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Chateau Pontet-Canet

2012
Blend
4% Cabernet Franc
65% Cabernet Sauvignon
30% Merlot
1% Petite Verdot
Country
France
Region
Bordeaux
Appellation
Pauillac
UPC
0 15643 42691 9
Red Wine
Verified Stock
1704-12
Product Ratings
James Suckling 93pt

This shows incredible decadence and opulence for the vintage with dried meat, black berry, blueberries and hints of mushroom. Full body, very polished silky tannins and a chewy finish. Lots of richness for the vintage. Persistent palate. This was aged 35% in cement eggs for 12 months

by James Suckling, 2015
Wine Advocate 93pt

Deep garnet in color, the 2012 Pontet-Canet gives up a profound earthy/savory nose, revealing notes of tilled soil, woodsmoke, mossy tree bark, fungi and bouquet garni with a core of raspberry preserves, boysenberries and dried cherries plus a hint of warm cassis. Medium-bodied, it has a firm grainy texture and a softly spoken, savory character in the mouth, finishing with lingering oolong tea and dried herbs notes.

by Wine Advocate, 2020
Wine Enthusiast 92pt

This tastes jammy and very fruity, with tannins that are totally enveloped by the rich texture. Plummy and comfortable, it's all about ripe berries and currants. Smoky flavors come from the wood aging, and contrast with the Port-like lusciousness of the wine.

by Wine Enthusiast, 2015
Wine Spectator 92pt

Broad and fleshy, with an alluring feel to the layers of steeped plum, blackberry coulis and raspberry reduction notes, all gliding over ample but polished tannins. Loam, tobacco and warm stone accents stay in the background for now but add steady base notes to the finish. Packs in solid fruit for the vintage, with a commensurate tug of earth. Best from 2017 through 2025.

by Wine Spectator, 2015

Tasting notes

Vibrant and deep in colour.
The nose is a fusion of red and black berries, graphite and spices.
The palate's structure is particularly dense and long with chiseled tannins of incredible precision.

Vintage

Winter resolved to be particularly gentle. Then, in spring, the rain invited itself. Numerous and often plenteous rainfall accompanied the first months of the vegetative cycle of the vine. The flowering, which intervened rather late, was especially marked by its spreading over time.
Fortunately, the sun always returns. This being the case from the middle of July onwards, at which point a very warm and particularly dry summer prevailed. These favorable conditions endured until the arrival of autumn and allowed us to minimize the heterogeneousness during the long flowering period. Then, suddenly a new meteorological turn-about brought abundant rains only days before the harvest of the first Merlot grapes.
We had anticipated the possibility of a rainy grape harvest by equipping ourselves with the third line of sorting table reception for the grapes.
Ideally we would have preferred no rain at all. But, having planned for the necessity of punctual sorting, only perfectly ripe grapes entered the vats.

Harvest

From the 4th of October to the 17th of October
90 % of the harvest
Alcohol level : 13,5 degrees