Château Petit-Village 2010

The 2010 vintage in Pomerol

Vintage benchmark: 98/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: The dry summer and cool nights gave dense, tannic wines of extraordinary ageing potential — the exact opposite of 2009.

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

The deep, brilliant ruby color suggests an exceptional structure. On the nose, a bouquet of aromas explodes. Red fruits in particular, perfectly ripe, very subtle thanks to an astonishing freshness. On the palate, an extraordinary balance: power of the tannins, an attack that persists, and lots of tone. A perfect balance characterizes this Château Petit-Village 2010, full of promise.

Blend of the 2010 vintage

Figures from the 2010 sheet

• 14 % vol.Alcohol
• 35 yrsVine age
• 30,000 bottlesProduction

Winemaking

Follows the meticulous work of vinification, plot by plot, for 25 days, in thermo-regulated vats which offer the possibility of personalized treatment.

Ageing

After the malolactic fermentation stage, all of the wines benefit from well-controlled ageing in oak barrels for approximately 15 months.

Terroir

Château Le Petit-Village lies at the heart of Pomerol, on a magnificent clay-gravel plateau. It is a single-block vineyard of 10.5 hectares forming a triangle. Its terroir is composed of deep gravels coated with light sandy clays over a subsoil of alios known as crasse de fer, characteristic of the great wines of Pomerol. Every terroir has a grape variety that remains true to it. At Château Petit-Village, each plot, with its own personality, is planted with the variety suited to it. Merlot predominates on the property (75%): it provides the flesh of the wine and gives it its velvety texture, its roundness and its generosity. To this are added Cabernet Franc (18%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (7%), varieties essential for structure and complexity.