2018 Vieux Château Certan

The 2018 Vieux Château Certan is a benchmark Pomerol, uniting power, purity and grace in a truly classical Right Bank expression. Sourced from one of the appellation’s most historic and coveted estates, this wine showcases the depth and precision that old vines on the Pomerol plateau can achieve in a great vintage. For collectors and serious Bordeaux lovers, it is a reference-point wine with an extremely long life ahead.

Tasting Notes
In the glass, the 2018 Vieux Château Certan shows a deep, saturated carmine-red colour with almost opaque intensity at the core and a vibrant, youthful rim. The nose is immediately seductive: ripe black cherries, wild plums and blackberries are interwoven with notes of violets, graphite, subtle cedar, cocoa and a delicate hint of truffle and spice that will become more pronounced with age. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied yet wonderfully poised, with a silky, almost cashmere-like texture. The 70% Merlot provides a plush, dark-fruited core and impressive mid-palate concentration, while the 30% Cabernet Franc brings lift, floral tones, fine-grained tannins and a long, savoury, mouth-coating finish. Despite its richness and depth, there is a precise line of freshness that keeps the wine vibrant and balanced, underscoring its status as a long-lived, great-vintage Pomerol. While already impressive with extended aeration, this 2018 has the structure and stuffing to evolve beautifully for 20–30 years or more under proper cellaring.

Production
The Vieux Château Certan vineyard lies in a single 14-hectare block on the prized Pomerol plateau, divided into 23 individual parcels that are managed separately according to soil type, grape variety and vine age. The terroir is a subtle mosaic: a very clay-rich section planted mainly with Merlot, a gravelly-clay section focused on Cabernet Franc, and a very gravelly part dedicated to Cabernet Sauvignon. With an average vine age of around 50 years, the old vines, combined with the beneficial microclimate of the plateau, allow the grapes to reach perfect physiological ripeness even in demanding years. Harvesting is done parcel by parcel to capture optimal maturity, and each lot is vinified separately. In the cellar, tradition is paired with modern precision: fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled oak vats at around 28°C, ensuring a gentle, gradual extraction of colour, tannin and aroma. This slower, measured approach favours finesse over aggression, resulting in a wine of remarkable elegance and definition.

Food & Serving
The 2018 Vieux Château Certan is a natural partner for refined, flavourful dishes such as roast lamb with herbs, slow-braised beef or veal, pigeon, duck breast, or classic French cuisine like tournedos Rossini and truffle-infused dishes. It also shines with aged hard cheeses such as Comté or old Gouda. Serve at 16–18°C in large Bordeaux glasses to allow the aromatics to fully unfold. For current drinking, decanting for 2–3 hours is highly recommended to soften the youthful structure and allow the complex bouquet to emerge; in time, shorter decanting periods will suffice as the wine continues to develop in bottle.

Producer
Vieux Château Certan is one of the oldest and most storied estates in Pomerol, with origins dating back to the early 16th century when the Demay family settled there from Scotland. The property appeared on Belleyme’s 1785 map under the name “Sertan” and has long been associated with some of the finest terroirs on the Pomerol plateau. In 1858, Charles de Bousquet became the owner and constructed the château buildings that still define the estate today. A major turning point came in 1924, when Flemish wine merchant Georges Thienpont acquired Vieux Château Certan, marking the beginning of the Thienpont family’s lasting presence in Bordeaux. Under their stewardship, Vieux Château Certan has become one of the region’s most respected names, renowned for its meticulous parcel management, classical winemaking and consistent production of some of Pomerol’s most elegant and ageworthy wines.

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