La Chenade 2020

Supple and generous, with rapsberry and blackberry puree, floral aromatics, clear precision, edges of austerity from the big tannins of the vintage. Harvest September 9 to 16. 30% new oak 3.72ph. A yield of 38hl/ha. Noemie Durantou winemaker alongside Olivier Gautrat

80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. Cask sample.Fruit-driven, lively and juicy with a light tannic frame. Simple pleasure but falls away a bit at the end. (JL) 14%Drink 2023 – 2028

(80% M, 20% CF; 40hl/ha; 14% ABV; 30% new)Densely but freshly ripe nose, with a touch of gravel there; rich, fresh, and fleshy wine, with a very nicely contained tannin; ripe, plush, satisfying, gently and flatteringly rich, with a beautiful defining freshness and with lovely length. Beautifully made, a great success, and likely to be exceptionally good value. 2024–34+.

The 2020 La Chenade is clean and precise on the nose, offering a mixture of red and black fruit, plus hints of licorice and light minty scents loitering in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins, veering more toward black fruit. An underlying salinity then encourages the saliva to flow on the finish. This is a beautiful Lalande de Pomerol – elegance personified. 2025 - 2038.

The 2020 La Chenade is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, coming from vines planted to a sandy-gravel soil at the Durantous's Lalande de Pomerol estate. The Merlot was picked between the 9th and the 15th of September and the Cabernet Franc on the 16th of September. It has an alcohol of 14% and is aging in French oak barrels, 30% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it comes skipping out of the glass with exuberant scents of Morello cherries, boysenberries and crushed red and black plums, plus suggestions of underbrush, damp soil and menthol. The medium-bodied palate is elegant and nicely balanced, with soft acidity and tannins framing the earth-laced red and black fruits, finishing long and minerally. 2024 - 2038