2018 - Vieux Chateau Certan, Pomerol

Vieux Chateau Certan 2018 has a deep garnet purple color. It needs swirling to unlock scents of baked black cherries, mulberries, and smoked meats, with underlying hints of redcurrants, violets, and iron ore. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is very nuanced, with a lively backbone and super-fine tannins, and is long, long, long.

Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont are deeply thoughtful, instinctive winemakers who spend most of their time outside in the vineyards, and prove once again here why VCC is such a well-loved Pomerol. Three years along and you start to see the sweeter edged Merlot fruits where during En Primeur this was very much Cabernet Franc dominant. I get a beautiful touch of strawberry and raspberry puree which is given form by precise brushstroke tannins, white pepper and smoked butterscotch. A careful selection from the 23 plots ensured only pristine fruit - meaning not overly-affected by the summer heat - made it into the wine, showing the level of commitment at this estate. Harvest September 19 to October 9, 3.75ph, 40 hl/ha yield.

The 2018 Vieux Château Certan, which contains 30% Cabernet Franc, has a commendable bouquet given the heat of that season. Blackberry, a touch of damson, scorched earth and light violet scents emerge with aeration. That said, it doesn't fully have the delineation of the previous vintage. The palate is powerful and typically burly for VCC, yet it has a lovely powdery texture (less silky than before) with a vibrant, peppery and persistent finish. Maybe not as opulent as it once was, but it is unquestionably one of the superior Pomerols. Tasted at the VCC vertical in Etikhove, Belgium.