Conseillante - Pomerol 2015

Vinous

94

byNeal Martinthe7/10/2019

The 2015 La Conseillante has a refined bouquet with red currant, wild strawberry and rose petal aromas, beautifully defined and unfurling in the glass. A hint of black truffle emerges with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with supple black cherry fruit, cassis and boysenberry. Quite "slick" toward the finish suggesting a little more extraction than its peers that smothers the mineralité I noted in the vertical last spring. But it is supremely well balanced and it should mature with style. I have encountered better bottles but it remains a great Pomerol. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.

Wine Advocate

96

byNeal Martinthe3/2/2018

 The 2015 La Conseillante has a sophisticated bouquet with pure, mineral-driven red fruit laced with truffle and minerals. There is a subtle floral tincture to this La Conseillante, quite feminine and almost understated. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, very harmonious and supple in the mouth yet there is a superb structure underneath, while the finish feels pixelated. There is a faint semblance to the 2016 Clinet this year, although I suspect this will need longer to reach its peak. This is a great wine from winemaker Marielle Cazaux. Anticipated maturity: 2024 - 2045. 

Vinous

97

byAntonio Gallonithe2/27/2018

Newly-arrived Technical Director Marielle Cazaux turned out a jewel of a wine at La Conseillante in 2015, her debut vintage. A polished and super-sophisticated Pomerol, La Conseillante is all class. Precise, lifted aromatics make a strong first impression, but it is the wine's overall feel and sense of harmony that truly dazzle. Over the last two years, the 2015 seems to have gained in freshness, precision and nuance. What a wine! The blend is 81% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc. Don't' miss it.

Wine Advocate

96

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe2/22/2018

Composed of 81% Merlot and 19% Cabernet Franc and aged for 18 months in 70% new and 30% one-year-old French oak, the medium garnet-purple colored 2015 La Conseillante opens with reticent, earthy notes of dusty soil, garrigue, forest floor and iron ore with a core of warm plums, cassis, cigar boxes, star anise and dark chocolate plus a hint of violets. Medium to full-bodied with decadent fruit and a gorgeous plushness to the texture, the palate features impeccable poise and compelling depth, finishing on a lingering mineral note.

Jamessuckling.com

98

byJames Sucklingthe2/12/2018

Aromas of tar, black olive skin and blackberries follow through to a full body. Ultra-fine tannins and a long, linear finish with super intensity. Well-crafted in every sense. A fabulous Pomerol for the future. Try in 2022.

Decanter.com

98

byJane Ansonthe1/26/2018

A wine where you feel everything stepping up a level, a clear 2009 profile in terms of fruit density and the flatteringly succulent tannins. It continues the more muscular feel that we have seen at La Conseillante over the past few vintages, but it absolutely delivers the classical balance that so many of us love this estate for. It is rich and ripe, with a striking fresh mint and chargrilled oak character on the tight finish that adds a layer of complexity to the fleshy raspberry fruit. 3.65pH, 75% new oak. Bottled in late May 2017.

Decanter.com

98

byJane Ansonthe12/1/2017

This was the first vintage with Marielle Cazeaux as technical director. As with the 2005, this is a wine where you feel everything stepping up a level, and as with the 2009 the fruit profile is dense and seductive, with flatteringly succulent tannins. It's rich and ripe, with striking fresh mint and chargrilled oak on the tight finish that adds a layer of complexity to the fleshy raspberry fruit. This continues the more muscular feel to La Conseillante that we have seen over the past few vintages, but it absolutely delivers the classical balance that so many of us love this estate for. 3.65pH, 75% new oak. Bottled in late May 2017.

Jeb DUNNUCK

96

byJeb Dunnuckthe11/30/2017

Reminding me of the 2009, the 2015 La Conseillante is more overt and sexy compared to the 2016, offering a huge nose of mulled black fruits, spring flowers, chocolate and gravely/clay-like earthiness. This is a full-bodied, complex, elegant and layered 2015 that has a singular character and the class to drink well for 20-25 years.

Jancis Robinson

17,5

byJancis Robinsonthe11/8/2017

Mid crimson with ruby rim. Seductive aroma of dark-red fruits, a hint of violets, and the scent carries through onto the palate, where the tannins are super-smooth but compact. A long, complete wine.

Wine Advocate

95-97

byNeal Martinthe5/29/2016

The 2015 La Conseillante, a blend of 81% Merlot and 19% Cabernet Franc, is extraordinarily pure and elegant on the nose. Here, I find a little more red fruit than black fruit, extremely elegant and articulating the terroir with great clarity. At first, wild strawberry and cranberry, then crushed stone, a touch of black truffle and tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and elegant with fine tannin on the entry. This is one of the most approachable La Conseillante wines that I have tasted in barrel, the acidity very well judged, "classic" in style, good backbone here with a structured finish. It does not quite possess the bravura of the 2010 La Conseillante and I would agree with winemaker Marielle Cazaux that it bears more semblances to the 2005 La Conseillante at this stage, and even bore common traits with its neighbour, Vieux Château Certan. This is an intellectual and to put it prosaically, "delicious" La Conseillante. Drink 2021-2045

The Wine Cellar Insider

95-97

byJeff Levethe4/30/2016

Lithe and limber florals and sweet, lusciously ripe berries seduce your tongue with a sensuous and velvety feel. Blending 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc produced a wine that reached 14.5% alcohol with a pH of 3.7. The harvest took place from September 21 to October 7. The key to this vintage was the parcel selection.

Decanter.com

91

byJames Lawther MWthe4/28/2016

  A new winemaker and the style tweaked a little in 2015. Fragrant nose but richer and denser with the tannic structure more assertive. Good attack and mid-palate but fit finishes on a slightly dry, grainy note. May improve in barrel.2023-2035

Vinous

95-97

byAntonio Gallonithe4/27/2016

A total knockout, the 2015 La Conseillante possesses stunning depth, nuance and complexity. Soaring aromatics meld into a core of dark-fleshed stone fruits, with hints of mocha, crème de cassis, menthol, violets and dark spices that develop in the glass. The 2015 is not an obvious wine, but it is exceptionally beautiful. The blend is 81% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc. Don’t' miss it.

Jancis Robinson

17,5

byJancis Robinsonthe4/26/2016

Bordeaux 2015 - Pomerol, Lalande-de-Pomerol, Fronsac | Articles | JancisRobinson.com 81% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc. Picked 21 September - 7 October. 70% new oak. Direct, savoury nose. New winemaker wants to keep the aromas of Conseillante but they want to add a little more grip. Sweet and fresh with some tea leaf aromas. The oak tannins are just perceptible but it should all calm down. Definitely quite grippy now! 14.5% Drink 2026-2040

timatkin.com

93

byTim Atkin MWthe4/20/2016

Jean-Marc QUARIN

17,5

byJean-Marc Quarinthe4/18/2016

Voici le premier millésime de Marielle Cazaux, nouvelle directrice, qui excerçait auparavant dans le cru voisin Petit Village. Couleur sombre, intense, belle, nez fin, fruité, mûr, subtil, profond et beau. Entrée en bouche toujours aussi délicate, puis le vin se met à fondre, avec beaucoup de goût et un port gracieux. Et pourant j'y sens une nuance plus extraite que précédemment, mais ce diable de cru semble imposer son fond unique! Grande finale sèveuse et noble, au grand de tannin fin. Délicieux. Assemblage: 81% merlot, 19% cabernet franc - Degré d'alcool: 14,5° - pH: 3,7. Sélection: 75% de premier vin.

Jamessuckling.com

96-97

byJames Sucklingthe4/5/2016

This is the most powerful La Conseillante I have tasted with lots of muscle and intensity. Full and savory. Chewy. Agile and formed. Beautiful ripe fruit in the center palate. This is a little pushed to the limit like the great Conseillants of the 1960s and 1970s.

Wine Spectator

93-96

byJames Molesworththe4/3/2016

Lush notes of dark fig, boysenberry and blackberry pâte de fruit glide over ample but velvety tannins, with suave black tea and ganache accents. This is long and should be gorgeous when finished.—J.M.