Château L'Eglise Clinet

Wine Advocate

95 / 100

par Neal Martin le 01/01/2013

Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. Denis Durantou’s wine is difficult to taste in its youth and this is reflected in my score that will surely rise as it unfolds over many years. It has a more broody nose with dusky blackberry and mulberry, touches of bell pepper and strawberry pastille. Complex – but it is reticent at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy entry. There is a good build, although it seems to hide itself away on the finish. A reluctant superstar? Most probably and watch those scores dial skywards once it enters its drinking plateau in a few year’s time.Tasted January 2013. (95+ points)

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

95 / 100

par Stephen Tanzer le 31/07/2012

Good medium ruby. Essence-of-merlot aromas of bitter cherry, blueberry, boysenberry, dark chocolate, licorice and spices, lifted by a whiff of violet. Dense, thick and sweet, with a saline nuance to the seamless flavors of dark berries, licorice and spices. Wonderfully sweet, subtle and long, finishing with substantial building tannins and a medicinal reserve that bodes well for a slow and graceful evolution in bottle. A great vintage for this estate. (95 (+?)points

Wine Advocate

99 / 100

par Robert Parker le 29/02/2012

Proprietor Denis Durantou has produced a blockbuster Pomerol from a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, tipping the scales at just over 14.5% natural alcohol. A riveting wine, pure, elegant, but at the same time, extremely powerful and concentrated, with stunning texture, opulence and density, the tannins are abundant, and the wine certainly in need of a decade of cellaring. Fabulous creme de cassis and cherry liqueur notes are intertwined with hints of licorice, truffle, and graphite. Full and rich, but still in an infantile state of development, this wine needs to be cellared for 10 years but should keep for five decades or more. This 2009 is absolutely profound.(99+ points)

Jamessuckling.com

97 / 100

par James Suckling le 15/02/2012

Wonderful aromas of crushed blackberries and blueberries and spices. Rose petals. Full body, with soft and velvety tannins and a juicy, fruity finish. Beautiful layers of tannins, with hints of acidity. Best after 2017.

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

95-98 / 100

par Ian D'Agata le 30/06/2010

(85% merlot and 15% cabernet franc; 14.7% alcohol; pH 3.65; 79 IPT Ruby-purple. Knockout nose is unbelievably pure and rich, exuding expressive, heady scents of raspberry, plum syrup, Oriental spices, espresso and minerals. Sweet and dense but almost magically vibrant, this wine boasts terrific depth and freshness to its pomegranate, watermelon, dark berry, mineral and floral flavors. Finishes with utterly silky tannins and outstanding palate-saturating length. One of the stars of the vintage. (Durantou's Le Petite Eglise, made from merlot vines on gravel-and-sand soil near La Grave, was fresh, clean and rather refined, with attractive sweetness to its dark berry flavors, but was quite marked by its new oak in the early going.)

Le Figaro

96-99 / 100

par Bernard Burtschy le 30/06/2010

Denis Durantou a réussi un vin d’une formidable concentration, mais avec une droiture et un sérieux dignes d’éloges qui mériteront une garde prolongée pour délivrer tout son potentiel. De robe sombre, la bouche est dense, compacte, sérieuse, droite, ce qui donnera un vin de très longue garde, car il est impressionnant de concentration. 85 % merlot, 15 % cabernet-franc.

La Revue du Vin de France

18-19 / 20

le 31/05/2010

Ce qui frappe ici, c'est la vivacité dans un millésime solaire. De fait, son pH (3,65) est l'un des plus bas à Pomerol. Très belle trame tannique dont la vigueur paraît plus suggéré qu'imposée (85% merlot, 15% cabernet franc).

Wein Wisser

19 / 20

par René Gabriel le 17/05/2010

85 %, 15 % Merlot, 19 000 Flaschen. Sattes Purpur-Granat. Intensives Johannisbeerund Blaubeerbouquet, ein Hauch Grenadine, verschwenderisch viele rote Kirschen, zartes Vanillin im Hintergrund, zeugt eine deutliche Affinität zu einem gewaltigen Richebourg, frische Zitronenzestenspuren. Intensiver Gaumenauftritt, auch hier viel rote, reife und kleine Früchte, gut stützende Tannine, die sich zu einer massiven Adstringenz formen. Zweifellos ein ganz grosser Pomerol, der aber in diesem Stadium noch recht schwer einzuordnen ist. 2016-2030

TAST

19,5 / 20

par Bettane & Desseauve le 30/04/2010

Le cru de Denis Durantou ne faillit pas dans ce millésime déjà légendaire. C'est un vin très séreux mais également aérien, tendu, d'une incroyable profondeur et d'un potentiel éblouissant. Certainement l'une des bouteilles de l'année.

Falstaff

95-97 / 100

par Peter Moser le 30/04/2010

Zarte Dörrobstanklänge, frische Beerenfrucht, feine Kräuterwürze, frische rote Frucht, zart nach Orangen. Kraftvoll, wirkt etwas süß, der Extrakt versteckt die Tannine, Heidelbeerkonfit, gute Länge, Röstaromen und Karamell, große Länge.

Periodic Review of Wine

98-100 / 100

par Alan Duran le 28/04/2010

Give credit to Denis Durantou, he has produced a monumental Pomerol that has to be tasted to experience its majestic proportions. Interesting enough, I sampled this as early as January 2010 and detected how huge it would be. It boasts a saturated ruby color followed by glorious perfumes of cherry liqueur, savory Asian Asian Soy sauce, Indian spices, raw beef, crème de cassis, graphite/stone dust, and a tinge of smoke. There is a sensational impression due to the caressing texture, and at the same time its so massive in potent fruit. A full-body, luxurious concentration of cherry liqueur extract, and velvet tannin highlight this splendid 2009. A beauty for this estate that competes with the 2008 vintage. If I had to choose, I wold say that this vintage has more mass of fruit to extend its life beyond the '08. But, the wines themselves will have the last word. This spell-binding L'Eglise Clinet will last for the next 35-45 years. Maturity period 2018-2037.

Wine Advocate

98-100 / 100

par Robert Parker le 28/04/2010

The 2009 l’Eglise Clinet may eclipse some of the other efforts made by proprietor Denis Durantou over the years. Harvested between September 14 and 28, this blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc is a powerful, almost uber-concentrated wine that tastes like an elixir of Pomerol with an incredibly unctuous feel. This dense purple-colored 2009 (which achieved 14.5% natural alcohol) is extremely powerful, but that power is concealed beneath a mountain of glycerin, fruit, concentration, and body. The purity and richness are off the charts, and the silkiness of the tannins is ethereal. This extraordinary wine possesses extremely high levels of tannin, but according to Durantou, they have almost disappeared because of the wine’s amazing depth and richness. It will undoubtedly need a decade of aging after bottling, but it should last for 50+. It is a modern day legend in the making. (Tasted two times.) Drink 2020-2070.

Wine Spectator

97-100 / 100

par James Suckling le 09/04/2010

The nose on this already suggests a deep and contemplative wine with blackberry, dried flowers and sweet berries. Evolves to black olive and hints of asphalt. Full-bodied, with supersilky tannins and tangy, rich fruit. It really grabs hold of you and wants to tell you it's special. Loads of ripe tannins too. Big and structured. Turns to tapenade.

Jancis Robinson

17,5 / 20

par Jancis Robinson le 08/04/2010

Scented nose. Very rich and thick and polished. Fresh and expressive – lots of nervy fruit. Very lively and exciting and nervy – not unlike its maker. Still very tight though. (17.5+) Drink 2018-2030