This morning was a great opportunity to conclude our coverage of the Médoc by attending the "Union des Grands Crus" tastings. First of all we tried the Saint Estèphes, Pauillacs and Saint Juliens at Phélan Ségur and then the Margaux wines at Labégorce.
A packed UGC tasting
|
The overall conclusion is that the wines of the Médoc (predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon-based) are sleek, structured and somewhat lean in style. At best they resemble 2006 and 2004. Some may be as good as 2001 but others are more like 1998. These wines are never going to be opulent or plump.
The Margaux UGC tasting
|
After another "negociant" tasting, where we filled in a few important gaps, our next visit was at La Mission Haut Brion where we tasted the increasingly large portfolio of the Clarence Dillon Estate. This was a great tasting and one in which we found the wine of the vintage (so far). With a whopping 65.5% Merlot (the highest ever) in the blend and 14.9% alcohol, there is no doubt in the mind of the Farr Vintners team that we found the best red wine produced on Bordeaux's left bank in 2012 here in Chateau Haut Brion. An absolute no-brainer for top First Growth. Bravo to Jean-Philippe Delmas for a really exceptional wine whose biggest attribute is that it doesn't taste anything like a 2012!
Tasting at La Mission Haut Brion
|
We then headed over the Garonne and Dordogne rivers to Pomerol. What a fantastic surprise we found here! Everything was gorgeous! After struggling through the acid, lean wines of the Médoc we were suddenly in a different world. Wines full of plump, creamy fruit and none of the austerity that we found from the Cabernet-based wines of the left bank. Clinet and La Conseillante were both magnificent at the UGC tasting. Le Pin was superb of course but there was sadness at Le Gay where a tasting of two beautiful Pomerols (Le Gay and La Violette) was overshadowed by news of the death of the owner - Catherine Péré-Vergé - last Friday.
Tom Hudson and Jacques Thienpont at Le Pin
|
Our final stop of the day was at L'Eglise Clinet where Denis Durantou has produced a quite stunning grand vin and some brilliant values at his satellite properties. We've said it before, but we'll say it again, this man is a genius! We are now suddenly very excited about tasting the other top wines of Pomerol tomorrow so it's off to bed in Libourne, in anticipation of a glass of Pétrus for breakfast in the morning.
The man's a genius - Denis Durantou
|
