Château L’Église-Clinet: Vineyards
There are 6 hectares of vines to Château L’Église-Clinet, the bulk of which (4.5 hectares in fact) surround the farmhouse and cellars on typical plateau soils of gravel and clay (pictured) in the parcels named Clinet Haut, Clinet Bas and Chêne. The latter parcel, also home to an old oak tree, was the first parcel planted by the Durantou ancestors in 1865. The remaining 1.5 hectares lie some distance away, near Château La Grave à Pomerol, and the produce of these vines, which are planted on more sandy-gravelly soils than those adjacent to the house, are utilised in the production of the second wine, La Petite Église.
If we focus solely on the vines for the grand vin, it is immediately clear that we are dealing with another jewel of a vineyard here, very similar in size to Château Lafleur, and with very desirable terroir. I imagine, akin to Jacques Guinaudeau, Denis knows every one of his vines by name.
The vines in question are predominantly Merlot, with 85% of the vineyard planted to this variety, the remainder 14% Cabernet Franc, some of which dates to 1935, these venerable vines having seen out the otherwise devastating frost of 1956. Interestingly, writing in Grands Vins (University of California Press, 1995) Clive Coates states that 10% of the vines were Malbec, and that 5% were of “uncertain botanical origin“, although today there is just 1% Malbec here. An extensive programme of replanting has greatly reduced the proportion of Malbec and it seems also to have removed the mysteriously unidentified vines; since his taking control approximately 2.5 hectares, close to one-half of the vineyard, has been replanted. The Malbec that remains are all old vines, and they are located in Les Grands Vignes, which is the parcel in front of the house.
