2010 Chapelle de Potensac

56% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The average age of the vines at Chapelle de Potensac is five to 10 years. The beginning of the growth cycle was delayed by the cool May and June weather this year and flowering was marked by cool temperatures. Sunny weather at the end of July and the beginning of August led to even ripening among all grape varieties and a late harvest, which took place in favourable conditions. The grapes for this wine were hand harvested in early September and then whole bunch pressed. A three-week fermentation took place in stainless-steel tanks at 26-28 °C and the wine was then matured for 12 months in medium toast French limousin barriques, 10% of which were new. Once bottled the wine was left to mature further before release. Dark crimson. Scented with obviously top quality oak. Polished and smart. Almost ready to enjoy! Although it will clearly age too. Nice to have some top quality sophisticated winemaking in, well, 207 stores. Just a hint of sour damsons but this is serious wine, even if artisanal is not quite the right word. (JR)

The second wine, the 2010 La Chapelle de Potensac, has more Merlot in the blend and is surprisingly fruity and soft. A bistro quaffer to be drunk uncritically with a steak au poivre or coq au vin, it can be enjoyed over the next 3-5 years. Leave it to Jean-Hubert Delon to make a second wine from his northern frontier territory of Potensac, for decades one of the most reliable and value-priced wines of Bordeaux.

Very intense crimson. Thick and sweet and flattering on the nose. Makes a real impact at first though it is not that dense and has just a touch of green at the end. (JR)