Vieux Château Certan 2022

The 2022 vintage in Pomerol

Vintage benchmark: 97/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: The extreme drought was absorbed by the clays: a sun-driven concentration, but without the expected harshness.

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

Vieux Château Certan 2022, with its deep garnet hue, subtle floral aromas and a remarkable velvety texture, displays all the hallmarks of a great long-ageing wine.

The vintage

The last days of winter, mild and with little rain, favoured an early budding, which began in late March. Once the danger of spring frosts had passed in early April, an excellent flowering followed, and with the vines in a perfect state of health an abundant crop was in prospect.

Summer arrived very early. The season included a series of hot, dry spells that lasted till mid-August. A short period of rain then helped the vines to rehydrate sufficiently to hold on till the harvest. The vines withstood the 2022 summer weather remarkably well; throughout the season they displayed lovely green foliage and, as the harvest neared, tiny black, thick-skinned grapes. By early September, optimal ripeness of the fruit had been reached, and the grapes were picked, plot by plot, over a period of around two weeks.

The old vines of Vieux Château Certan produced wines which are incredibly deep-coloured, suave, concentrated and balanced. On tasting, the Merlot is delicious, ripe and silky and gives roundness to the wine. The Cabernet Franc, through its minerality, length of flavour and pedigree, contributes delicacy and spirit. Finally, the Cabernet Sauvignon, which is perfumed and flavoursome, brings the wine a third dimension, which is essential for the perfecting of the blend.

Harvest: from 6th to 21st September 2022. Yield: 35 hectolitres per hectare. Bottling: from 3rd to 14th June 2024.

Blend of the 2022 vintage

Figures from the 2022 sheet

• 14.5 % vol.Alcohol
• 35 hl/haYield

Terroir

Établi sur 14 hectares d'un seul tenant, le vignoble de Vieux Château Certan est l’œuvre de plusieurs siècles de travail et de réflexion minutieuse. Ici, de l'orientation des vignes à la forte densité de plantation, de la répartition des cépages en fonction des sols, aux règles très strictes de taille et de palissage, tout est pensé pour obtenir les plus beaux raisins. Vieux Château Certan bénéficie de sols fertiles. Cela exige en retour une grande attention pour maitriser la vigueur, favoriser la maturité des raisins. Aujourd'hui, les vignes du domaine sont complantés à 60% de Merlot, 30% de Cabernet Franc et 10% de Cabernet sauvignon.

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