CHÂTEAU CLINET

A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon that represents the earliest harvest in this estate's history (beginning on September 6), the 2022 Clinet is a success, offering up aromas of cherries and dark berries mingled with hints of spices and a discreet patina of new oak. Medium to full-bodied, ample and layered, it's impressively vibrant, with a rich core of fruit framed by powdery tannins from judicious extraction. This has more in common with the more refined 2018 and 2019 vintages at this address than with the powerhouse 2020, and that is no mean feat in an even more extreme vintage. Bravo to Ronan Laborde and his team. Rating: 94-96 William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (Apr 2023)

The 2022 Clinet is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon picked from 6-21 September at around 34hL/ha. There were apparently many bunches, but the berries were small. Aged in 80% new oak and 20% 2nd fill barrels, the 2022 offers black fruit on the nose with traces of Japanese nori probably emanating from the Cabernet. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, well-judged acidity and a fine backbone that gently grips the mouth. This is a linear Pomerol with impressive delineation on the almost pastille-like finish. I appreciate this Clinet's persistence and discrete spiciness on the aftertaste. Excellent. But it is a vintage that requires time in bottle. Rating: 94-96 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2023)

80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. 80% new oak. 14.5% alc. 34 hl/ha. 45000 bottles production. Merlot was harvested on the 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13 & 14 September and the Cabernet Sauvignon was harvested on 20 & 21 September Perfumed and seemingly very oaky right now, every element of this wine is heightened on the nose, and the flavour explosion is completely arresting. In fact, it appears that this wine actively hunts you down and then imposes itself on your olfactory system. The spice notes are almost peppery, and the fruit highlights border on the exotic. The Cabernet Sauvignon addition has given 2022 Clinet a direct and intense attack of fruit, and the shape of the flavour is linear and sharply defined. Super-long and with impressive definition, this is a crisply-focussed wine, crackling with electricity. Interestingly, I learned that before the frost of 1956, 50% of Cabernet was planted in the Clinet vineyards, and they will keep augmenting this blend on their way to a modern-era target of 30%. This is a robust and densely-packed Clinet, and it will be a very long-lived wine. It is a true Clinet, and it will thrill lovers of this renowned Château. Rating: 18.5+ Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (May 2023)