Chateau Trotanoy Pomerol 2010 750ml

Think of this wine as the 1998 on steroids! Showing better out of bottle than it did from barrel, this wine has put on considerable weight. It is full-bodied, masculine (as most vintages of Trotanoy tend to be), with loads of earthy, foresty notes intermixed with black and red fruits, a meaty, almost charcuterie note to it, an inky/purple color, some sweetness on the attack, but then the tannins kick in, making the wine seem at least a decade away from accessibility to most consumers. The texture is layered, the purity impressive, and the overall symmetry, balance and integration of all of the wine’s building blocks are flawless. Forget it for 10 years and drink it over the following 35 years. Bravo!

• Country: France
• Region: Bordeaux
• Appellation: Pomerol
• Size: 750ml
• Color: Red

Varietal

Red Bordeaux

There are few regions in the world with stricter regulations in regards to wine production and grape varietals than those found in Bordeaux, France. Here, in the home of the world’s finest wines, the type and quality of grapes used is of utmost importance, and the legendary wineries which work on the banks of the Gironde river have mastered the careful art of juice blending to find the perfect balance for their produce. Whilst there are six ‘official’ Bordeaux grapes, the two key varietals for almost every fine Bordeaux wine are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and with good reason. Whilst Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are renowned for their acidity and astringency, strong fruit and spice flavors and full body, Merlot grapes are notably rounded, soft, fleshy and lighter on tannin. The combination of these two varietals, along with a small percentage of (commonly) Petit Verdot or Cabernet Franc, is the perfect balancing act ”“ the two grape varietals cancel out each others weaker points, and accentuate all that is good about the other.