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Pape Clément 2017

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyMerlot/Cabernet Sauvignon

Owner Bernard Magrez has made serious investments here since the late 1990's and recent vintages have been outstanding thanks to extremely low yields, labour-intensive sorting of grapes and modern wine-making techniques. Quality bears no relation to the weedy wines of the early 1980's and before. The 42 hectares are planted with 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and 55% Merlot.

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Label

Tasting Notes

Beautiful spice, tobacco, wet earth and blackcurrants with some raspberries. Aromatic and complex. Full-bodied, refined and layered with wonderful length and power. Yet, there’s always class and pretty length here. Seamless. Drink after 2022.

96
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (June 2019), January 2020

The 2017 Pape Clement has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It comes bounding out with exuberant notions of baked blackberries, redcurrant preserves, and cassis, plus hints of cedar chest, graphite, and tar. Medium-bodied, the palate is refreshing and elegant, delivering a good intensity of red and black fruit layers with firm, grainy tannins, finishing long and earthy.

95
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, December 2022

I have found that Magrez estates have done exceptionally well in 2017, pretty much across the board, but here I feel a reach towards the barrel that is just the slightest bit out of step with the ripeness of the fruit. The tannins are flexible and in control, but it just lacks a touch of the opulence in the black fruits that was so abundant in 2015 and 2016. There is no doubt that it has been very well constructed, and it will age confidently in the medium to long term.
Drinking Window 2025 - 2038

92
Jane Anson, Decanter.com, April 2018

Black with purple core. Dark and savoury on the nose. Pretty oaky but there's more freshness here and less dense extraction than I remember.
Drink 2024-2034

16.5
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2018

The nose is firm and fresh the palate richer and sweeter with ripe black cherry in the middle. Black plums the fleshy richness is backed by bramble a mix of flavours and although fresher at the back the finish has an opulent richness. 2027-42

89/92
Derek Smedley MW, DerekSmedleyMW.co.uk, April 2018

The oak is incredibly dense here and the power and extraction of the fruit is equally impressive and forthright. The only problem is that the tannins are monstrous and they take over the entire back of the palate. I imagine that they will subside, but there is likely to be a residual austerity here which will forever haunt the finish on this wine.

17.5+
Matthew Jukes, Matthew Jukes' Blog, April 2018
Read more tasting notes...

This is very dense for the vintage on the center palate and then rolls out on the palate. Full-bodied, tight and tannic. Very polished and refined at the end. Precise. A little more cabernet sauvignon in the blend gives this the tension.

95/96
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2018

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2017 Pape Clement is composed of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Merlot, with a nose that is slightly closed at this youthful stage—broody and earthy with baked plums, boysenberries and mulberries aromas plus touches of iron ore, tobacco, tapenade and charcuterie. The palate is medium-bodied and elegant with exquisitely ripe tannins, lovely energy and freshness and a long, mineral-laced finish.
Drink Date
2022 - 2048

94+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, March 2020

The current blend of the 2017 Pape Clement is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Merlot. Deep garnet-purple colored, it sings of crushed black cherries, black raspberries and mulberries with hints of lilacs and dusty soil. Medium to full-bodied with a firm, grainy frame and wonderful freshness, it possesses great elegance and effortless intensity with a mineral-tinged finish.

92/94
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (236), April 2018
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.