Tech Notes
Wine Details
James Suckling
Jeb Dunnuck
The Wine Cellar Insider
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Vinous
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The Wine Independent
By Chateau Pape Clement
Pessac-Leognan 2014
History
Chateau Pape Clement is one of the oldest properties in Bordeaux. The vineyard was first planted in the 13th century, and in 1305, it was owned by Bertrand de Goth, the youngest son of a noble family from Bordeaux. He was the Archbishop of Bordeaux and became Pope in 1305, taking the name Clement V. The vineyard was run by the Bordeaux Archbishop until the French Revolution. The estate takes pride in the fact that it has produced wines from the same vineyards for over seven centuries.
Vineyard Details
Appellation: Pessac-Leognan
Area Under Vines: 54.27 hectares
Grape Varieties Planted: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc
Average Vine Age: 28 years
Planting Density: 7,700 vines/hectare
Soil: Clay-gravel dating back to the end of the Pliocene epoch and the Quaternary period
Vineyard Management: Parcel-based management, natural grass growing, plowing between vine rows; integrated pest management, vigor control; debudding, removal of side shoots, green harvesting, tillage with animal traction, hedgerows along the vineyard
Harvest: By hand in crates from September 24th to October 20th, 2014
Winemaking
First sorting in the vineyard, manual destemming berry by berry, and the use of a sorting table. Transfer into 30- to 70-hl wooden vats by gravity flow. Low temperature pre-fermentation maceration. Manual punching down. 30-40 day maceration. The wine is run off into French oak barrels by gravity flow. Malolactic fermentation in barrels.
Production
2014 Blend: 57.5% Merlot, 37.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot
Aging: 18 months in oak barrels
Bottling: June 2016
Consulting Oenologist: Michel Rolland
[Information provided by Beyerman]
Region:
Bordeaux
Vintage:
2014
Grape:
Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot
Country:
France
Unit Size:
750.00 ML
Alcohol Percentage:
13.50
Appellation:
Pessac-Léognan
Wine: Chateau Pape Clement Pessac-Leognan 2014
Score/Rating: 96
Review Date: 01/25/2017
Tasting Notes: Intense blackberry and blueberry aromas as well as mushroom undertones. Violets, too. Sweet tobacco. Full-bodied and layered with polished tannins. Very long and beautiful. Give it two or three years to show what it has but already a beauty.
Wine: 2014 Chateau Pape Clement
Score/Rating: 95
Suggested Drinking Window: 2018 - 2043
Review Date: 02/15/2018
Reviewed By: Jeb Dunnuck
Tasting Notes: In a vintage that can lack a little pizzazz, the 2014 Pape Clement stands out for its exuberant, sexy, full-bodied style. Checking in as a blend of [...] Merlot, [...] Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance Petit Verdot, aged in 60% new French oak, its deep purple color is followed by a layered, ripe, sexy wine that has loads of currants, blackberries, smoke tobacco, and forest floor aromas and flavors, with just a touch of chocolaty oak. Silky and incredibly pure on the palate, with impeccable balance and sweet, yet present tannin, it’s already impossible to resist, yet is going to deliver the goods for another 20-25 years. It’s a beauty!
Wine: 2014 Chateau Pape Clement (Pessac-Leognan)
Score/Rating: 94
Review Date: 11/14/2017
Tasting Notes: Cigar box, tobacco, smoke, licorice and blackberry aromatics open up the full bodied, fleshy wine. The fruit is fresh, ripe and rich, the tannins are refined and the texture is quite silky. A decade of time is warranted before pulling a cork here.
Wine: Chateau Pape Clement 2014 Pessac-Leognan
Score/Rating: 94 - Cellar Selection
Review Date: 04/1/2017
Reviewed By: Roger Voss
Tasting Notes: Ripe and richly fruity, the wine is full bodied with great acidity as well as firm tannins. It will keep for many years. Bold tannins and a fine tension between the fruit and acidity are all promising for the future. [...].
Wine: 2014 Pape Clement
Score/Rating: 94
Suggested Drinking Window: 2020 - 2050
Review Date: 03/31/2017
Reviewed By: Neal Martin
Tasting Notes: The 2014 Pape Clement has quite a potent bouquet with lavish red cherry, kirsch, iodine and pastille-like scents, the oak probably needing another couple of years to fully integrate. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine line of acidity, quite refined and focused with appreciable tension towards the finish that comes laden with succulent, tobacco-infused blackberry fruit. This is a sumptuous and yet refined Pape-Clement that demonstrated the most matiere or substance out of all the Pessac-Leognan 2014s that I tasted, except for the Haut-Brion. It is certainly a wine destined for a long future.
Wine: Chateau Pape Clement, Pessac-Leognan, Grand Cru Classe, 2014
Score/Rating: 94
Suggested Drinking Window: 2024 - 2040
Reviewed By: Georgie Hindle
Tasting Notes: Sour cherries, cinnamon and vanilla on the nose, some oaky touches. Juicy and lively, definitely a nice combination of strawberry and raspberry fruit with high acidity. You feel as if the oak elements just constrict the sides of the wine a little, causing some compactness or rather narrowing of the wine, keeping it all in one line and just not allowing it to expand more but there's nice detail on show. Lots of cool and sweet blueberry touches, lively acidity and freshness throughout, this is an enjoyable wine no doubt. Very easy to drink and has the power some will be looking for in 2014. More highly charged and confident than some.
Wine: 2014 Pape Clement
Score/Rating: 93
Suggested Drinking Window: 2024 - 2048
Review Date: 02/2024
Reviewed By: Neal Martin
Tasting Notes: The 2014 Pape Clement has a more opulent and showier bouquet than the Domaine de Chevalier tasted alongside, with red berry fruit, sandalwood, Indian spices and high-toned blue fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin and layered black fruit laced with black pepper, cedar and spice box. The finish conveys more panache than the aromatics, with a palpable sense of control and focus on the finish. Classy. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.
Wine: Chateau Pape Clement Pessac-Leognan 2014
Score/Rating: 93
Suggested Drinking Window: Best from 2020 through 2035
Review Date: 03/31/2017
Reviewed By: James Molesworth
Tasting Notes: Lavish in profile, this sports a range of warm fruitcake, anise and black tea aromatics followed quickly by a gush of raspberry, plum and boysenberry confiture notes. Velvety, showing ample structure through the finish, pulling the fruit and wood notes together. A rare bird, stylistically, in this generally understated vintage. Best from 2020 through 2035.
Wine: 2014 Pape Clement
Score/Rating: 91
Suggested Drinking Window: 2024-2039
Review Date: 03/05/2024
Reviewed By: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Tasting Notes: The 2014 Pape Clement is medium to deep garnet-brick in color. Notes of black cherry preserves and prunes jump from the glass, followed by hints of Sichuan pepper, tobacco leaf, and smoked meats. The medium to full-bodied palate is chock full of spicy black fruits with a velvety texture and nice tension, finishing with great length.
