Château L'Eglise Clinet 2018

Characteristics and tasting tips for Château L'Eglise Clinet 2018

Tasting

Color

The wine displays a deep purple hue with intense violet highlights.

Nose

The nose reveals remarkable aromatic complexity with notes of truffle, forest floor and mossy bark. Aromas of black tea and wild mushrooms mingle with fragrances of black plum, blueberry and violet petals. With aeration, the bouquet evolves toward nuances of cocoa, licorice and sweet spices.

Palate

On the palate, the wine reveals a dense, powerful structure carried by ripe, finely sculpted tannins. The velvety texture envelops flavors of concentrated dark fruit and dark chocolate, supported by remarkable freshness. The finish, of exceptional length, lingers with mineral and spicy notes.

Food and wine pairings

This Château L'Eglise Clinet 2018 is a perfect match for grilled or roasted red meats, feathered and furred game, as well as braised beef dishes. It also pairs elegantly with aged hard cheeses.

Service and storage

Château L'Eglise Clinet 2018 is ideally served at a temperature of 16°C. Decanting for one to two hours will allow the wine to fully reveal its aromatic complexity. This vintage can be enjoyed from around 2028 and will evolve beautifully until around 2050.

An exceptional Pomerol combining power and elegance on Bordeaux’s Right Bank

The estate

Created in 1882 through the blending of plots from Clos l'Église and Clinet Voisin, Château L'Église-Clinet is a benchmark for Pomerol, on Bordeaux’s Right Bank. Located at the heart of the Pomerol appellation, this estate, adopting its current name in 1955, is now led by Noémie Durantou (Durantou family) and farms 4.5 to 5.5 ha at the heart of the plateau, on sloping, well-drained clay-gravel soils.

The vineyard

The vineyard of Château L'Eglise Clinet benefits from a prime location on the limestone plateau of Pomerol, directly north of the village church. The plots lie on deep clay soils mixed with gravel, without excess water thanks to a century-old drainage network and natural slopes. The clay subsoil is enriched with crasse de fer, an iron-rich component that gives the wine its distinctive minerality. The average age of the vines exceeds forty years, with a quarter of the vineyard made up of vines over seventy-five years old, including some Cabernet Franc vines planted in 1935. This exceptional concentration of old vines contributes to the depth and intensity of the wines produced.

The vintage

The 2018 vintage in Bordeaux proved exceptional for red wines. Favorable weather conditions made it possible to obtain perfectly ripe grapes with an excellent balance between concentration and freshness. The Merlot harvest took place from September 12 to 22, while the Cabernet Franc was harvested on September 28, ensuring optimal berry ripeness.

Winemaking and aging

The grapes for Château L'Eglise Clinet 2018 are fully destemmed and then gently crushed before being vinified in fourteen small-capacity, temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks, allowing for precise parcel-by-parcel vinification. Fermentation takes place at a low temperature, around 22°C. Malolactic fermentation occurs in stainless-steel tanks for better control. Aging continues for fifteen to eighteen months in French oak barrels, 70% of which are new, with regular rackings every three to five months.

Grape varieties

Merlot (90%)
Cabernet Franc (10%)