A masterful and refined Pomerol that balances power with poise. The 2020 Clinet opens with alluring aromas of minty cherries, cassis, blackberries, and rose petals, layered with notes of licorice and loamy earth. The palate is full-bodied and richly textured, yet harmonious, showing ultra-fine, silky tannins and vibrant acidity that lend freshness and lift. Deep, concentrated fruit and subtle oak integration lead to a seamless, persistent finish. A beautifully structured, age-worthy Clinet — elegant, focused, and built for decades ahead.

JamesSuckling.com | JS 98
Published: Dec 22, 2022

What a beautiful young wine, showing so much finesse and tension, with ultra-fine tannins and subtle and long flavors and character. It’s medium-bodied with extremely silky tannins that grow on the palate to a seamless finish. Harmonious. Another fine Pomerol for the cellar. Drink after 2027.

Decanter | D 95
Published: Jan 2, 2023
Drink: 2026-2045

Dark and heady, smooth but still lean with a sense of seriousness with firm tannins that fill the mouth. Lovely high acidity offsets the powdery, chalky texture with perfumed blackberries and cherries alongside liquorice and cola touches. Rich and quite dense but with lovely persistence and energy.

The Wine Advocate | RP 94
Published: Apr 6, 2023
Drink: 2025-2045

The 2020 Clinet offers up aromas of minty cherries, blackberries and cassis mingled with hints of licorice, loamy soil and rose petals. Full-bodied, broad and rich, with a layered mid-palate underpinned by powdery tannins that assert themselves on the youthfully firm finish, it's impressively balanced for a wine at 15% alcohol, but it remains a rather burly, powerful Clinet.

Ronan Laborde is producing the best wines of his career at this Pomerol reference point. Some eight hectares produce Clinet, with much of the vineyards being located around the château in the lieu-dit that lends it its name, complemented by a parcel by the church and another not far from the headquarters of the syndicat viticole. Today, these holdings are planted with some 80% Merlot, but before phylloxera, Cabernet Sauvignon was widely planted in this sector. Now, Laborde is replacing Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon (he retains a parcel of old-vine Cabernet Sauvignon dating back to 1950). Vines are hedged at 1.5 meters, and cover crops help to manage water in the iron-rich clays near the château, allowing access by tractor even after recent rainfall. In the winery, Laborde now employs small stainless steel tanks that permit parcel-by-parcel vinification, and a vertical press has been the order of the day since as long ago as 2001. What's really evolved in recent years is the barrel program. Oak is long-seasoned (4-5 years), and some large formats have joined the classic 225-liter barriques. But above all, lighter, less impactful toasts are now chosen, meaning Clinet's 80% new oak is much more discreet in its aromatic and textural contribution than was the case a decade ago. The 2020 is a big, powerful wine, but it holds it together.

Jancisrobinson.com | JR 16.5++
Published: Apr 1, 2024
Drink: 2020-2036

Tasted blind. Black core. Intense dark fruit and a touch charry. Big, generous but juicy, too. Masses of everything, a bit oaky, yet all in balance for the long term. 

Chateauclinet.com

Modest but sure of its presence, Clinet lies at one of the highest points upon the renowned plateau at the heart of Pomerol - instantly recognisable by its red shutters and beautiful roses. It is home to one of the oldest vineyards in the appellation, but also one of the most famed for offering wine with such incomparable character and quality. A treasury from Pomerol, located on the soils of the best Merlots in the world. Château Clinet is an elegant, intense wine with fine and complex aromas of red fruit, blackberries and spices.