Vieux Château Certan 2012 Pomerol 750ml

James Suckling, tasting the 2012 Vieux Château Certan blind at the Southwold Bordeaux tasting, didn't hedge: "quintessentially Pomerol. You want typicité? Come right here." He called it one of the finest wines of the entire Right Bank in 2012, "one that is up there with the greats" — high praise for a growing season that started with genuine climatic uncertainty before a resolute summer pulled the vintage back into real quality. Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont, father and son, brought in the latest harvest in the estate's history that year, running from October 1st through the 11th, and the resulting wine has become one of the more quietly celebrated vintages in VCC's modern era.

Vieux Château Certan is one of Pomerol's oldest and most historically important estates — first documented on the 1745 Bellayme map under the name "Sertan," owned across the centuries by the Demay family of Bordeaux négociants, later by a banker named Charles de Bousquet, before Josephine Billiet convinced her husband Georges Thienpont to purchase the property with her own money in 1924. The vineyard sits at the highest point of the entire Pomerol plateau — 14 hectares in a single contiguous block, sharing the same celebrated blue clay subsoil that runs beneath neighboring Château Pétrus. Historically, VCC actually led the appellation in reputation before Pétrus's rise to global prominence in the post-war decades, and under continuous Thienpont family stewardship it has remained one of the region's most consistently exalted producers.

The 2012 is 87% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, harvested at 33 hectoliters per hectare and reaching 13.5% alcohol — with a polyphenol index surprisingly as high as the celebrated 2010 vintage. Tim Atkin MW found "crisp scents of blackcurrant, wild strawberry and a tangible stoniness — very expressive of its terroir," with a palate showing "real tension and purity, crisp acidity, tensile tannins that lend this VCC edginess and race," closing on a "nervous finish" of superbly assimilated oak. Farr Vintners' tasting note described "deep mulberry, plum and black cherry fruit notes intermixed with touches of graphite and subtle smoke," a medium-bodied wine of "beautiful intensity, well-integrated oak, a velvety opulence and a long, impressively pure finish" — a strong effort expected to drink well for fifteen years or more. A dense, chocolate-and-blueberry-scented Pomerol, full-bodied and velvety, with real richness and balance — the kind of vintage that reminds serious collectors exactly why Vieux Château Certan has spent nearly three centuries earning its reputation.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Vieux Château Certan is one of Pomerol's oldest and most historically significant estates, with documented wine production dating to at least the mid-1740s. The property appeared on the 1745 Bellayme map under the name "Sertan," at the time owned by the Demay family, established Bordeaux négociants. Ownership passed a century later to banker Charles de Bousquet before Josephine Billiet purchased the estate with her own money in 1924, alongside her husband Georges Thienpont — a Belgian wine merchant family based at Hof te Cattebeke in the Flemish Ardennes, whose business has operated from that manor since 1842. The Thienpont family has owned VCC continuously ever since, with Alexandre Thienpont overseeing winemaking for decades, joined by his son Guillaume, and the estate today owned by Jacques Thienpont and Fiona Morrison.

The vineyard covers 14 hectares in a single contiguous block at the highest point of the Pomerol plateau, divided into 23 individually managed plots according to soil type, grape variety, and vine age — sharing the same celebrated blue clay subsoil found at neighboring Château Pétrus. The youngest Merlot vines on the property were planted in 1959, and the youngest Cabernet Franc in 1948, giving the vineyard genuine old-vine depth throughout. Grapes are entirely hand-picked and meticulously sorted, then gently crushed and vinified by variety in temperature-controlled oak vats. The blend destined for the Grand Vin ages 18 to 22 months in new French oak barrels.

The 2012 growing season began with genuine climatic uncertainty — a capricious start to the year — before a resolute, well-balanced summer allowed the grapes to ripen with real grace. Harvest ran from October 1st through the 11th, the latest picking date in the estate's history at the time, yielding 33 hectoliters per hectare. The finished wine reached 13.5% alcohol with a pH of 3.8, and — somewhat surprisingly given the vintage's more challenging start — a polyphenol index as high as the celebrated, more powerful 2010 vintage.

Critics Reviews

Antonio Galloni, Vinous — 96 Points (January 2016):
"Unquestionably one of the wines of the vintage, the 2012 Vieux Château Certan is pure class. So many Pomerols speak to power in 2012, but VCC is all finesse. Forward and open-knit with that classic sense of translucent beauty that is the most identifiable attribute of VCC, the 2012 is simply magnificent. Veins of minerality give the wine its precision and energy, while lifted notes of sage, lavender, mint and tobacco captivate all the senses. Readers who can find the 2012 should not hesitate, as it is superb."

Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate — 95 Points (October 2016):
"Tasted blind at the Southwold Bordeaux tasting. The 2012 Vieux Château Certan has a potent, smoke, cooked meat, Cabernet Franc-scented bouquet that is beautifully defined — quintessentially Pomerol. You want typicité? Come right here. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, quite gentle as it sashays across the mouth. The acidity is very well judged and leads to an elegant tobacco tinged finish. Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont have produced one of the finest wines of the Right Bank in 2012, one that is up there with the greats."

Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast — 95 Points (May 2015):
"This wine is already so delicious, it's initially hard to find the structure. Packed with black fruits, it has velvet tannins that only slowly reveal their power. Layers of generous Merlot give the ripest black plum flavors. The wine is rich and the tannins well integrated, yet everything will age well."

James Suckling — 94 Points (February 2015):
"So complex and pure with mushrooms, tobacco, chocolate and berries. Full-bodied yet refined, fresh and lively. The texture is so silky and intense. A real beauty and balance that both make you want to drink it."

Tasting Profile

Nose
Deep colour, pure at the edge, fresh and healthy looking. A potent, smoke and cooked meat character opens the nose, with a beautifully defined, quintessentially Pomerol Cabernet Franc signature. Deep mulberry, plum, and black cherry fruit lead, intermixed with touches of graphite and subtle smoke. Crisp scents of blackcurrant and wild strawberry add brightness, alongside a tangible stoniness expressive of the terroir. Chocolate, blackberries, and blueberries round out a nose of genuine energy and lift.

Palate
Medium-bodied with fine tannin, gentle and graceful as it moves across the palate. Real tension and purity define the wine, with crisp acidity and tensile tannins lending genuine edginess and race. The fruit reads as black rather than red, carrying a real sense of poise. Beautiful intensity and well-integrated oak build a velvety opulence, full-bodied and rich with lovely balance.

Finish
Long and impressively pure, with superbly assimilated oak carrying an elegant, tobacco-tinged close. The acidity is very well judged throughout, leading to a nervous, precise finish that confirms this as one of the vintage's genuine successes — a wine expected to drink well for fifteen years or more.

Quick Overview

Food Pairings

• Roast duck or squab
• Braised beef and hearty stews
• Mushroom-forward dishes
• Aged Comté and soft-ripened cheeses
• Classic Bordelaise cuisine