Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol, 2023

Name: Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol
Brand: Vieux Château Certan
Price: 1110 GBP

Available Vintages

all 1995 2003 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2015 2017 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024

justerini & brooks tasting note

As always, this is one of our favourite Pomerols and one of the most handsome wines produced in Bordeaux. Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont have excelled again, capturing the essence of the vintage with their gorgeous VCC 2023. Glorious aromas of violet, bergamot and pure dark berries emerge from the glass. This segues to a core of perfectly ripe, taut cassis; so fine grained and precise with hints of cracked herbs, creamy, dark fruits and salts. Ever so gentle, with lots of detail, then a finishing flourish, a peacock's tail of spices, stones, perfumed berries - coiled, multifaceted, sensational. A VCC of immense charm. 82% Merlot and 18% Cabernet Franc.

critic reviews

97-99/100Lisa Perrotti-Brown,The Wine Independent

A blend of 82% Merlot and 18% Cabernet Franc, Vieux Chateau Certan 2023 has a pH of 3.74 and it is deep garnet-purple in color. Notes of fresh blackberries, juicy plums, and black cherries slowly emerge from the glass, opening out to fragrant notes of violets, star anise, and black truffles, followed by wafts of wood smoke and cardamom. The medium-bodied palate is taut and muscular with firm, rounded tannins and seamless acidity, finishing with many, many layers of earth, spice, and floral notes. This is pure latent power.

DRINKING WINDOW 2030 - 2060

date of review 05/2024

96/100Jane Anson,Inside Bordeaux

Fresh floral heights to the aromatics, then dark berry fruits and a core of muscles of the palate, classically-weighted with grip and texture, white pepper spice and salted cracker salinity on the finish. Stretches out through the palate, feels gloriously old school, full of hidden depths and pleasures. 43hl/h yield, harvest September 18 through to 29. Youngest vines here are 1988, which helps give the complexity that is so celebrated at VCC.

DRINKING WINDOW 2030 - 2048

date of review 05/2024

94-96/100Neal Martin,Vinous

The 2023 Vieux Château Certan was picked from September 18 to 29. This year, there is no Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend as the fruit did not reach full ripeness, according to winemaker Guillaume Thienpont. The fruit was cropped at 43hL/ha as they suffered no mildew, there were one-third fewer pump-overs, and this vintage matured in two-thirds new oak. It has a well-defined bouquet, a little sultry at first: black cherry, iodine, violet flower and a touch of crushed stone. This unfurls beautifully in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. Broader in the mouth compared to the Le Pin that I tasted right before, this is slightly more savory in style thanks to the 18% Cabernet Franc, landing gently on the finish. This is an elegant, slightly earthier VCC that will age beautifully in the bottle.

DRINKING WINDOW 2029 - 2055

date of review 04/2024

94-96/100William Kelley,Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2023 Vieux Chateau Certan bursts from the glass with demonstrative aromas of dark berries, pencil shavings, violets mingled with notions of burning embers, iris, crushed mint and black tea. Medium to full-bodied, velvety and sensual, with a gourmand attack that segues into a layered, enveloping mid-palate, it's polished and perfumed, with a sweet core of fruit and a long, gently oak-inflected finish. This year's blend of 82% Merlot and 18% Cabernet Franc checks in at 14% alcohol and a pH of 3.74.

date of review 04/2024