2014 Pape Clement Blanc
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Tasting notes
Tropical fruit on the nose. Oleaginous. Fat and rich. Unashamedly plush though very good within that style. Joss Fowler, FINE+RARE, April 2015.
Critic scores
Average Score
FINE+RARE
Wine Spectator
More reviews and scores
The 2014 Pape-Clement Blanc has a seductive, creamy bouquet with crème brûlée, peach skin scents developing in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with quite a thick veneer of new oak, creamy and commercial, not a dry white with scintillating terroir expression but you still find yourself taking sip after sip of this heady wine. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.
The 2014 Pape Clement Blanc was tasted three times during my tastings. In all three occasions, I felt that it has not quite delivered on that initial promise from barrel, missing the mineral tension of the finest white Bordeaux such as Domaine de Chevalier or Malartic-Lagravière Blanc. The palate is quite rounded on the entry and the new oak is more evident here, lending the texture an attractive creaminess, but filing away some of the tension and nervosité on the finish. I can picture it having broad appeal, but I was hoping for more terroir expression.
About the producer
Among the oldest estates in Bordeaux, Ch. Pape Clément has been guided into the modern era by Bernard Magrez, who has managed the estate since 1985. It makes some of the best reds in the region.