Chateau L´Eglise Clinet 2010

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Deep garnet colored, the 2010 L'Eglise Clinet begins unassumingly with gentle notions of fragrant dried flowers and wild sage leading to savory nut and meat characters over an expanding core of preserved plums, blueberry compote and black cherry coulis plus a waft of menthol. Full-bodied, concentrated and wonderfully decadent, the palate is absolutely packed with rich, ripe black fruit preserves and loads of spicy sparks, framed by super ripe, super plush tannins, finishing very long and decadent. I love the interplay of subtly and power here - this is truly a WOW wine!"

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Deep in color, almost opaque, without decanting the wine explodes with smoke, truffle, coffee bean, wet earth, licorice, floral and plum liqueur. This is dense, incredibly rich, layered and concentrated. Structured to age, tannic, powerful and long, this sensuous wine deserves to be laid down for 10, 15 or even 20 years before its decadent nature awakens."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Sweet berries with hints of incense and spices on the nose with black truffles. Very ripe but not over-the-top. This is full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a smoky wood and mushroom undertone. It´s dense and impressive yet very balanced. I like it, slightly better quality than the 2009. Give the wine five or six years of bottle age to soften before opening."

WEINWISSER: "90 % Merlot. 10 % Cabernet Franc, 80 % neue Barriques. Granatrubin mit aufhellendem Rand. Was für betörendes Parfüm mit frisch gepflückten Walderdbeeren, schwarzem tasmanischem Bergpfeffer und dunklem Edelholz. Im zweiten Ansatz getrocknete Hagebutten und überreife rote Pflaumen. Am verführerischen Gaumen mit engmaschigen Tanninen, straffem Körper und massiven, durchtrainierten Muskeln. Im komplexen, langen Finale ein Kraftpaket, das es zu zügeln gilt und mindestens 10 Jahre Flaschenlagerung benötigt. Ein Wein für die Ewigkeit, der zu den besten Pomerols dieses Jahrgangs gehört."

FALSTAFF: FALSTAFF: Sehr dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe; feines Cassis, Brombeerkonfit, orientalische Gewürze, facettenreiches Bukett; kraftvoll, engmaschig, von einer lebendigen Säurestruktur getragen, straffe Tannine, extraktsüße Frucht, feines Karamell, Nougat im Abgang, tolle Länge, klingt sehr gut nach, großes Entwicklungspotenzial, ein unverwechselbares Kleinod unter den herrlichen Pomerols."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Tasted blind. Deep bricky garnet. Ripe, sweet and leathery on the nose. Rather exotic in its senescent fruit sweetness. Smooth, generous and gorgeously rich but fresh. Open but still so much in reserve. Deep, thick, chewy. Complete but so dense."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This showy, packed and well-endowed Pomerol pumps out notes of warm linzer torte, plum preserves and blackberry reduction, all supported by a broad, charcoal- and ganache-coated structure and deeply embedded acidity. Very muscular on the back end, this boasts a still-chewy feel. Among the most backward of the 2010 Pomerols, this requires significant cellaring. For those who enjoy more power than subtlety. Best from 2017 through 2035. 3,333 cases made."