Wine Advisor
L'Eglise Clinet 2009
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Proprietor Denis Durantou has produced a blockbuster Pomerol from a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, tipping the scales at just over 14.5% natural alcohol. A riveting wine, pure, elegant, but at the same time, extremely powerful and concentrated, with stunning texture, opulence and density, the tannins are abundant, and the wine certainly in need of a decade of cellaring. Fabulous creme de cassis and cherry liqueur notes are intertwined with hints of licorice, truffle, and graphite. Full and rich, but still in an infantile state of development, this wine needs to be cellared for 10 years but should keep for five decades or more. This 2009 is absolutely profound.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Picked between 14th and 28th September, a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, from a fresh sample opened half an hour before with the final assemblage, the L’Eglise-Clinet is adorned with a supremely intense bouquet, with ripe black fruits, black plum, black olive tapenade, a hint of liquorice and black truffle. Wonderful definition and sense of controlled power. The palate is full-bodied, voluminous in the mouth, an awesome structure, layers of mineral-rich black fruits counterpoised by a sense of weightless power towards the finish. In its own unique way, a monumental wine. Tasted April 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2009 l’Eglise Clinet may eclipse some of the other efforts made by proprietor Denis Durantou over the years. Harvested between September 14 and 28, this blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc is a powerful, almost uber-concentrated wine that tastes like an elixir of Pomerol with an incredibly unctuous feel. This dense purple-colored 2009 (which achieved 14.5% natural alcohol) is extremely powerful, but that power is concealed beneath a mountain of glycerin, fruit, concentration, and body. The purity and richness are off the charts, and the silkiness of the tannins is ethereal. This extraordinary wine possesses extremely high levels of tannin, but according to Durantou, they have almost disappeared because of the wine’s amazing depth and richness. It will undoubtedly need a decade of aging after bottling, but it should last for 50+. It is a modern day legend in the making. (Tasted two times.)
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the chateau. Very deep in colour, the 2009 l’Eglise-Clinet has an extremely complex, intense nose with blackberry, raspberry leaf, granite and a touch of orange peel. The palate is medium-bodied with beautiful, svelte tannins, utterly refined and composed with a very precise finish. Such a powerful wine and it become even more intense with aeration. There is real mineralite towards the finish that has grip and real presence. Magnificent. Tasted November 2011.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. Denis Durantou’s wine is difficult to taste in its youth and this is reflected in my score that will surely rise as it unfolds over many years. It has a more broody nose with dusky blackberry and mulberry, touches of bell pepper and strawberry pastille. Complex – but it is reticent at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy entry. There is a good build, although it seems to hide itself away on the finish. A reluctant superstar? Most probably and watch those scores dial skywards once it enters its drinking plateau in a few year’s time.Tasted January 2013.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Proprietor Denis Durantou has produced a blockbuster Pomerol from a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, tipping the scales at just over 14.5% natural alcohol. A riveting wine, pure, elegant, but at the same time, extremely powerful and concentrated, with stunning texture, opulence and density, the tannins are abundant, and the wine certainly in need of a decade of cellaring. Fabulous creme de cassis and cherry liqueur notes are intertwined with hints of licorice, truffle, and graphite. Full and rich, but still in an infantile state of development, this wine needs to be cellared for 10 years but should keep for five decades or more. This 2009 is absolutely profound.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
How many dinners start with a wine like the 2009 L’Église Clinet? Not many that I go to that is for sure. When we opened this bottle to check on its soundness, I knew right away it was going to be one of the wines of the night, and it is. Wow. Bold and seamless in the glass, the 2009 L’Église Clinet is a great example of the vintage. It is obviously quite opulent, yet all the elements are magically in the right place. It’s always good to start strong, and we sure do.
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
(85% merlot and 15% cabernet franc; 14.7% alcohol; pH 3.65; 79 IPT Ruby-purple. Knockout nose is unbelievably pure and rich, exuding expressive, heady scents of raspberry, plum syrup, Oriental spices, espresso and minerals. Sweet and dense but almost magically vibrant, this wine boasts terrific depth and freshness to its pomegranate, watermelon, dark berry, mineral and floral flavors. Finishes with utterly silky tannins and outstanding palate-saturating length. One of the stars of the vintage. (Durantou's Le Petite Eglise, made from merlot vines on gravel-and-sand soil near La Grave, was fresh, clean and rather refined, with attractive sweetness to its dark berry flavors, but was quite marked by its new oak in the early going.)
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 l’Eglise-Clinet was picked 14 to 28 September and matured in 80% new oak. It remains remarkably youthful on the nose, rendering the brilliant 2010 a bit introverted by comparison. This comes racing out of the blocks with ebullient red cherries, crushed strawberry and raspberry fruit, touches of dried rose petal and melted tar. With aeration there is just a touch of liquorish. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin that belies the arching structure underneath. It manages to retain awesome power and yet deliver a refined finish that feels long and tender. Stunning. Tasted at the l’Eglise-Clinet vertical at the château in April 2018.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 L’Église-Clinet has a wonderful, entrancing bouquet with black cherries, truffle, crushed stone and pressed rose petals that blossoms with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, a silver bead of acidity, fresh and poised with touches of truffle and graphite towards the finish. Sheer class from Mon. Durantou. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good medium ruby. Essence-of-merlot aromas of bitter cherry, blueberry, boysenberry, dark chocolate, licorice and spices, lifted by a whiff of violet. Dense, thick and sweet, with a saline nuance to the seamless flavors of dark berries, licorice and spices. Wonderfully sweet, subtle and long, finishing with substantial building tannins and a medicinal reserve that bodes well for a slow and graceful evolution in bottle. A great vintage for this estate.
About the Producer
Château l'Eglise-Clinet is located in the Pomerol appellation on the right bank of Bordeaux, France, and is one of the most famous wineries in the Pomerol region. Château Clinet Chapel has a long history, dating back to the late 19th century. The Rouchut family, who ran Chateau Clos l'Eglise at the time, and the Constant family, who ran Chateau Clinet, decided to make wine together. Until 1950, the Bordeaux wines produced by these two families were sold under the name Château Claregelis. It was only after 1950 that their wines were given their current name, Château Clignet. Later, the Durantou family acquired Château Clignet. However, the owner was not keen on wine at the time and left everything to Pierre Lasserre, the owner of another Pomerol estate. Pierre Lasserre only had to give him half of the estate's income each year. This partnership has continued for 40 years. Today, Denis Durantou, a descendant of the Durantou family, is in charge of the estate. At present, Château Clignet has 5.5 hectares of vineyards. The soils are mainly gravel and clay, some of which are rich in iron. The vineyards of Château Clignet were spared from the 1956 frosts and the vines are on average 45 years old. The vineyard is planted with 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc at a density of 6,500 vines per hectare. The vineyard is fertilised with an organic fertiliser mix every 5 years. The grapes are hand-picked when they are ripe at Château Clignet. After careful selection and crushing, the grapes are fermented in concrete and stainless steel containers for 15-21 days. After about October, the fermented wine is aged in new oak barrels for a period of 18 months. The main wine of Château Clinet is the Château l'Eglise-Clinet, Pomerol, France. The wines are concentrated and rich, full-bodied, with pure fruit and exotic spice notes, particularly fresh and wonderful, making them unique among Bordeaux wines. In recent years, as the price of the wine has soared, so has the quality. Today, it is in the top tier of Pomerol.
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