2021 Château Guillot Clauzel, Pomerol, Bordeaux

80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc.

It is a polished and refined wine with a lovely sweetness of fruit in the centre palate for the vintage—medium body. Juicy fruit.

The 2021 Guillot-Clauzel comes from the two hectares picked from September 27 to October 6 and matured in 50% new oak. Like the VCC, the Cabernet Franc comes through quite strongly on the nose, with touches of gravel and loam and hints of blue fruit emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied and finely defined with sappy black fruit laced with liquorice, building toward a structured finish and leaving a long, peppery aftertaste.

Drink 2026 - 2036

The 2021 Guillot-Clauzel turned out beautifully. It shows terrific depth and tons of character, with no hard edges and fine balance. The oak, once an issue here, is impeccably integrated, but the 2021 also has surprising complexity. Black cherry, plum, lavender, liquorice and spice fill out the layers. Guillot-Clauzel remains a rather stocky Pomerol, but the progress here in recent years has been remarkable.

Drink 2029 - 2051

Produced by Guilluame Thienpont, it's a blend of 20% Cabernet Franc and 80% Merlot.

Bottled without fining, the 2021 Guillot Clauzel offers up aromas of blackberries and cherries mingled with hints of mint, pencil shavings and orange zest. Medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy, with a generous core of pure, succulent fruit that's framed by melting tannins, it concludes with a long, saline finish.

Drink 2025 - 2041

Perfumed nose, something mineral about the scent, stoney with lots of cherry aromas. Smooth and alive, a nice upfront brightness to this - shiny but sleek. Crunchy fruit, clean, but this has texture, too and a real mineral undertone. You can feel the tension; it’s straight and well-defined, to the point, long and piercing. A very good wine that’s interesting and characterful. It is nuanced with tomato leaf and spiced accents around the sides—a clean and easy-to-enjoy wine made by Guillaume Thienpont.

Drink 2026 - 2045