Wine Words & Video Tape

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Château La Conseillante

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Address: 33500 Pomerol

Telephone: +33 (0)5 57 51 15 32

E-mail: contact@la-conseillante.com

Website: www.la-conseillante.com

The Nicolas family have owned Château La Conseillante since 1871. Part of the vineyard here is adjacent to Château Petrus but the wines here are more elegant and sumptuous without the Petrus power [in my limited experience]. Delicious wines but increasingly super expensive as there are only around 4500 cases of Château La Conseillante made.

Vineyard/Terroir: 12 hectares on clay and gravel with a hardpan subsoil planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc.

Winemaking/Elévage: Aged in barrel for between 18-22 months depending on the vintage. 80-100% new oak used.

Tasting notes:

  • 2015 Mid depth; not as dark as some; lovely aromatics – spices, black cherry and sweet plum tones; very attractive; silky palate; freshness too alongside the black fruit and red fruit tones; lovely and attractive Pomerol. Burgundian style. Good density and length but remains nicely appetising. [81% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc]. Tasted Pomerol Seduction 6/4/16. Drink 2020-2035. 94-95+
  • 2014 Good depth of colour; vibrant edge; lovely pretty fruit; caressing and satiny; beautiful fruit in fact; quite measured on the palate; lovely elegance; glossy, balanced and textured on the palate; tension too [some freshness]; proportional wine; acidity fresh and good length. Attractive La Conseillante. [78% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc, 13.5% alc, 3.6 TA, 15-18 months in oak]. Tasted at La Conseillante, 3rd April ’15. Drink 2019-2030. 93-94+
  • 2013 Elegant colour; vibrant edge; some spice and lift on the nose; oak and sweet black fruits beneath; oak present on the palate with some plum tones; sap and acidity too; some chew here suggests good material and plum and sour cherry notes on the finish. Lacks a bit of generosity for this estate but should emerge well. [82% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc]. Drink 2018-2026. Tasted UGCB April 2, 2014. 89-91
  • 2012 Mid depth; unctuous and satiny aromatics; plenty of plum and spice tones and layers of fruit; menthol tones; palate has some fatness and weight but there is an attractive delicacy here which makes this wine very attractive. Drink 2015-2027. 92+ UGC oct ’14 [Earlier note] Deep and saturated look; summer fruit pudding, black cherry, plums and spices, some lift and violet perfume; very attractive palate, creamy blackcurrants, black cherry but with real structure and acid beneath. Very nice length. Lots here. 89% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc. 94-96+ Tasted at UGC 10 April 2013
  • 2011 Deep and saturated look; ripe and full; seductive nose; plummy and full; ripe and full on the palate – this is the pick of the Pomerol’s on display; sap and life lifts the end of the palate. Nicely done. One of the red wines of the tasting. Drink 2014-2026. 93+ UGC Oct ’13 [Earlier note] Deep looking, mid depth at edge; vibrant looking; bright violet fruit, some plum and sour cherry and black cherry notes; quite deep and feels fresh; layered palate beneath with depth and some oak influence but plenty of black cherry fruit. Chew on the finish but attractive wine overall. 82% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc 13.4 alc 91-93+ April 2012
  • 2010 Deep and saturated looking; resin; ripe and lifted plum and black fruit notes; some mocha tones; deep and saturated palate; great texture here; quite lush and ripe with Cab Franc influence; excellent stuff. Drink 2016-2035. 94+ MW Institute Nov ’14 [Earlier note] Deep colour; spices, plums, freshness; some leaf; nice flavours on the palate and good grip and texture; plenty of material and oomph. 92+ UGC 2012 [Earlier] Dense and deep, arterial; perfumed and very deep nose, violets with purity, lots of plums and freshness too, ripe and full; dense plummy and concentrated; fresh too with concentration, density but also grip. Fabulous. Chewy on the finish but fresh. This feels better than 2009 to me. 94-96+/100 6 April 2011 at UGC.
  • 2009 Deep and saturated look; spicy blackcurrant and plum aromas, stone fruits and some wet rocks; remarkable freshness here with blackcurrant cassis notes, menthol and fruit tones; ripe palate, very fresh and enjoyable; some tannin here to resolve and unfurl; needs time but this wine isn’t at all over extracted in the cellar. Lovely wine. A beauty. Drink in a few years [possibly now if decanted] but has the structure to last. Better than Clinet on the day. Drink 2015-2035. 96 MW Institute Nov ’13  [Earlier note] Deepish – red at edge; warm and round; almost grand Bolgheri like in this vintage; plums, black fruits, mocha and coffee tones; palate very, very fine and satiny; layered and complex; ripe fruit, chew and nice grip. Showing better than at primeur tasting for me. 96+/100 UGC 2011 [Earlier] Mid depth; stones and minerals with red fruits beneath; attractive though not as seductive as expected on the nose [cf Clinet in ‘09]; palate very attractive with richness and balance between the oak and fruit; coffee and mocha at the back. [Later] Some fruit and prettiness; stones and minerals on nose again; fresh; soft entry to palate. Tannin later. Not as flamboyant as I’d hoped for but nevertheless very good. 90-92+/100 Tasted 31st March 2010.
  • 2008 Deep and saturated look; some leaf and lift; earth too; intensity and depth to the nose; minty note; rich and velvety on the palate; blackcurrants with sweetness and tannin at the end. Lots of depth. Delicacy here. 93+ MW Institute Nov ’12 [Earlier] Quite dense and earthy purple; lots of ripe red fruits here; strawberries, quite intense, almost Burgundian; quite fresh palate with similar notes; some grip here. Good and ripe. 88+/100 UGC Oct 2010
  • 2007 Mid red; leaf and tobacco [some CF influence]; attractive nose; quite meaty; palate similarly so with meat, leaf and some mint; layered palate. Attractive. 88/100 MW Institute Nov ’11.
  • 2006 Deep at centre; mature notes of chocolate and truffle, feels a bit tired? Sweet entry on the palate and lots of ripeness here, fruit tending toward the ripe strawberry and raspberry notes; some tannin here too and furry quality to the tannin. 86-88?/100[2nd sample] Feels a bit fresher, super ripe notes on the nose, menthol and clear Cab Franc lift; palate more silky then first bottle and less tannic than previous sample too. Very soft and attractive but density beneath too. Tannins solid but not dry. Much better second bottle 88-90/100. MW Institute Nov ’10.
  • 1978 Red/brown; truffles, some undergrowth and tobacco spices; soft and easy palate with no hard edges; fully mature and needs to be drunk up. Tasted Nov ’03. 83/100 
  • 1975 Tea coloured, slightly herbal nose, old and meagre; herbal tea like quality to the palate; feels very old and, although this wine has a good reputation in this vintage, this bottle way past its best. June ’04. 75/100

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