2016 | Vieux Chateau Certan | Pomerol

Red Wine: 2016 | Vieux Chateau Certan | Pomerol
This big, rich wine has perfumed Cabernet Franc flavors to give shape to the dominant Merlot. It is a well-structured wine, elegant and with juicy acidity.
Order from the Largest & Most Trusted Premium Spirits Marketplace!
Featured in
ROLLING STONE
MEN’S JOURNAL
US WEEKLY
NOTICE: Many other small liquor store sites may end up cancelling your order due to the high demand, unavailability or inaccurate inventory counts. We have partnerships consisting of a large network of licensed retailers from within the United States, Europe and across the world ensuring orders are fulfilled.
Producer: Vieux Château Certan
Ratings: WA | 100 JS | 99
Vintage: 2016
Size: 750ml
ABV: 14.5%
Varietal: Bordeaux Blend Red
Country/Region: France, Pomerol
This big, rich wine has perfumed Cabernet Franc flavors to give shape to the dominant Merlot. It is a well-structured wine, elegant and with juicy acidity.
Reviews:
Wine Advocate: The 2016 Vieux Château Certan is blended of 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it leaps from the glass with pristine, vivid notions of candied violets, chocolate-covered cherries, blackberry compote and mulberries with fragrant touches of raspberry leaves, crushed rocks, licorice, cumin seed and yeast extract plus a waft of red roses. Medium to full-bodied and beautifully elegant, the palate builds from a quiet intensity to an incredibly well-sustained aria of crunchy red and black cherries notes plus tons of floral undertones, framed by exquisitely soft yet firm tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long with lingering mineral and floral sparks. How does this 2016 compare to the also amazing 2015 vintage? Stylistically they are very different, as my notes on each should convey, but beyond this I am struck by the incredible harmony and seamlessness of the 2016 along with its amazing depth and energy this year. Bravo!
James Suckling: The ripeness in this wine is incredibly balanced and perfect with plum and orange-peel character, buttressed by the ripe seeds of the grapes that give a hazelnut and coffee undertone. Turns to violets. Full body with firm and very sexy tannins that are perfectly balanced and polished. Some chocolate and dried black tea-leaf character in the aftertaste. Wonderful finish. Needs five to six years to soften, but already a joy to experience.
Producer Information
Vieux Château Certan is a wine estate in the Pomerol appellation on Bordeaux’s Right Bank, known for its rich, deeply colored red wine (usually) based on Merlot. It is consistently rated by judges and the press as one of the very best wines in the world, and achieves correspondingly high prices at auction. The vineyard covers 14 hectares (35 acres) and is one of the largest single block sites in the Right Bank. Many of the vines are 50 years old, with one parcel dating back to 1932. Vieux Château Certan neighbors Pétrus at the top and center of the Pomerol plateau. Most of the vines sit on the famed Gunz gravel terrace, which is made up of large pebbles and clay over an iron-rich subsoil. This is quite fertile, so care must be taken to limit vine vigor in favor of ripening grapes. Around 30 percent of the property lies on deeper clay soils. Merlot makes up 65 percent of plantings, split between the clay and clay-gravel soils. 30 percent is Cabernet Franc, which is judged to perform particularly well in the clay-gravel. The remaining 5 percent – the most gravelly areas – is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon. The proportions in the finished grand vin can vary widely from these numbers. For example the 2016 was 85 percent Merlot, while the 2011 included 29 percent Cabernet Franc. Fortunately the château has the reputation of producing great wines in those vintages where both Merlot and Cabernet Franc did well, and in Merlot-dominant years. That said, the hot-weather 2003 is a special case, with 80 percent Cabernet Franc. The 1993 (a moderate year across much of Bordeaux), contains 50 percent of that variety. Fermentation takes place in temperature controlled oak vats, set at 28C (82.4F). Lots selected for the grand vin are aged for up to 22 months in new French oak. A second wine, La Gravette de Certan, is also produced from young vines. Total annual production for the estate averages around 5000 cases.