1996 Vieux Chateau Certan

The 1996 Vieux Château Certan comprises only vines in excess of 25 years and underwent long vatting, aged in two-thirds new oak. The nose has a sense of flatness that it cannot shake off, leathery black fruit, just missing a bit of perfume. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly dry tannins but well-balanced with fine acidity. The finish is perhaps the best part of this 1996, with Earl Grey and black pepper complementing that dark berry fruit. It just feels a bit short on the aftertaste. Tasted at the VCC vertical in Etikhove.

Although this was not a great vintage in Pomerol, Alexandre Thienpont crafted a commendable 1996 Vieux Château Certan. The bouquet is open-knit with black plum mixed with chestnut and Earl Grey. [N.B. some bottles have shown some brettanomyces.] The palate is medium-bodied and underpinned by a fine line of acidity, a decent amount of black fruit tinged with mint towards the rather abrupt finish. Not bad, although the 1995 is better. Taken from the Pomerol book authored by Neal Martin.

Tasted three times from bottle in January, the 1996 merited a slightly higher score on one occasion, but my policy is to go with the more conservative rating. The wine exhibits a dark plum color, and a complex nose of roasted herbs, Asian spices, earth, and sweet black cherry fruit. A refined claret, with excellent concentration, a sweet mid-palate, and moderate tannin in the finish, it is a finesse-styled Pomerol. Anticipated maturity: 2003-2016.