CHÂTEAU CLINET

2017 Pomerol

EN PRIMEUR

92% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. 72% new oak (this is an increase on 2016, however, the casks are bigger). Lots of dark concentrated fruit alongside violet and vanilla on the nose. Very smooth and viscous on the palate. Some small tannins. Slightly dense feel. Deep blackcurrant and vanilla flavours. Very long. Rating: 92-93 L&S (Apr 2018)

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The 2017 Clinet has not come together as well as I had hoped. Today, it is wild, exotic and rough around the edges, with angular contours, all of which convey an impression of rusticity. Iron, game, smoke, blood and red plum fruit add some nuance, but there is just not much finesse here. Drinking range: 2022 - 2030 Rating: 88 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Mar 2020)

The 2017 Clinet was bottled at the end of June 2019. It has a more understated bouquet than the 2015 or 2016. Tightly wound, brambly black fruit with traces of pressed violet and iodine, gradually open with orange rind notes. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins. This is classic in style, firm grip and a little rigid in its youth, although it will flesh out with bottle age. I admire both the freshness and salinity in this Clinet, especially its linearity on the finish. Excellent. (13.2% alcohol) Drinking range: 2022 - 2045 Rating: 93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Feb 2020)

This is brimming with raspberry and boysenberry compote flavors, while mouthwatering anise and pain d’épices notes fill in the background. Reveals a flash of ganache, a streak of tar and an echo of bramble through the finish, adding range while the gorgeous fruit holds center stage. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2022 through 2038. 2,000 cases made. Drinking range: 2022 - 2038James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Jan 2020)

The 2017 Clinet was picked from 19 to 26 September for the Merlot and on 29 September for the Cabernets at 35hl/ha. It is matured in 72% new oak and the remainder one year old. The alcohol is 13.1° compared to say 14.4° for 2016. It has a perfumed bouquet with mainly red berry fruit, top notes of loam and a touch of violet. It is certainly well defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, well delineated, and saline in the mouth. It is quite open towards the finish, perhaps with less grip than other Pomerols that I have tasted, but it is undeniably elegant and well balanced with a hint of cured meat cropping up on the aftertaste. Classic Clinet! Drinking range: 2022 - 2040 Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2018)

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Clinet opens slowly to reveal vibrant red and black fruits: red currants, black cherries, plums and cassis with touches of roses, yeast extract, wood smoke and crushed rocks. Medium-bodied with firm, grainy tannins and a taut, muscular palate of tightly wound fruits and compelling mineral accents, it finishes long with wonderful purity and fragrant earth accents. Rating: 92-94 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, RobertParker.com (Apr 2018)

Reminding me of the 2014, the 2017 Château Clinet is a beautiful, dense, concentrated wine that has terrific notes of blueberries, spring flowers, and chocolaty oak. It’s very much in the style of the vintage with its cool, perfumed aromatics and sensational purity of fruit, yet it also has richness and weight. It’s a brilliant Pomerol. Rating: 93-95 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Apr 2018)

Black core. Lovely dense aroma of black fruit and graphite, really savoury/mineral, with graphite dominant at the moment. Much more juicy than I expected on the palate. Plenty of dark fruit but only just fresh enough. Drinking range: 2024 - 2032 Rating: 16 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2018)

Alluring, offering fleshy layers of fig, boysenberry and plum compote notes lined with anise and roasted apple wood accents, this is nicely integrated already, with fresh acidity embedded throughout. Rating: 92-95 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Apr 2018)

Some green-olive and herb character. Medium body, firm tannins and a fresh finish. Shows some solid and linear length on the finish. Rating: 92-93 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2018)

The team at Clinet lost 15% of the crop to the frost, and consider themselves lucky. The truth is the vineyard lies quite high up the slope. The yield was 35 hl/ha, the blend 92% Merlot, picked September 19th, 20th, 23rd and 26th, and 8% Cabernet Franc, picked September 29th. The alcohol is 13%. This has lovely ripe and polished fruit on the nose, very expressive, very concentrated, perfumed, dense, with black cherry scents, ripe and sweet. Aromatically, this is very convincing. A very smartly composed palate ensues, with very sweetly and nicely polished fruit, rich and full of ripe grip, with a soft, welcoming charm to it. The tannins are velvety and sweet, giving a ripe grip in the middle. This is impressive, fresh and bright, but with lots of substantial tannins here too. A classic Clinet, unaffected by the frost, with very fine potential. Rating: 93-95 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2018)

Château Clinet lies at the heart of Pomerol on a bed of Günz gravel. Now owned by Jean-Louis Laborde who, in 2003, appointed his 23 year old son as Estate Managing Director. Improvements implemented by the previous owners, the Audy family, have been strengthened by the Labordes and they continue to employ the services of Michel Rolland. Only 9ha of vineyard, planted with 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, with vines at 40 years old. Grapes are hand-harvested, and the wines aged in 60% new wood barriques, with the balanced being just one year old.