Château La Conseillante, Pomerol, 2010
80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. There are many exceptional wines from the plateau of Pomerol in 2010, but Conseillante really stands out as one of the superstars. A muscular, intense example, but true to its terroir and the vintage. The charming Jean Michel Laporte was clearly delighted at the 140th anniversary of the Nicholas family’s tenure at the Chateau. This is a monumental wine. A perfumed bouquet of cedar, spice, violets, ripe plums and dark cherry fruit. The palate is multilayered, with wave after wave of decadent Pomerol fruit. It is both muscular and intricate, balancing immense power with suave detail and exquisite tannic structure. An epic wine.
critic reviews
This is excellent quality, rich deep plum flavours, spicy, intense, full of character, incense, grilled plum and rosemary, highly charged yet with supple tannins and an edge of sweet red liquorice and creamy caramel. Tasted ex-retail not ex-château.
The 2010 La Conseillante has been spellbinding since I first tasted it from barrel. It has an intense nose with black plum, cedar and graphite. It is vibrant and compelling with scents of camphor intertwined. Wonderful delineation; there are layers of aromatic complexity. The palate is beautifully knit with a touch of black pepper and thyme filtering through the black fruit. It retains so much energy on the finish as it fans out with class and verve. Magnificent. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the Icons of Bordeaux dinner at Legacy Records in New York.
Composed of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, the 2010 La Conseillante is deep garnet in color. It gives up scents of cigar box, boysenberry preserves, and fruitcake with suggestions of licorice, smoked meats, and pencil shavings. Full-bodied, the palate has amazing concentration with maturing, tertiary characters intertwined with dried berries and exotic spices, framed by chewy tannins and racy acidity, finishing long and straight-laced. As cerebral as it is delicious, it has a solid 25 years+ further of cellaring potential.
Deep garnet in color, the 2010 La Conseillante opens with notes of warm black plums, baked blackberries and blueberry preserves plus hints of dried rosemary, fragrant earth and cedar. Full-bodied, the palate is firm and chewy with a lively line cutting through the densely packed, savory layers, finishing a little warm and lifted.