2016 CHÂTEAU PAPE CLEMENT Cru Classé Pessac-Léognan, Lea & Sandeman

CHÂTEAU PAPE CLEMENT

2023 Cru Classé Pessac-Léognan

Grapes Cab Sauv, Merlot
Colour Red
Origin France, Bordeaux
Village Pessac-Léognan
Classification Cru Classé
ABV 13.4%

Inky depths to the plum colour; as is often the case with Pape Clement even under the new regime of the past few vintages where new oak has been lowered. Delivers an exuberant, confident estate signature, supple texture, roasted black cherry and cherry pit, cocoa bean, espresso, a cushion of air helps give a lift on the finish to what is a fairly highly charged architecture. 35hl/ha yield. Drinking range: 2029 - 2042 Rating: 93-100 Jane Anson, www.janeanson.com (May 2024)


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The 2023 Pape Clément is one of the most exciting wines I have tasted here in a long time, maybe ever. Intensely aromatic and layered, the 2023 is simply stunning. Dried flowers, mint, licorice, mocha, cedar and tobacco soar out of the glass. The purity of the flavors is simply mind-blowing. Plum, pomegranate, blood orange and spice build in the glass, adding notable textural richness and resonance. This is the first vintage vinified with indigenous yeasts. Aging takes place in a combination of concrete tanks, ceramic eggs, Clayvers, 400-liter barrels and 225-liter barriques. For readers who want to taste the “new” Bordeaux, this is it. What a wine! Tasted four times. Drinking range: 2030 - 2053 Rating: 95-97 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (May 2024)

The blend here is 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, picked at a yield of 35 hl/ha. Less use of oak here now, more focus on cement tanks and eggs. The fermentation was aided by inoculation using yeasts isolated from the Pape-Clément vineyard. This presents a rather classy nose, with delicately desiccated dark summer berries and finely polished oak, all wrapped in ribbons of toast and tobacco, with some floral rose and peony notes as well. The palate brings a sense of harmony into play, with a polished and sinewy body of dark summer berries, laced with tobacco, leather, toast and dark chocolate too, with a particularly fine, well-knit and rather powdery frame of tannins. These give it a good grip, which works well with the fine acidity of the vintage. This shows delicious potential, and is ahead of many of its Pessac-Léognan peers in this vintage, especially in the finesse of the structure. Tasted twice, including at the château, with the same findings on each occasion. The alcohol is 13.4% Rating: 93-95 Chris Kissack, www.thewinedoctor.com (Apr 2024)

The 2023 Pape Clément evokes aromas of dark wild berries, spices, licorice and mulberries, followed by a medium to full-bodied, round and ample palate with structuring tannins and a firm, concentrated mid-palate that segues into a long, fruity finish. Less oaky than the previous years, this is a more contemporary expression of this great terroir. It's a blend of 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 92-94 Yohan Castaing, www.robertparker.com (Apr 2024)

Château Pape Clement

Pape Clement stakes a good claim to being the oldest vineyard in Bordeaux. On his accession to post of Archbishop of Bordeaux in 1299, Bernard de Groth was gifted the land by his brother and planted a vineyard. Five years later Bernard was elected Pope Clement V, from which title the estate takes its name. Too busy with Papal business, the estate was handed over to the Archbishops of Bordeaux who owned it until the Revolution.

The common malaise of 20th Century wars, depression and general decline saw Pape Clement in the doldrums by the 1970's. However, under the ownership of the Montagne family and the stewardship of Bernard Magrez, Château Pape Clement has become one of the leading estates in Pessac-Léognan.

This wine isn't currently part of a mixed case, but you can always browse our full selection of mixed cases here.
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