Château Clinet 2020

The 2020 vintage in Pomerol

Vintage benchmark: 96/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: An early, dry year gave splendid wines, which many rank above 2018.

Overall reading of the year’s season across Pomerol. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.

Tasting

« A vintage ranked among the very best. At first glance, CLINET 2020 unfolds layers of the deepest red. The aromatic richness is remarkable, a spellbinding panoply of ripe fruit, flowers and spice. Its texture is concentrated, velvety, magmatic and profoundly intense. This is a powerful wine, pure, voluptuous and spiritual. A wine that is crafted along the same lines and style as the glorious vintages of our estate. »

Ronan LABORDE, owner & CEO

The vintage

A plot of Merlot was removed at the end of 2019, resulting in a cultivated area of 9 hectares and an increased proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the vine population at 25%.

A vintage with relatively favourable weather conditions, marked by two paroxysmal phases: a very wet spring, then a long summer drought. The grapes were small in size and in remarkable sanitary condition. They reached high levels of ripeness and very, very good levels of phenolic components and tannin, with record IPTs. Harvest started on the 14th September, a week to ten days earlier than usual.

A consistent level of quality between grape varieties, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the various plots that make up the terroir of Château CLINET. An average vatting period of 28 days, delicate extraction of the phenolic components. High total acidity levels, along with normal pH levels for our terroir, will guarantee the freshness of the wines of this vintage.

CLINET 2020 benefits from the hot summer, the restructuration of the vineyard and the more and more confirmed experience of the team. Probably one of the most accomplished CLINET since the Laborde family took over in 1999.

Winemaking

Manual sorting. Stainless steel vats, perfectly designed to house the different plots of CLINET. Vats equipped with an alveolar, adjustable thermoregulation system. Manual punching down

Ageing

80% new barrels, 20% second-fill barrels, including traditional “barriques bordelaises” (225 litres) and large “Burgundy” barrels (500 litres). Use of the OXOLINE system, to reduce “bâtonnage” (stirring of the lees). Expected ageing time: +16 months

Terroir

Autrefois rattaché aux vins de Saint-Emilion, Pomerol a su gagner seule ses lettres de noblesse depuis 1936, date à laquelle elle obtint son statut d'AOC. (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée). D'une superficie inférieure à 800 ha, c'est la plus petite des grandes régions viticoles du Bordelais. Pomerol est aussi la seule des grandes appellations de la région à n'avoir jamais connu de classement hiérarchique. Campée sur la Rive Droite de la Dordogne, le climat y est plus chaud que dans le Médoc (Rive Gauche) et le sol plus frais et humide.

Content available in French