CHÂTEAU LA CONSEILLANTE
2013 Pomerol
Bright ruby-purple. Richer compared to the Duo (second wine), with a definite touch of nobility in the aromas. Tannins build, but although drying are not really aggressive, and the pretty blackcurrant and blueberry fruit stays well. Long, especially for the vintage. Jean-Michel Laporte seems (justifiably) pleased with this and told us that 2013 was in fact much more homogenous thoughout the vineyard than 2012 - only 12% has gone to the second wine, with 88% in the Grand Vin. They made 30hl/ha, and the clusters were well aerated. 'We did have botrytis, but when we had to harvest because of the botrytis, we were harvesting because the grapes were ripe too.' He did not want to extract aggressively, but was able to do long 'cuvaison' with some vats gently infusing for up to 35 days. Since 2010 J-M has reduced the new oak to 65%, but he felt no reason to reduce it more this year and it is true that the wine seems to have absorbed it effortlessly. 2017-2026 Rating: 91 L&S (Apr 2014)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
The grand vin, the 2013 La Conseillante, is a delicious, supple wine displaying notes of violets, incense, licorice, black cherries and raspberries. Well-made and medium-bodied, but neither as deep nor concentrated as the 2009 and 2010, its soft, seductive style argue well for drinking over the next decade. 2014-2022 Rating: 89-91 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (Aug 2014)
(82% merlot and 18% cabernet franc): Bright ruby. Knockout aromas of dark cherry, raspberry and violet, complicated by graphite and coffee. Clean, fresh and very pure, offering dark berry and flinty flavors of above-average precision. Finishes with suave, rising tannins. The house signature of refinement and purity of fruit enables me to recognize this wine blind almost every time in a battery of Pomerol wines. A lighter-style La Conseillante, it's nonetheless one of my favorites of the vintage. Rating: 88-91 Ian d'Agata - Stephen Tanzer website (May 2014)
Light and fresh the nose has a mix of red fruits but the palate is richer deeper more profound with black fruits showing under the red. Rich in the middle with a greater weight of fruit the black plum sweetness underpinned by red fruit freshness coming through on the finish.. 2020-2030. Rating: 89-93 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (May 2014)
(82 Merlot, 18 Cabernet Franc) 65% new oak. This is a wine which made a profound impact on me. The nose is terrific – abundant black fruit and no trace of macho oak and this leads to stunningly textured wine with incredible purity and life. The trick here was a gentle and not overly extractive cold, pre-fermentation maceration. It was the second vintage in their new cellar and the DG feels that this has made all of the difference. Having the ability to utilise a true, small batch winemaking facility in a difficult vintage like this separates the men from the boys! I was transfixed by the utterly brilliant balance. The whole wine left a gentle, spicy wake. Apparently the obsession at La Conseillante is ‘smooth fruit and no aggression’. They nailed it in 2013. Rating: 18 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2014)
Classic blend of 82% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc. Attractive blueberry aromatics. Lively, fresh and clean. Fruit on the finish. Lots of charm. Drink: 2018-2030. Rating: 17 James Lawther MW, decanter.com (Apr 2014)
Focused, with black tea, anise, blackberry coulis and black cherry notes that display good range and finesse through the finish. Rating: 88–91 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2014)
The Conseillante is a blend of 82% Merlot and 18% Cabernet Franc picked between 25 September and finishing with the latter on 7 October, cropped at 30hl/ha. The wine is being raised in 65% new barrels. There is something "tranquil" about the aromatics of the La Conseillante. Fresh strawberry and violet scents gently waft from the glass: nothing powerful but very pure, the oak seeming to be nicely integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. This is quite a taut and linear La Conseillante with fresh acidity, more masculine than recent vintages and perhaps edging towards a more classic style. It gently builds in the mouth and leaves just a hint of iodine on the finish. This is a fine, precise La Conseillante for mid-term drinking. Rating: 90-92 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2014)
This is lively and refined with a blueberry and cherry character. Medium body with fine tannins and a tangy finish. Bright and lively. Salty. Savory. 87% merlot and 13% cabernet franc. Rating: 90-91 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2014)
Château La Conseillante
Château la Conseillante’s origins lay in an estate called Domaine de Mautretat that was broken up in the early years of the 18th Century with reverend gentleman called M. Léglise purchasing the part that became Château l’Evangile whilst Catherine Conseillan took the other. In 1871 Château la Conseillante was bought by the Nicolas family who own it to this day. With only the addition of a small plot of vines in 2014, the estate has remained the same ever since. The 12ha of vineyard are planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. The vineyards border Petrus to the north, and one can gaze across l’Evangile and see the vines of Château Cheval Blanc. Indeed, a small part of la Conseillante’s vineyard strays across into St Emilion, but is included in the main Pomerol cuvée. Château la Conseillante is a well-executed balancing act marrying tradition with modernity, something exemplified by the new cellar that opened in 2012.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.