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Reviews

100 -Robert Parker's Wine Advocate -

96 -James Suckling -

95 -Vinous -

95 -Decanter -

94 -Wine Spectator -

Technical Details

  • Blend 85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc
  • Winemaker Denis Durentou
  • Country France
  • Region Bordeaux
  • Sub Region Right Bank
  • Appellation Pomerol
  • Vineyard Estate old vines, 25% over 75 years old, average age 40 years
  • Farming Method Organic fertilization only, every 5 years
  • Oak 70% new French oak
  • Fermentation Small, temperature-controlled stainless-stell vats
  • Aging / Cooperage 70% new French oak for 15 to 18 months
  • Alcohol 14.5%
  • Production 1400 cases

Château L'Église-Clinet Pomerol 2012

Bordeaux Blends | Bordeaux

WA100, JS96, VN95, DC95, WS94

Organic fertilization only, every 5 years

$350.00

$239.95

750ML

31% OFF RETAIL!

Wine Advocate awarded the 2012 L'Église-Clinet 100 points, joining 1921, 1947, and 2010 in the estate's perfect-score pantheon. James Suckling scored it 96, Vinous 95, Decanter 95, Wine Spectator 94. The 2012 is a wine of extraordinary precision, deep mineral character, and coiled concentration, built around old-vine Merlot and Cabernet Franc from the estate's 5.5 hectares on the Pomerol plateau. It carries the classic L'Église-Clinet DNA: multilayered, intense, and shaped for a very long life, while still carrying the aromatic lift and floral finesse that sets this estate apart from its neighbors. A 100-point Pomerol at a price that still makes sense, which is increasingly rare. These won't last.

About The Producer

The origins of Château L'Église-Clinet trace back to 1803, when Jean Rouchut first acquired vines adjacent to a small cemetery in Pomerol, with the estate taking shape in 1882 when the family expanded through the acquisition of neighboring plots from the Domaine de Clinet. For most of its early history it was a quiet, unremarkable property — until Denis Durantou inherited it and took over operations in 1983. What he found was a cellar in disrepair: dirt floors, aging untempered vats, no temperature control. What followed was one of Pomerol's great transformation stories. Durantou replanted much of the 5.5-hectare vineyard, rebuilt the cellar from the ground up, and within two years began producing wines that drew mounting critical attention through the 1990s. Robert Parker famously called it "the sleeper château of the century," and the wines — concentrated, opulent, and built on some of the plateau's finest blue clay soils — earned comparisons to Pétrus at a fraction of the price. Durantou passed away in May 2020, a genuine loss to the world of Bordeaux, and today the estate is carried forward by his daughters Noémie and Constance Durantou, who are continuing his meticulous, low-intervention approach across the 4.4-hectare cross-shaped vineyard planted to 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc. Few estates in Pomerol have earned their reputation as honestly.

$350.00

$239.95

750ML