Château Pontet Canet 2010
Review of the Estate
Positioned adjacent to Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Chateau Pontet-Canet is blessed with excellent terroir. Extensive improvements to vineyard practices over the past twenty years have built on this natural advantage. This has elevated the wines created at Chateau Pontet Canet to impressive heights challenging and surpassing the wines of nearby top estates, particularly in difficult vintages.
Chateau Pontet Canet is unique in Bordeaux in that they have been certified both biodynamic and organic since the 2010 vintage. Synthetic chemicals are not used and there are now horses to work the vineyards because they are gentler on the soils than tractor tires. Soils which are repeatedly worked by machines may become compacted over time and this makes it more difficult for vine roots to penetrate deeply enough into the subsoil.
All fruit at Chateau Pontet Canet is handpicked and is placed into small crates that minimise the possibility of the grapes being crushed before they reach the winery. Careful sorting is done with both vibrating machines and a large group of workers in order to remove all but the healthiest grapes.
A new and improved vat room was built in the cellars for the Chateau Pontet Canet 2005 vintage. Upgrades included cone-shaped stainless steel tanks and cement vats. The cellar also operates entirely by gravity, ensuring that the grapes, must and wine are all handled as gently as possible.
Chateau Pontet Canet uses very precise blending techniques, with parcels being fermented in small lots. After fermentation, the wine is run off into barrels, 60% of which are new, where it is then matured for 16 to 20 months.
Vineyard
Surface area: 160.5 acres
Grape Varieties: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 40 years
Density of plantation: 10,00 vines per hectare
Average yields: 45 hectoliters per hectare
Average cases produced: 14,500 per year
Plateau of maturity: 15 - 50 years
Château Pontet Canet 2010 Reviews / Tasting Notes
Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Advocate
Point Score: 100
The 2010 Pontet-Canet offers a very deep garnet color. Whoa-the nose explodes with a vast array of black fruit preserves and savory nuances: plum preserves, blackcurrant cordial, black cherry coulis and licorice with wafts of dried lavender, melted chocolate, charcuterie, black olives, truffles and camphor plus a hint of sandalwood. The full-bodied palate is completely filled with black fruits, exotic spices and earthy nuances with a firm foundation of ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with epic length and depth. So much more expressive and seductive than a lot of 2010s at this stage, and yet it is still incredibly youthful!
James Suckling
Point Score: 100
The aromas to this are incredible with blueberry, minerals, dried flowers, and stones. It goes to dried meat and spices. Full body and incredibly integrated with blackberry, licorice, and minerals. There's a wonderful purity to this. It goes on for minutes. The quality of tannins is amazing. Seamless. There's an amazing transparency that shows you all the elements of the wine's unique terrior. Try after 2018.
Wine Spectator
Point Score: 97
This is big, broad and powerfully rendered, but remarkably polished and refined at the same time. An enormous core of roasted fig, blackberry and black currant fruit is suavely wrapped with roasted apple wood and sandalwood, while dark espresso, loam and warm paving stone notes drive the finish. Very long, with a great tug of scorched earth at the end. A terrific combination of power and precision. Best from 2020 through 2040.