2010 Clos L'Eglise, Pomerol

This is the Clos L’Eglise that takes it all to another level with incredible brightness and focus. Full-bodied yet racy and so long. It goes on for minutes with the violets, lavender and hot stones. Pomerol magic.

More mocha, espresso, and chocolate-laced dark fruits emerge from the 2010 Clos L'Eglise. It's more dense, powerful, and backward than the 2009, yet certainly in the qualitative ballpark. Full-bodied, locked and loaded, with ripe yet certainly present tannins, this is a great vintage that's just now starting to come around. I'd still give bottles another couple of years, but it's a stunning wine.

Concentrated with sweet, ripe, lush, concentrated, dark red berries, that are complicated with the addition of dark cherry, even darker chocolate and truffle. Plush textures, depth of flavor and energy make everything work here. Give it another 5 years and this will be even better.

Deep garnet colored, the 2010 Clos l'Eglise leaps from the glass with vivacious baked raspberries, warm red and black plums and dried herbs notes plus wafts of pencil shavings and menthol. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has impressive energy with a firm line of chewy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with loads of zip in its step.

Another brilliant wine from Helene Garcin-Leveque, the 2010 Clos L’Eglise comes from a 15-acre vineyard near the well-known church just to the west of the high plateau of Pomerol. It is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. Loads of roasted espresso notes intermixed with white chocolate, plum, Asian soy, blackberry and black cherry fruit make for an intensely perfumed set of aromatics. Plump, fleshy and full-bodied, with beautiful fruit as well as undeniable purity and an enticing texture, this is a succulent, lush Pomerol to drink over the next 12-15+ years. Drink: 2013 - 2028
-Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #205 Feb 2013

(92-95 pts)
2010: The Garcin family has made so many top vintages of Clos l'Eglise since taking over this estate in the late nineties that it is difficult to say 2010 will turn out better than 2009, 2005, 2000 or 1998, but it is unquestionably a top-flight effort for both the vintage and the appellation. A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, this full-bodied wine exhibits a dense purple color, a sweet perfume of jammy boysenberries and black currants, oak, truffles and caramel. This opulent, deep yet powerful Pomerol possesses fresh acids and tremendous precision. Enjoy it over the next 15-20 years. By the way, a second wine, the forward, up-front 2010 Esprit de l'Eglise, also performed well.

Tasted blind at the Southwold Bordeaux 2010 tasting. The Clos l'Eglise 2010 has an intense bouquet with dense black fruit mixed with autumn leaves and crushed rock - well defined with good lift. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, a little chewy on the fruit palate but plenty of substance and grip towards the liquorice-tinged finish. There is a fine sense of energy here: no frills but everything in its right place. Tasted January 2014.

Good bright, deep red. Crystallized black raspberry, cherry, bitter chocolate and graphite minerality on the expressive nose. Dense, sweet and very deep, with hugely rich flavors of red and darker berries, espresso and bitter chocolate. As creamy as this is, there's no shortage of energy or underlying tannic support. Very long and lush on the finish. A great vintage for this property, but this will probably be best over the next 15 years.

Offers gorgeous mouthfeel, range of fruit and length. A velvety feel belies the dense structure buried here, while thoroughly enticing linzer torte, plum sauce and blackberry pâte de fruit flavors pump along, supported by singed spice, apple wood and ganache. Displays flesh, structure, definition and drive. One for the cellar. JM

The Garcin family has made so many top vintages of Clos l’Eglise since taking over this estate in the late nineties that it is difficult to say 2010 will turn out better than 2009, 2005, 2000 or 1998, but it is unquestionably a top-flight effort for both the vintage and the appellation. A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, this full-bodied wine exhibits a dense purple color, a sweet perfume of jammy boysenberries and black currants, oak, truffles and caramel. This opulent, deep yet powerful Pomerol possesses fresh acids and tremendous precision. Enjoy it over the next 15-20 years. By the way, a second wine, the forward, up-front 2010 Esprit de l’Eglise, also performed well.

Bright, dark ruby. Sexy aromas of tangy dark berries, Oriental spices and cocoa powder. Initially creamy in the mouth, with flavors of blackberry, coffee and cocoa, then turns dry and tannic on the long finish. This boasts plenty of fruit and verve, and time may help it come around, but I can't help but wonder if it hasn't been overextracted. I hope that time proves me wrong.

Like their 2009, this has a rich, thick, cooked style of fruit on the nose and palate. Rubbery tannic grip yet the acidity delivers refreshment too. Unquestionably concentrated and dense, but has that come at the cost of nuance and subtlety? Perhaps bottle age is the missing part of the equation. (RH)

Tasted blind. Deep smudgy garnet. Lifted and minty on the nose but still some black fruit. Tarry, thick and chewy. Massive structure and masses of very ripe fruit. Chewy and alcoholic but it’s big in every way and therefore balanced. (JH)