VIEUX CHATEAU CERTAN 2021

Description

Yves Beck 96-98 points www.yvesbeck.wine
77% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon
Que de subtilité olfactive au travers de nuances florales, d’épices et de parfums de myrtilles. Le vin a du corps et est doté de tannins d’une grande qualité qui se distinguent par une puissance mesurée mais pertinente et qui créent l’harmonie avec la structure acide. Ils tapissent le palais et atteignent le sommet de leur amplitude en fin de bouche. Un vin qui brille de sa finesse, de son côté ciselé et précis. Une fois de plus Vieux Château Certan parvient à créer la symbiose entre puissance et subtilité.  2027-2051

Georgina Hindle 96 points  www.decanter.com (at Bordeaux, 01 Apr 2022)
Ripe juicy strawberry, this has a gorgeous intensity on the nose, really fragrant and expressive, in a rich deep, heavily-scented way. You get the ripeness here with smooth, silky tannins giving depth and intensity on the palate. Succulent with a sharpness, that hit of freshly picked strawberry and cherry juice – electric and bright with tension and direction. It’s softly spoken in one way, so quietly confident, yet showing so much detail in another, saying; « looking at how charming I can be ». It has freshness and tension – ‘a cool climate VCC’ said Alexandre Thienpont. Bright acidity through delivered gracefully and sensitively with a gentle persistence. I love the delicacy, it has body no doubt, but it’s the detail that’s so captivating. A wonderful wine and one of the best from Pomerol in 2021. 3.63pH. A yield of 38hl/ha. Drinking Window 2027 – 2050

Neal Martin 95-97 points www.vinous.com
The 2021 Vieux Château Certan was picked from September 24 to October 6 at 38hL/ha and registers 13.2% alcohol. It is a VCC defined by its Cabernets; Guillaume Thienpont told me ]they used all they had. « I would have blended more if we had more vines, » he quipped. The nose unfurls with air to reveal graphite-infused black fruit, touches of undergrowth and tobacco – quintessential VCC aromatics. The palate is beautifully balanced with exquisite definition, not powerful and certainly not opulent, yet built around finesse, precision and charm. It seems to grow in stature in the glass. Pure class.

William Kelley 94-96 points www.erobertparker.com
A blend of 77% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Vieux Château Certan wafts from the glass with lovely aromas of violets, rose petals, sweet wild berries, exotic spices, orange rind and smoke. Medium to full-bodied, supple and enveloping, it’s an elegant, fleshy wine with a bright core of fruit, ultra-refined tannins and a precise, saline finish. Despite its almost Burgundian finesse, this Pomerol’s remarkably penetrating, perfumed finish gives the lie to any notion that it’s in any way lacking in intensity of flavor. As is almost invariably the case, Vieux Château Certan is one of the finest wines of the appellation this year.

Antonio Galloni 96-98 points www.vinous.com
The 2021 Vieux Château Certan is a spectacular tour de force from Alexander and Guillaume Thienpont. What a wine. Vibrant and magnificent in its precision, the 2021 races across the palate, revealing seemingly endless layers of nuance over time. Dark blue/purplish fruit, cinnamon, new leather, graphite, lavender and crushed rocks all build effortlessly. The Cabernets are dialed up in 2021 and that comes through in the wine’s flavor profile and overall feel. The purity of the flavors is just mind-bending. Harvest took place between September 25 and October 4. The blend is 67% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Readers who can find the 2021 should not hesitate, as it is truly magical.

Jean-Marc Quarin 96 www.quarin.com
Couleur sombre, intense et pourpre. Nez intense, fruité, mûr et frais. Légère note d’herbe sèche. Moelleux à l’attaque, très fruité et savoureux au développement, velouté en milieu de bouche avec encore cette petite note d’herbe sèche sous le gras, le vin s’achève long, savoureux et aromatique tout en restant charnu. Rendement : 40 hl/ha. Sélection : 75 % de premier vin.