| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > Lalande Pomerol |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
Made by the brilliant Denis Durantou of Chateau L'Eglise Clinet. The fruit is sourced from a section of the Les Cruzelles vineyard with gravel soil. 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. 1700 case production. This has probably been Farr Vintners' biggest selling Bordeaux wine en primeur over the last 15 years. Year on year La Chenade delivers the goods but the price remains reasonable. A wine that never lets you down. Elevage in 40% new oak barrels.
So delicious already with delicious depth and fruitiness, yet this always retains its balance and length. Fine tannins and a raspberry, cassis finish. You want to drink this now.
A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, 2016 La Chenade is medium to deep garnet in color. It skips out of the glass with cheery scents of Morello cherries, rose oil, black raspberries, and Sichuan pepper, plus a touch of wood smoke. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly styled, sporting bright red berry and savory layers with a chewy backbone, finishing with a compelling lift.
A Denis Durantou favourite, always worth following. This is a major buy, so juicy with cooling fruit on the finish, it softens and lifts at the same time. Some floral character caresses the fruit. 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc on gravel picked between 24th and 29th September, and aged in 40% new oak.
Luscious and florally perfumed. Not immensely long but hugely enjoyable. GV
Drink 2020-2026
A smoking good wine from an appellation that should get more recognition that it does, the 2016 Chenade offers a floral, medium to full-bodied style that carries loads of gravelly minerality as well as notes of black cherries, raspberries, spring flowers, and earth. With terrific purity and, again, a lovely floral quality, it’s a gorgeous red to enjoy over the coming 10-15 years. 2019 - 2034.
Bramble freshness the nose has a fragrant mix of fruits the start of the palate light and bright. Rich and ripe in the middle sweet black plums the supple fleshiness is underpinned by freshness. The tannins are well integrated the finish has sweetness and length. 2025-36
“The revenge of the Merlot” is how Denis Durantou describes his 2016s. This comes from gravel soils and is almost indecently perfumed in 2016, with notes of wild Mediterranean herbs, some grassy, leafy undertones and fleshy, yet refreshing flavours. 2022-28
Very floral and seductive on the nose, this is a wild red berry concoction with stunning purity and a slim chassis but there is huge energy and drive here with actively feisty tannins overlaying epic acidity. Wonderful and in time, this will grow and grow. I expect the nose to develop more, too, into a complete beauty.
The 2016 La Chenade is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc from Denis Durantou's estate in Lalande-de-Pomerol. It was picked 24-29 September for the Merlot and 6 October for the Cabernet Franc at 39 hectoliters per hectare and then matured in 40% new oak. It has a lovely nose that needed some coaxing from the glass, eventually revealing black cherries and touches of bergamot with Earl Grey following later. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, fresh right from the start, very harmonious with an elegant, quite minerally finish. Very elegant, very suave, very promising. Drink 2020 - 2032.
Medium garnet-purple colored, the 2016 La Chenade opens with tar and chargrill scents over a core of warm blackberries and black cherries with a waft of raspberry leaves. Medium to full-bodied, it fills the mouth with tarry black fruits, structured with chewy tannins and finishing on a dried herbs note. Drink 2020-2027.
