Wine Advisor
Certan de May 2009
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
Purple-ruby. Opulent, sexy aromas of plum and black cherry explode from the glass, with complicating spicy/herbal nuances of bay leaf, marjoram, cinnamon and aromatic pepper. Very fresh on entry, with a sweet, supple texture and flavors similar to the aromas. Finishes vibrant and very persistent, with an intriguing balsamic quality and firm, building tannins. This may not be the longest-lived Pomerol of the vintage, but it should offer a decade or two of decadent drinking pleasure. Great stuff.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Deep purple-ruby. Knockout nose of black cherry, minerals, coffee liqueur and violet offers uncommon depth and complexity. The flavors of blackberry, black plum and minerals are complicated by a note of iron and given wonderful clarity and cut by harmonious, vibrant acidity. Finishes very long and pure, with distinctive balsamic nuances. There's lots of sweet fleshy fruit here but the wine comes across as amazingly refined and graceful thanks to its vibrant acidity, which really extends the flavors at the back. The best young Certan of the last 12 or 15 years.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A bruising, black/purple-hued, full-bodied wine, the 2009 Certan de May displays notes of charcuterie, smoked game, herbs, black truffles, roasted meats, cassis and black cherries. This backward, robustly-styled Pomerol is loaded with tannin as well as extract. Give this full, powerful 2009 a decade of cellaring and drink it over the following 30+ years. I’m sure it is not better than the immortal 1982 Certan de May.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at JP Moueix. This is a Pomerol property flying under the radar at the moment and the nose here is marvellous: beautifully defined with exquisite blackberry, briary and minerals. The palate is medium-bodied with real tension and focus, almost understated on the entry, very harmonious with superb delineation towards the finish that is inflected with hints of bay leaf and thyme. This is a great 2009 from a vineyard that is really on song at the moment. Tasted April 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The most powerful, finest overall wine made at this estate since their 1982, the muscular 2009 reveals a dense ruby/purple color in addition to meaty, smoky notes of black cherries, iron, truffles, loamy soil, and spice. Dense, full-bodied, and virile with a boatload of tannin, patience will be a virtue as this wine needs 5-6 years of cellaring. It should last for three decades or more. (Tasted three times.)
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the Syndicat de Pomerol. The Certan-de-May 2009 has a lovely, composed bouquet with crisp blackberry, raspberry and wild strawberry with engaging underlying mineralite – very contained and focused. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, very composed with well-integrated if prominent new oak towards it long sweet finish. There is a lot of substance to this wine, but it will need 5-6 years to really come into its own. Tasted November 2011.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Benoit restaurant in New York. The Certan de May ’09 has a sweet, sensual bouquet that has retained that floral allure, this bottle a little “glossier” than the one three months previously. The palate is medium-bodied with a good backbone that suggests it has long-term potential. It is struck through with fine precision and builds towards, what for the vintage, is quite a masculine finish. Give this Pomerol six to eight years to show just what it can do. Tasted April 2013.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. The Certan-de-May ‘09 has a very perfumed, floral bouquet with crushed violets, dusky black fruits, mulberry and raspberry leaf with a touch of the old antique bureau. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, good focus and precision and firm grip on the finish that is a little drier than others. Like Le Bon Pasteur, a lovely but stylistically different. Tasted January 2013.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A bruising, black/purple-hued, full-bodied wine, the 2009 Certan de May displays notes of charcuterie, smoked game, herbs, black truffles, roasted meats, cassis and black cherries. This backward, robustly-styled Pomerol is loaded with tannin as well as extract. Give this full, powerful 2009 a decade of cellaring and drink it over the following 30+ years. I’m sure it is not better than the immortal 1982 Certan de May.
About the Producer
Château Certan de May (or to use its full name, Château Certan de May de Certan) is a critically well-regarded wine estate in Pomerol on the Right Bank of Bordeaux, known for its highly sought-after Merlot-based red wine. The De May (or Demay) family were said to be of Scottish origin, but had lived in France since the Middle Ages, and in Pomerol since the late 1500s. The family became masters of the fief of Sertan, the oldest vineyard in the district. This area also covered the modern vineyards of Vieux Château Certan (which lies just over the road from the winery building) and Château Certan-Giraud (since renamed Château Hosanna), but was divided up after the French Revolution. Since the death of the last de May in 1925, the estate has been owned by the Barreau-Badar family and is currently managed by Jean-Luc Barreau. The vineyard covers five hectares (12 acres), with 70 percent planted to Merlot, 25 percent Cabernet Franc and 5 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is aged for 12 to 14 months in French oak barrels, with 60-80 percent new oak. Around 2000 cases are produced each year.
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