Wine Advisor
Climens 1929
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The Chateau Climens 1929 must stand as one of the greatest Sauternes (or Barsac) wines of the century. Mature in color, with burnished core and amber rim, the bouquet leaps out of the glass with scintillating delineation, bestowing intoxicating scents of mandarin, Japanese yuzu, dandelion, barley sugar, marmalade and rosewater (a trait displayed by the Lafaurie-Peyraguey 1929 just a few weeks previously.) The palate is underpinned by perfect acidity and a bewildering sense of intensity allied with finesse and mineralite. Traces of apricot, peach and honeycomb emerge, later joined by subtle secondary notes of candied orange peel and mandarin. “Can Sauternes be better than this?” I scribbled at the conclusion of my tasting note. The answer is “No.” Tasted August 2013.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the Chateau Climens vertical in Zurich. A legendary Chateau Climens that lives up to the reputation that precedes it. It has a clear, deep amber hue with green tints on the rim. The bouquet is beautifully defined and vital, with notes of barley sugar, dried mango, a hint of caramel, Seville orange marmalade and sweet almond. With aeration, there is a mote of something more saline, perhaps even a touch of seaweed. Unquestionably, a stunning aromatic profile for an 80-year old Barsac. The palate is mellifluous on the entry, well balanced with good acidity, a texture that caresses and seduces the mouth with its texture. It is utterly harmonious, touches of honeysuckle, apricot, a dash of lemongrass and dried peach, formidable length and balletic poise and a vibrant, tangy aftertaste just to ensure you will forget this in a hurry. Mythical…just mythical. Tasted November 2009.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 1929 Climens is one of the greatest Sauternes of the century, a legendary wine that is faultless. It looks its age with its burnished gold color. Then the bouquet bowls you over with ethereal, intoxicating scents of barley sugar, yellow plum, marmalade and rose water, all with brilliant delineation and energy that seems undimmed by time. The palate hinges on a killer line of acidity and beguiling purity, offering notes of dried honey, peach and dried apricot suffused with astonishing mineral tension. Candied orange peel fans out gloriously on the finish. This is a fabulous, monumental 1929 Sauternes that is indelibly etched on my memory. Tasted blind at a private lunch in London.
About the Producer
Château Climens is a wine producer located in the Sauternes village of Barsac on the left bank of the Gironde river, south of Bordeaux. It was classified as a first growth in the 1885 Classification of Sauternes and Barsac alongside other châteaux such as Guiraud and Suduiraut. Climens is one of only a handful of châteaux in Bordeaux that produces its wines from only one grape: Semillon. The wine is characterized by fresh citrus notes, white flowers and spice, which becomes more honeyed and concentrated with age. Semillon thrives on the limestone-rich soils in the vineyards. Botrytis develops on the grapes because of the misty mornings, humidity and warmer afternoons that are typical during the months before harvest. If the grapes are not of the highest quality, or if botrytis has not properly formed, owner Bérénice Lurton and her team will not produce their top wine, the grand vin Château Climens. They have been bold enough in the past to declassify an entire harvest of fruit – either selling the grapes off to other producers rather than bottling as their own or releasing wines under secondary labels. The grapes are harvested and brought into the winery, plot by plot, where they are gently pressed before fermentation in oak barrels. Maturation takes place in French oak barrels on lees for about 20 months. Wines from the best vintages can last decades – a recent tasting of the 1921 vintage revealed a rich, balanced and zesty wine. Château Climens has been owned by the Lurton family since the 1970s (when it was acquired by Lucien Lurton), and in 1992 the estate came under the control of Bérénice Lurton (his daughter). In 2010, Climens began to practice biodynamic winemaking and viticulture, and the 2014 vintage was the first to be entirely certified as biodynamic. Chemical sprays were replaced with natural preparations and plant infusions, from flowers such as chamomile and juniper which are grown on the estate and dried in the attics above the chais.
