Description
Domaine Les Chagnasses, Lalande-de-Pomerol
If you have any interest in experiencing the golden age of Bordeaux, Domaine Les Chagnasses’ mature, cellar-direct offering is your obtainable white whale. This rarefied bottle contains everything that gives Bordeaux its unending allure: extraordinary vintage, location, evolution, and value. Let’s start with the vintage.
There’s really nothing else like 2010 Bordeaux, an immortalized growing season that lifted many properties to a truly magical, out-of-this-world state. Critics labeled it “vintage of the century” and “best ever” right out of the gate, and 12 years on, these powerful, silky, unabashedly delicious wines have been further idolized. So, yes, 2010 Bordeaux deserves all the praise that’s been heaped upon it. Then there’s the unbelievable location: Chagnasses’ micro-cuvée comes from a two-hectare vineyard (rooted in Pomerol’s sandy, iron-tinged clay) that’s less than a mile away from $6,000 Château Pétrus! As for the impeccable evolution of today’s wine, this has blossomed into a remarkably polished, complex, and ultra-savory Right Banker that showcases the brilliance of Merlot with substantial age. And finally, the unrivaled value: We imported this directly and exclusively from Bordeaux, and can proudly present it to you for just $35. Thirty-five dollars, and it’s only available here—this is pure insanity!
NOTE: This cellar-direct parcel is currently en route to our warehouse. We expect it to arrive in 2-3 weeks.
Lalande-de-Pomerol is Inside Baseball 101. This Right Bank appellation is home to some of the greatest hidden values of Bordeaux despite sitting right next to Pomerol, the world’s cultiest and most expensive Merlot real estate. Seriously: Domaine Les Chagnasses is a nine-iron shot from the borders of Pomerol! Created in 1963 by Jean Seynat, this small farmstead is now run by his grandchildren and their two hectares of vines (that’s ridiculously small, by the way) are divided amongst a few parcels—mostly Merlot with some Cabernet Franc—that are essentially an extension of Pomerol’s plateau. The soils here are more sandy than gravelly but the clays are streaked with the famed iron deposits locally known as crasse de fer.
They farm lutte raisonnée and harvest their 35-year-old vines entirely by hand, with a couple of manual sorts along the way. The grapes ferment varietally separately in concrete vessels. After blending, the resulting wine is aged in a combination of stainless steel vats and once-used French barrels for 18 months. This batch was bottled in the early stages of 2012 and then “locked away” in Bordeaux until May of 2022. That’s why it looks, smells, and tastes so perfect.
For instant gratification, decant this wine for 10 minutes, watching for sediment, and serve in Bordeaux stems at 60-65 degrees. The nose boasts generous aromas of kirsch, roasted red plum, and raspberry with swells of baked clay, cedar, bay leaf, and crushed rock. The palate is framed by ultra-supple tannins that melt on the finish and give way to a mouthwatering trail of savory earth and red fruits. It’s a paragon of mature (Lalande de) Pomerol, and even though it’s delicious by itself, this is not a wine to serve on its own. Before you simply open and pour this wine for a group of friends, keep in mind that this is a wine that craves, and deserves, to be served alongside a great meal to shine its brightest. It is practically begging for slow-braised meat, cassoulet, or duck confit. This seven-hour leg of lamb has just enough fat to envelop the earth of this terroir-driven Bordeaux and should deliver a sensory experience that will keep your dinner table full.
