CLOS MANOU
2016 Médoc
Stéphane Dief's excellent Médoc shows its class again. Deep dark colour and flavours, pure and straight, with volume on the palate and good depth. Juicy ripe velvety black fruit. Good shape and length and a feeling of mineral lift too. Drinking range: 2022 - 2035 Rating: 89-91 L&S (Apr 2017)
* 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 2016 Clos Manou is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 9% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc; as a rough rule, the two Cabernets are vinified in wood, while the other two varieties see out their time in eggs and jarres (the globes are reserved for the old pre-phylloxera vines, and a separate cuvée). Once released from the bottle it displays a great colour, the dark and broad core quite opaque, encircled by a rich mulberry ring. Aromatically it is immediately savoury, just the sort of character I have found when tasting in Bordeaux and at the domaine last year, with notes of smoked blackcurrant, liquorice, black bean and black pepper. This translates into a rather velvety style on the palate, predictably dark and savoury, the lightly desiccated berry fruit here infused with dark chocolate and a richly extracted framework of dry and powdery tannins. It maintains this savoury substance and firm grip though into the cleanly defined finish. A dark, brooding, somewhat reticent and seriously structured wine this, one which demands more time in the cellar; hold another four or five years. The alcohol is declared as 13.5% on the label. 93/100Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Aug 2024)
A cult Médoc wine from Stéphane Dief, in a vintage that rarely disappoints. The thing I like best about Clos Manou is that it has concentration and polish but never loses its sense of heart, and this is a great example, limbering up at 5 years old, full of liqourice, espresso, blackcurrant and bilberry fruits, plenty of campfire smoke and spice from 70% new oak. Drinking range: 2021 - 2038 Rating: 94 Jane Anson, Decanter (Dec 2021)
The 2016 Clos Manou comes from complex limestone and sandy, gravelly soils in the northern part of the Médoc and is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc brought up 70% new French oak. It’s another winner from this rock star of a vintage and offers classic cassis, graphite, spice, and cedar pencil aromas and flavors. Beautifully balanced, clean, elegant, and with good concentration, It’s a beauty to drink over the coming 15+ years. Drinking range: 2019 - 2034 Rating: 92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Feb 2019)
Readers will find a heady, exotic Médoc in the 2015 Clos Manou. Super-ripe black cherry, chocolate, leather, smoke, licorice and espresso infuse this succulent, powerful wine. There is not a ton of subtlety here, and yet Clos Manou is irresistibly pleasing and flat-out delicious. Drinking range: 2020 - 2030 Rating: 89 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jan 2019)
The 2016 Clos Manou is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc, cropped at 25 hectoliters per hectare after sorting and matured in 70% new oak. The bouquet felt a little muddled compared to say the 2016 Charmail that I tasted just before it. There are some attractive undergrowth aromas but I would be looking for more detail. The palate is medium-bodied with firm, slightly dry tannin, slightly attenuated towards the finish. Not bad, but it could be better. Drinking range: 2019 - 2027 Rating: 86-88 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)
Ripeness is pushed to the edge in the 2016 Clos Manou. Super-ripe black cherry, chocolate, spice, leather and licorice burst from the glass. Unctuous and flamboyant to the core, in an especially bold, full-throttle style, the 2016 is not especially subtle, but it is quite tasty. Harvest took place between October 6 and 21. The 2016 spent a full month on the skins and will see a lavish 70% new oak. Rating: 87-90 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)
Stone and mineral aromas with cement undertones. Crushed raspberries and currants. Full-bodied and so refined with a beautiful finish. Gorgeous. Rating: 92-93 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2017)
Ripeness is pushed to the edge in the 2016 Clos Manou. Super-ripe black cherry, chocolate, spice, leather and licorice burst from the glass. Unctuous and flamboyant to the core, in an especially bold, full-throttle style, the 2016 is not especially subtle, but it is quite tasty. Harvest took place between October 6 and 21. The 2016 spent a full month on the skins and will see a lavish 70% new oak. Rating: 87-90 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)
Clos Manou
"We turned our garage into a makeshift wine cellar and made our first wine in 1998.” Françoise and Stéphane Dief. Which sounds impossibly idyllic! In a region of grand estates with long complicated histories the arrivistes of Clos Manou are a refreshing change. Starting with just .12ha of vines, the Diefs have patiently spent 15 years building their holding up to 18ha, along the way absorbing the obscure Cru Bourgeois of Château Cantegrive. The estate may be 'new' but amongst their holdings are Bordeaux’s oldest vines – they have a small pre-phylloxera parcel from the 1850’s. The estate is centred on the village of Saint-Christoly de Médoc in the increasingly popular area of the Haut-Médoc to the north of Saint Estèphe. All of Clos Manou’s vineyards are high-density plantings – some 10 000 vines per hectare – and all are converted to organic farming as soon as is practical. Grape variety proportions are 45% each Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with 6% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. The first wine is aged in 100% new wood. The second wine is called Petit Manou.
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.