2017 Enclos Tourmaline

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Enclos Tourmaline bursts from the glass with notes of plum pudding, baked blackberries and Black Forest cake plus hints of pencil lead, tar and new leather. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is laden with dried black berries and spicy layers, framed by chewy tannins, finishing a little firm and yet with lovely freshness. Give it a good 2-4 years in bottles and drink it over the next 12-15+.

The 2017 Enclos Tourmaline was cropped at 35hl/ha and saw no SO2 during fermentation. It maintains that ostentatious bouquet that I noticed from barrel with quite precocious black cherries and blueberries on the nose. Lush and slightly heady in style, it will appease to readers who seek hedonistic Pomerols. Thankfully the palate shows a modicum of restraint and whilst the 2017 does not quite match the 2015 or 2016, it displays an intensity, perhaps even a hubris, that ensures that it sticks its head above its peers. Very fine.

One of the riper, more powerful wines in the vintage, the 2017 Enclos Tourmaline boasts a deep purple color as well as a monster bouquet of blackberries, blueberries, plums, roasted herbs, and candied violets. Structured, tannic, full-bodied, and in need of a solid 4-5 years (or more) of bottle age, it should be one of the longer-lived wines in the vintage from Pomerol. This cuvee comes from a miniscule one-hectare plot, just beside Chateau Clinet, that prior to 2012 belonged to Chateau La Patache. It was purchased in 2012 by Hong Kong financer Peter Kwok and it’s been up with the top wines of the vintage ever since. The wine is always 100% Merlot, aged 20 months all in new barrels, and it hit 14.5% natural alcohol. There are a tiny 2,000 bottles produced.