1998 - Vieux Chateau Certan, Pomerol

The 1998 Vieux Château Certan has an open, generous and expressive bouquet that I have always found quite exotic in style, thanks to its precocious cassis and blueberry scents, although maturity is turning down the volume. As before, there are subtle notes of menthol developing with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with saturated tannins, relatively voluptuous in style vis-à-vis other vintages. As the 1998 has aged, I feel it has never kicked on in terms of complexity as I initially hoped. Yet, this remains a thoroughly enjoyable VCC. Tasted over lunch in London.