Château Climens 2006

Proprietor Berenice Lurton continues to turn out one of the utterly profound wines from the Barsac Sauternes region. The 2006 is not up there with their perfect 2001, but it is a beautiful wine and stands out as one of the top wines of 2006. Medium gold, with a slightly more advanced color than I am used to seeing in a young Climens, the wine displays waxy honeyed pineapple and delicate marmalade and citrus notes with a restrained use of new oak. The wine cuts a full-bodied swath across the palate with terrific acidity, freshness, and moderate sweetness. This is a beauty, but perhaps on a much faster evolutionary track than some of their greatest vintages.

This offers lots of honey and toffee aromas, with lemon, orange peel and apricot character. Full-bodied, very sweet and rich. Thick and flavorful, with vanilla, spice and cream character as well. Builds on the palate. Best after 2012.

RS 156 g/l Broader, spicier and more oily on the nose – linseed. Similar flavours, with almond paste and crisp barley sugar added. Dense, powerful and savoury (oak?) yet still intensely pure and extremely fresh on the finish. (JH)

The 2006 Climens has a quintessential bouquet with a very slight adhesive scent that permeates the honeyed fruit, touches of white peach and orchard fruit. The palate is well balanced with a tangy, marmalade-tinged opening. Good depth, not as complex as the 2005 or 2009 and with quite a linear finish. Fine, but comparatively conservative. Tasted at the Climens vertical at the château in April 2022.

Medium-bodied, fresh, sweet, ripe and zippy, leaning toward sweet, honeyed notes of orange, apricot and tangerine rather than the more typical tropical fruit tones. Young and vibrant, but lacking the racy energy found in the best vintages.

Very dark, intense yellow with a rich golden sheen. The bouquet is already quite open, showing toasty notes as well as a hint of vegetal character. Soft on the palate; the acidity is integrated but does not season the sweet body sufficiently, coming across a bit molasses-like and cloying on the quince jelly finish.

Very dark, intense yellow with a rich golden sheen. The bouquet is already quite open, showing roasted notes as well as a vegetal hint. Soft palate; the acidity is integrated and struggles to fully keep up with the sweet body, giving a somewhat molasses-like and sticky impression on the finish, which tastes of quince jelly.

Closed, herbal, vegetal bouquet with almonds and roast jus. Closed, opulent palate with dry extract, slight bitterness, pronounced sweetness, and concealed acidity. Very long, opulent finish. Still has room to improve. 18/20 2017 - 2040

A real bomb in the making. Picked during early harvests in mid-September (instead of the usual October), the confit-like grapes show remarkable concentration. Very fresh, with citrus notes, the 2006 vintage stands out for its fleshy palate and silky texture. But it leaves you wanting more. You can feel that this adolescent wine still needs time to reveal its potential and to align with the Climens style: luminous wines that are crafted more for balance than for aromatics.

Beautiful aromas of orange zest are followed by gingerbread, caramel and crème brûlée flavors. This is a beautiful, rich, smoothly dense wine with a core of botrytis, spice and vivid fresh citrus acidity.