParker.com #219 Jun 2015
About this WINE
Chateau La Clemence
Château La Clemence is a deluxe Pomerol cuvée produced by Christian Dauriac, proprietor of St-Emilion property, Château Destieux. It is produced from a five-hectare vineyard (made up of 5 separate plots) planted with 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc.
The vines have an average age of 50 years and yields are severely restricted to around 20 hectolitres per hectare. The wines are vinified and matured in 100% new oak barriques.
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.
Cabernet Sauvignon Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.
In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and Australia.
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Description
From proprietor Christian Dauriac, this wine, which has a tendency to be very oaky, has evolved nicely, with the oak well-measured and restrained. The color is a dense purple and the wine full-bodied, rich, heady and youthful. There is still plenty of meat, tannin and body, so this wine would probably be best cellared for another few years.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - Wine Advocate - eRobertParker.com #219 Jun 2015
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