Wine Advisor
Climens 2005
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at the 10-Year On Tasting in Sauternes. The 2005 Château Climens just soars from the glass with layers of clear honey, marmalade, nectarine and minerals all beautifully carved. The palate is medium-bodied with fresh, vibrant honeyed fruit that builds and builds in the mouth in tandem with a killer line of acidity. Even though it is a convincing, great Climens, you also have the impression that it is only just beginning to show what it is capable of. Bérénice Lurton and her team excelled in this vintage and it comes strongly recommended.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Simply one of the standout wines of this horizontal. An understated nose, quite minerally with touches of white peach and apricot all with wonderful definition. The palate displays exquisite balance, a sense of controlled power the Climens carries off so well. A touch of clear honey, acacia, peach, a little quince. Very long and supremely well focused. Another year, another great Climens. Tasted April 2007.
Reviewed by: William Kelley
The 2005 Climens is drinking nicely, wafting from the glass with aromas of orange oil, dried apricot and marmalade mingled with hints of honeycomb and petrol. Full-bodied, ample and fleshy, with an enveloping core of fruit, ripe acids and a seamless, textural profile, it's rich and dramatic, missing just a little cut to rank as profound—even if it nonetheless ranks as one of the finest sweet wines of the vintage in Bordeaux.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the Bordeaux Index’s Chateau Climens dinner. Deeper in colour than the 2004, this ’05 Climens has a forward, expressive botrytis-rich nose with honey, orange-blossom, passion fruit and walnut. Very good definition. The palate has a mellifluous entry counterpoised with good acidity, real density and weight here, quite assertive towards the dried apricot and quince finish. This is a Climens that wants to make an impression, although here the ’04 is showing more class. I have had better examples of this ’05. Tasted November 2009.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
No tasting note given.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted single blind at Southwold and performing even more strongly. A slightly petrolly nose here, good definition, grapefruit, touch of chalk dust and buttercups. Nice lift here. The palate is much better, nice vibrant honeyed fruit, well balanced with touches of marmalade and quince inflecting the honeyed, viscous finish. Good level of botrytis and very harmonious. Lovely. Drink 2012-2030. Tasted January 2009.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Chateau Climens. Compared to the 2006 there is not as much fruit intensity on the nose, more towards the tangerine and grapefruit aromas rather than honeyed. Good definition, but it does need more vigour. The palate is better, very harmonious, subtle notes of apricot, peach and a touch of lemon curd. Very elegant on the finish. Hopefully the bouquet will open with time, although I much prefer the aromas emanating from the ‘06. Drink 2011-2030. Tasted April 2009.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2005 Climens has an intense nose, dried honey and a touch of glycerine, tangerine and barley sugar. The palate is well balanced with a viscous opening, tangy marmalade mixed with white peach and white pepper, gaining momentum towards the finish that has real depth and penetration. This is a fabulous Climens with great complexity. Tasted at the Climens vertical at the château in April 2022.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good full golden-yellow. Musky, very fresh aromas of crystallized citrus peel, minerals and toasted bread. The palate offers incredible sappy concentration and a saline aspect, not to mention a penetrating quality rare for this fruit-driven year. In fact, this begins almost light, then builds inexorably toward the back, finishing with a tactile impression of extract and an extraordinary sweetness that almost reminded me of the Suduiraut that I tasted just before it. Should go on for decades.
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.
