Château L'Eglise Clinet, Pomerol, 2011
Denis Durantou explained that 'the wines of the 2011 vintage harvested from those parcels which did not suffer from the heat wave of Sunday the 26th and Monday the 27th of June, and which were spared from hailstorms... bring together in harmony all the tastes of a wine: floral and ripe fruit aromas, a firm and dense texture and then voluptuous depth'. Denis' flagship, Eglise Clinet does all of the above. This 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc cuvee is again one of the stars of the plateau. There is a hauntingly beautiful bouquet that is both full of primary soft fruit and deeply reserved with notes of flowers and complex minerals woven into the aromatic profile. As one would expect from Eglise Clinet, the palate is packed with sumptuous fruit, sweet cherries, and notes of dark chocolate; there is a wonderful intensity here and a paradox of enormous power, yet an overwhelming sensation of elegance, charm and refinement. The alcohol levels in 2011 are lower than 2009 and 2010, which many traditionalists will applaud. Denis should be well pleased with his range of 2011s and this, the crowning achievement is just about the most sumptuous, generous, cashmere lined example we found on the right bank. An epic wine, which will be fascinating to taste next to the 2009 and 2010 in years to come.
critic reviews
The 2011 l'Eglise-Clinet has a generous and high-toned bouquet with menthol-tinged red berry fruit, a hint of cough candy and black olive. This has good complexity and focus, manifesting more elegant and precision with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with lithe tannins, touches of mocha and black pepper infusing the red berry fruit, very cohesive with admirable concentration on the finish. This is drinking superbly now. Gorgeous. Tasted blind at the annual 10-Year-On tasting.