Wine Advisor
La Conseillante 2019
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2019 La Conseillante is a blend of 84% Merlot and 16% Cabernet Franc, harvested from the 17th of September to the 7th of October at yields of 34 hectoliters per hectare. It is being aged in 70% new French oak barrels, 27% second fill barrels and 3% amphora. The alcohol this year is 14.5% with a pH of 3.67. Very deep purple-black colored, it comes bounding out of the glass with all the energy of a new puppy, featuring notes of warm plums, wild blueberries and freshly crushed black cherries with hints of licorice, molten chocolate, violets, woodsmoke and tar plus a waft of lavender. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is laden with layer upon layer of black and blue fruits with loads of floral sparks and a very fine-grained, silt-like texture, finishing with incredible freshness and a provocative mineral edge. La Conseillante's signature perfume, purity and restrained power shine through with amazing clarity and style this vintage.
Reviewed by: William Kelley
The 2019 La Conseillante is performing brilliantly and rivals the 2016 as Marielle Cazaux's finest vintage at this leading Pomerol estate to date. Wafting from the glass with striking aromas of raspberries, plums, violets, raw cocoa, sweet soil tones and licorice, framed by a deftly integrated touch of classy new oak, it's full-bodied, ample and enveloping, its broad attack segueing into a seamless, layered mid-palate that's vibrant and concentrated, framed by powdery tannins and lively acids, before concluding with a long, saline finish.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2019 La Conseillante is elegant and nuanced, just as it was from barrel. All of the freshness and energy that was present en primeur comes through in the bottle. There is an element of sophistication, of reserve, that needs time to be fully expressive. The 2019 is a wine of linear precision more than volume or density. It should age exquisitely for many years to come.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
General Manager and Winemaker Marielle Cazaux turned out one of the jewels of the vintage with the 2019 La Conseillante. Fresh, nuanced and beautifully perfumed, the 2019 is a total stunner from the very first taste. What impresses me most about the 2019 is its freshness and vivacity, both so rare in 2019 in Pomerol. Inky dark fruit, lavender, mint and spice all build effortlessly. At 16%, the Cabernet Franc is particularly expressive, especially in the wine's aromatics. The 2019 is a wine of pure and total sensuality. Don't miss it. Harvest took place from September 17 to 20 for the Merlot and September 30 to October 7 for the Cabernet Franc, picking only in the early morning to preserve freshness in the fruit. In the cellar, Cazaux opted for a reduced number of pumpovers but over longer periods of time. Malolactic fermentation was done mostly (80%) in steel. Aging is in 70% new oak, 27% once-used barrels and 3% amphora, and is projected to be 16-17 months.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2019 La Conseillante was tasted twice, the first coming across just a little top heavy, yet returning after 20 minutes, it is quintessential La Conseillante. Black cherries, blueberry fruit and crushed violets come through with time. The palate is very sweet, plush and extravagant with layers of tasty oak, modern in style to the extent that at the moment this Pomerol is submerged under layers of "baby fat". This will require a lot of time. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2019 La Conseillante was stellar from the sample sent to "Martin Towers" in spring 2020, and the news is that there is no change in bottle. Allowed to open while gossiping away with winemaker Marielle Cazaux (you have to catch up when you are unable to see people regularly), the 2019 unveils an awesome, extraordinarily pure bouquet that seduces the senses, featuring dark cherries, blueberry, pressed violet and a touch of blood orange, all displaying wonderful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied and cohesive, with fine-grained tannins and a judicious touch of black pepper toward the finish, which fans out gloriously while maintaining a sense of class. The best La Conseillante since the 2010? No - better.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2019 La Conseillante was picked 17-20 September for the Merlot and 30 September and 7 October for the Cabernet Franc. Yields were low at just 34hl/ha. The Grand Vin is aged in 70% new French oak, 27% one-year old barrels and 3% in clay amphora. Limpid purple in colour, this has an exquisite bouquet with pixelated blackberry and raspberry scents, laced with pressed iris and a touch of graphite. It reminds me of a less powerful version of the 2010 when I tasted that from barrel. The palate is very smooth with ebullient red and black fruit on the entry, then it tapers in a little, towards a very cohesive, satin-textured middle. This is definitely one of the purest La Conseillante wines that I have encountered from barrel. It delivers a subtle spiciness towards the finish with hints of tobacco and clove on the persistent aftertaste. Winemaker Marielle Cazaux and her team have conjured a magnificent Pomerol here.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2019 La Conseillante was picked 17-20 September for the Merlot and 30 September and 7 October for the Cabernet Franc. Yields were low at just 34hl/ha. The Grand Vin is aged in 70% new French oak, 27% one-year old barrels and 3% in clay amphora. Limpid purple in colour, this has an exquisite bouquet with pixelated blackberry and raspberry scents, laced with pressed iris and a touch of graphite. It reminds me of a less powerful version of the 2010 when I tasted that from barrel. The palate is very smooth with ebullient red and black fruit on the entry, then it tapers in a little, towards a very cohesive, satin-textured middle. This is definitely one of the purest La Conseillante wines that I have encountered from barrel. It delivers a subtle spiciness towards the finish with hints of tobacco and clove on the persistent aftertaste. Winemaker Marielle Cazaux and her team have conjured a magnificent Pomerol here.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
A very fine, ethereal wine, offering blueberries, white truffles and violets. Full body and a wonderful texture with tannins that spread across the palate, caressing the mouth. Really polished to the finest grain. Extremely long. Shows strength with finesse.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
The transparency and vibrancy here is impressive. From the very start it’s so aromatic, showing crushed-berry, dark-chocolate, coffee and cedar character. Full-bodied, yet tight and wonderfully tailored, with tannins that are fine-textured, but intense and so long, giving this wine great length. A joy to taste, but needs many years to soften and come together. Wonderful development here. Try after 2028.
About the Producer
Chateau La Conseillante is located in the Pomerol appellation on the right bank of Bordeaux, France, next to Vieux Chateau Certan and Chateau L'Evangile, and is one of the best châteaux in Pomerol. The vineyard covers an area of 11.8 hectares with a topsoil of 60% grey clay and 40% gravel and a subsoil of red clay rich in iron. The vineyard is planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. The Merlot is planted mainly on clay plots, while the Cabernet Franc is planted mainly on gravel. The average age of the vines is 35 years and the planting density is 7,000 vines per hectare. The winery uses traditional vineyard management practices, eliminating the use of herbicides. During the growing season, the land is usually plowed four times to suppress weed growth and thus obtain more water for the vines. In the winter, the vines are pruned in a strict Simple Guyot and Double Guyot style. In addition, the vineyards are de-leafed and de-budded to keep yields at around 4,000 liters per hectare. At harvest time, the grapes are hand-picked to their optimum ripeness and a preliminary selection is carried out. Once the selection is complete, the grapes are transported in small batches to the winery to prevent crushing of the fruit. The winery is located in the heart of the vineyard, which shortens the transportation time and ensures that the grapes are fresh and ready for fermentation. In 2012, the winery added a new fermentation room with enough temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks to ferment the grapes from each of the 18 plots separately, combining traditional winemaking techniques with modern technology. In addition, the winery now has four sorting tables and a de-stemmer. After being transferred to barrels, the grapes undergo a cold maceration of 48 to 96 hours. After maceration, the must is fermented in barrels with the skins for 1 week, followed by a further 1 to 2 weeks of maceration. At the end of fermentation, some of the artesian wine is released first and the remaining lees are pressed through a vertical press. The pressed wines are aged separately, and only some of the best pressed wines are blended with the artesian wines. Before bottling, the wines are matured in oak barrels for approximately 18 months, 50% to 80% of which are new. During maturation, the wines are decanted by the winemakers every three months and finally clarified with egg whites.
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Package Size
1 x 6L
