View analysis



Description
Tasting notes

Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The Château Trotanoy 2014 is blessed with the most inspiring bouquet with the JP Moueix stable, in no small part to its free-draining gravel soils and incline that would have been so advantageous during the wetter moments of the growing season. There are potent black fruit mixed with warm gravel mixed with black truffle, all extremely well defined and focused - a quintessential Trotanoy in many ways. The palate is medium-bodied with fine but firm tannins, layers of black truffle-tinged black and red fruit that steadily build towards that compelling tobacco-tinged finish. In 2014, Trotanoy is a testament to propitious terroir, yet what might distinguish this from other vintages is that it feels more approachable, so its brilliance will hopefully be available to those less inclined to wait 20+ years! It constitutes one of the finest Right Bank wines of 2014, a Trotanoy of authority and breeding.

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
A dense, powerful wine, the 2014 Trotanoy wraps around the palate with serious intensity. The flavors are dark and boldly sketched, with plenty of earth-driven undertones that add complexity and nuance. In a vintage that produced so many wines that speak to finesse rather than power, Trotanoy retains its signature broad shoulders and breadth. It will be at least 10-15 years before the 2014 is ready to drink. Readers can look forward to a long drinking window of pure pleasure beyond that.

Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2014 Trotanoy has quite a gourmand bouquet with dried blood and truffle infusing the red fruit, a little forward for my liking. The palate is medium-bodied with chewy tannin, robust and stocky with cranberry and strawberry fruit laced with black pepper and clove, leading to a harmonious but structured finish that will require several years in bottle. Excellent. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.

Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2014 Trotanoy had (que surprise!) closed down on the nose compared to its JP Moueix stablemates. A few swirls of the glass and it reveals very precise, mineral-soaked black fruit laced with black truffle and subtle sous-bois aromas. It soon gathers momentum and the aromas were gaining more and more intensity after five minutes. The palate is outstanding. There is brilliant structure here, immense and almost staggering purity, incredible focus and tension with an electrifying spiciness on the finish. Best Pomerol of the vintage? The only thing wrong with that last sentence is the question mark at the end.

Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2014 Trotanoy has a more complex bouquet than the 2014 Gazin, with more Pomerol DNA in the mix, iron-tinged red berry fruit, black truffle and cedar. Fine delineation and quintessentially Pomerol. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins and harmonious, soy-tinged black fruit with white pepper sprinkled over the finish. This has personality and class but needs time (comme d'habitude). One of the standouts in what is an inconsistent Pomerol vintage. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.

Reviewed by: James Suckling
Spellbinding aromas of flowers such as lilacs and honeysuckle with strawberries and blackberries. Full-bodied, super tight and polished with wonderful finesse and length. Seamless, fine tannins give this endless mouthfeel. Drink in 2022.
About the Producer
Purchased by Jean-Pierre Moueix in 1953, Château Trotanoy has been considered one of the premier crus of Pomerol since the end of the eighteenth century. The soil of Château Trotanoy is a very dense mixture of clay and gravel which tends to solidify as it dries out after rain to an almost concrete-like hardness, hence the name “Trotanoy,” or, in other words, “too wearisome” to cultivate. The Trotanoy vineyard slopes gently to the west. The soil at the highest point of exposure contains a good proportion of gravel, becoming progressively more dominated by clay as the elevation declines. Under this clay is a subsoil of red gravel and an impermeable layer of hard, iron-rich soil known as “crasse de fer.” This fascinating soil diversity brings power, depth and complexity to the wine. Trotanoy is vinified in small concrete vats, while aging takes place in oak barrels. Trotanoy is a naturally profound, complex, richly-concentrated wine with outstanding aging potential. The wine possesses a deep color and a dense, powerful nose, repeated on the palate with the addition of creamy, dark chocolate notes, and a singular concentration of flavor owed to its very old vines.