Home > Vintages and Regions > Bordeaux > Pomerol
Pomerol
Pomerol is the smallest of all the significant red wine producing communes of Bordeaux, with something in the region of 770 hectares planted to vines, compared with over 5000 in St Emilion, the other major wine producing region of the right bank. In fact, the area under vine is less than that in St Julien, the smallest commune of the Médoc. Pomerol is also one of the more divided regions of Bordeaux, with many of the individual domaines being quite small, particularly when compared to their companions on the left bank, which often have huge production volumes. A small number of domaines, producing relatively small quantities of wine, in combination with high demand, not least from the USA, is the age-old recipe for high prices. Many Pomerols do indeed carry stratospheric price tags, especially the garagiste and micro-cuvée wines which are concentrated in this region. There do still exist, however, a number of domaines that offer good value.
I recently tasted and assessed a number of Pomerols, with my main focus of interest being the 1982 vintage, although I also looked at a few wines from later vintages, including 1983, 1989 and 1993. Several of these domaines can be considered as producing good value wines, although domaines such as La Conseillante are leaders within the appellation and as such command a higher price. (15/5/02)
Pomerol 1982 to1993 - Tasting Notes
Tasted in May 2002. Click
to locate stockists.
Chateau Gazin (Pomerol) 1993: A real baby of
a wine here, with a coffee and toffee tinged nose, packed with fruit.
Sweet, tannic, fat, luscious wine on the palate, with good acidity.
Plenty of potential here. 17+/20
Chateau La Grave Trigant de Boisset (Pomerol) 1989:
Mineral tinged fruit, smoky and toasty oak on the nose, with even some
spicy fruitcake notes. Delicious black cherry fruit on he palate, with a
firm underlying structure. Lovely ripe, very slightly hard tannins, and
soft acidity. This is delicious, full, sweet and rounded. 17/20
Chateau Gazin (Pomerol) 1989: More youthful
on the nose, with a coffee edge to the rich, black cherry fruit. Big,
firm, and structured on the palate, with tannins that are ripe and
pleasing, but need more time to integrate. Plenty of lack fruit, spice,
strong acidity, and lots of potential. 17.5+/20
Clos Rene (Pomerol) 1983: Rich, smoke and
charcoal fruit on the nose. More sweet fruit on the palate,
blackcurrants, with a bitter-sweet edge. Perhaps a touch thin, and
disjointed, towards the finish. Soft, fully integrated tannins and
disharmonious acidity. Past its best I feel. 13/20
Chateau Lafleur-Gazin (Pomerol) 1982:
Plenty of fruit here, with oak-derived notes of toffee and a big helping
of liquorice. Full and sweet on the palate, but with a firm structure,
and good tannins. Good acidity. There's a dry note running through the
palate which may suggest the wine is not far from beginning to fall
apart. Nevertheless its very drinkable now. 15.5/20
Chateau Le Gay (Pomerol) 1982: Firm,
somewhat austere fruit on the nose, with a stony, mineral, smoky edge.
Full, rich and sweet on he palate, with gentle but perfectly correct
acidity, and soft, measured acidity. Delicious, opulent and beautifully
textured. 17/20
Chateau La Grave Trigant de Boisset (Pomerol) 1982:
A slightly stewed note to the fruit here, although its not
off-putting. Nice, creamy texture on the palate, rich but with a firm edge. Smoky fruit with
that stewed, pruney edge. Nevertheless, it has correct acidity and
delightful balance. Lovely finish. 17/20
Chateau Gazin (Pomerol) 1982: Wonderful deep
pile of fruit and sweet toasty oak. This is intriguing, powerful, and
seems so young. Lovely firm fruit on the palate, with smoke and a real
sense of power, combined with a full, rich texture. Fine acidity. Last
time I tasted this I thought it was drying out, which illustrates how
markedly bottle variation can affect your opinion of a wine. 18/20
Chateau La Conseillante (Pomerol) 1982:
Wow! This has a lovely nose, Packed with sweet, pastille-like
blackcurrant and cherry fruit, with some soft, slightly buttery oak. The
palate is fine, and displays a good balance. Delightful sweet fruit,
fully integrated, spicy tannins which provide the backbone, and correct
acidity. A good weight and a sweet, rounded edge to the texture.
Delicious. 18.5/20
