Château l’Eglise-Clinet 2025

Château l'Eglise-Clinet lies in Pomerol, on plots the family bought beside the village church and cemetery and later expanded with Château Clinet land. The estate works under respectful, sustainable farming. Its vineyards sit on a mix of clay, gravel and sand, with a high proportion of old Merlot and Cabernet Franc vines whose low yields concentrate flavour and tannin. Merlot drives the wine's flesh and dark fruit, while the old Cabernet Franc brings perfume and a firm backbone. The 2025 ages in oak barrels, where controlled oxidation through the staves builds structure, stabilises colour and folds in cedar and toast that frame rather than cover the fruit. The result is deep and concentrated. The nose shows ripe blackberry, plum and black cherry over violet, liquorice and dried earth, with a savoury note from the clay subsoil. The palate is dense and firmly structured, the tannins ripe but assertive, the finish long and mineral. This is a wine to cellar, or to decant well ahead if drunk young. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees with roast beef, venison or hard mature cheese.