| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan |
| Colour | White |
| Type | Still |
The rare dry white wine of Chateau Pape Clement is made from around 50:50 Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc with a touch of Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle.
Beautiful aromas of lime curd, dried pear, grilled white peach and flint on the nose. So exotic on the nose. Some cream and honey, too. It’s medium-bodied with bright, tangy acidity. Creamy and focused with lingering dried-citrus and crushed-gravel notes. Long. Drink or hold.
The 2018 Blanc is a blend of 57% Sauvignon Blanc, 39% Sémillon and 4% Muscadelle. It was aged for around 14 months in 55% new and 45% second-fill French oak barrels. It races out of the gate with flamboyant scents of pineapple upside-down cake, lemon meringue pie and honey-drizzled peaches, plus suggestions of orange blossoms and yuzu peel. The medium to full-bodied palate has a decadent touch of oiliness to the texture with loads of spicy sparks to the tropical fruit layers, finishing long with a refreshing burst of zestiness. It's a richer expression, for sure, but it really works and it is seriously scrumptious. Drink: 2022-2034
Barrel sample. Super-inviting creamy lemon nose. Ripe and spicy but not OTT. On the palate, lots of oak spice and a bit of heat but the fruit is pure citrus and pear. Perhaps a little intense on the finish, overwhelmed by spice, but should calm down. (JH)
Drink 2022-2028
Very tropical on the nose with mango, passionfruit and guava overlayed with toasty french oak. The palate is much the same, very fleshy, juicy and exotic. The spiced notes are strong and sweet, exaggerating the ripeness of the fruit. This is powerful and opulent, and for lovers of ripe and smoky white wines.
White flowers, citrus, lemon curd, and honeysuckle notes all emerge from the 2018 Château Pape Clément Blanc, which is a blend of 57% Sauvignon Blanc, 29% Sémillon, and 4% Muscadelle. Full-bodied, concentrated, beautifully balanced, and with integrated acidity, it’s another smoking good white from this estate.
I rarely write the word tannic about a white wine, but this is a massively intense wine with a lot of traction coming from the skin and this brings size and scale to the whole experience. You will have to wait a long while for it to calm down, but this is a fascinating, if unusual, (tannic) white wine.
The 2018 Pape-Clément Blanc offers attractive scents of white flower, honeysuckle, tangerine and yellow plum that gently gains intensity with aeration. The palate is well balanced on the entry, displaying a waxy texture, but then it loses a little tension toward the finish. Nutty and smoky, quite forward and just missing the energy conveyed by the aromatics. 2021-2035
Due to be bottled December 2019, the 2018 Pape Clément Blanc has a fresh bouquet with nectarine, frangipane, crushed stone and pressed white flower scents, just a touch of gravel in the background. The palate is very well balanced with a fine line of acidity, more saline than previous vintages with touches of walnut and smoke towards the precise finish. Excellent. 2021 - 2035
This is a cylinder of dense fruit and phenolic intensity, yet it remains agile and vivid with cooked-apple, honey and cream character, compounding the fantastic texture and structure. A great white with the same gravitas as a red.
The Pape Clement 2018 Blanc slips languidly from the glass with tropical notes of warm pineapples, fresh mango and green guava plus hints of nutmeg, orange blossoms, lanolin and crushed rocks. Full-bodied, rich and seductive, it is absolutely laden with tropical fruit and spice layers, with a racy line to support and long, opulent finish. The blend is 57% Sauvignon Blanc, 39% Sémillon and 4% Muscadelle. Anticipated aging regimen is 14 months in 55% new and 45% second-fill French oak barrels.
