Château Pape Clément, Cru Classé, Pessac Léognan, 2024
A noticeable oak influence is present in the 2024 Pape Clément, yet some bright fruit struggles to emerge. Currently, the tannins are overly assertive, dominating whatever fruit there is. One hopes these tannins will resolve during élevage. The finish offers glimpses of sweet strawberries and a mineral undertone.
critic reviews
Deep garnet-purple colored. Prances out with showy notes of raspberry coulis, fresh black currants, and plums, plus suggestions of cinnamon stick, lilac, and fertile loam. The light to medium-bodied palate has great tension and fine-grained tannins supporting the vibrant black and red berry flavors, finishing long and fragrant. The intensity and black fruit on here with no form of must concentration is impressive!
The 2024 Pape Clément now only comes from the original terroir in Pessac. It underwent a rigorous sorting such that 30% was deselected and the Grand Vin comprises half of the remainder. It is aged 70% in barrel (two-thirds new), 15% in <em>foudres</em> and 15% in concrete and stainless-steel/sandstone vessels. It has an elegant bouquet, certainly more restrained than recent vintages with crisp black fruit and veins of blueberry and iris flower. The palate is medium-bodied and powdery in texture with sappy blackberry and bilberry fruit, but the tannins just feel a bit sharp on the finish at the moment. Tasted four or five times, the 2024 is a Pape-Clément with good intentions but doesn't deliver on its promise. The same approach in a benevolent vintage would yield a far better wine.
A smoky, oaky bouquet of spices, incense and dark berries prefaces the 2024 Pape Clement, a moderately weighted, supple and open-knit palate built around tangy acids and brittle tannins.