Saint-Emilion and Pomerol
Two of the most featured names in fine wine and to a large extent the basis for the reputation of Bordeaux's Right Bank
Sitting near the Dordogne river that feeds into the Grionde estuary and splits Bordeaux into two sides, these two Appellations date back
thousands of years
Today they are famed for their incredible Merlot dominant Bordeaux blends, however up until the 20th century
Pomerol was in fact primarily known for producing white wines
Although these Appellations and neighbours and are often discussed in the same sentence, they actually produce distinctly different wines from year to year
What's the soil like on the right bank? On the right bank you have four main types of soil you have
gravel, sand
Clay and limestone. All around the village of Saint-Emilion It's mainly clay limestone and
On Pomerol, what we call the plateau of Pomerol
It's mainly gravel those are the terroir of the right bank
It is these soil types that characterise Saint-Emilion and Pomerol as predominantly Merlot producing regions
With the cooler clay soils found in the best vineyards of these Appellations most conducive for this earlier ripening grape variety
The two Appellations also varied largely in size with Saint-Emilion around 16 times the size of its relatively tiny neighbour
So what are the big differences then between Saint-Emilion and Pomerol, apart from the soils
How does that change the wine? In those region we have an oceanic climate and
the weather varies a lot from a year to another year and
I think more than the difference between Saint-Emilion and Pomerol
It's more the vintage that is important. You have some good vintage
outstanding vintage and
Everything can change a lot from a vintage to another one. You're a producer of both Saint-Emilion and Pomerol
Oh, yeah, could you maybe describe what you think makes a great Pomerol?
What makes a great Saint-Emilion? It's kind of difficult to to answer both are great wines
Mainly merlot in general terms Pomerol is very silky
Very round after Saint-Emilion wine, the wine will be a bit more powerful
So speaking specifically about the flavour of the wine if I drink a Pomerol
What should I expect it to taste of? In the eyes?
It would be dark ruby red, on the nose It will be
What is very specific about Pomerol is
the blue clay which brings this
violet, truffle nose in the taste of the mouth
I would say it's very round, elegant a lot of silkiness
So then this is the Saint-Emilion, what should I expect from this? You will have some red fruits, blackberry blueberry.
Colour is amazing. So very dark. And in the mouth is very round a lot of fruits
Also, it's like a sweet. How would you recommend I drink this with food? It's great to drink alone in an aperitif?
what's your recommendation?
You can easily drink it with many things even
with a barbecue, but yeah, mainly it's with
Cheese, red meats, even you can go on chicken that will deal very well with this
With the tannins. Quite a versatile! Versatile and soft tannins that you have on the wine
It's no doubt that Saint-Emilionl and Pomerol produce some of the best red wines in Bordeaux
However, notably neither of these Appellations featured in the famed
1855 classification of Bordeaux
Exactly 100 years later Saint-Emilion producers took it into their own hands to create their own classification for their chateau
In 1955
During the same classification
Saint-Emilion was actually split into two different appellations as well
With Saint-Emilion and the more prestigious Saint-Emilion Grand Cru being defined
This distinction can be found on a Saint-Emilion own wine label with the words Saint-Emilion on Grand Cru
distinguishing the superior appellation
You may also see Saint-Emilion on Grand Cru-Classe on the label
This signifies a wine from the Saint-Emilion on Grand Cru appellation. That is also produced by one of its classified Chateau
These classified Chateau are split into three ascending categories
Saint-Emilion Grand Cru-Classe, Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe B and
Saint-Emilion premier Grand Cru Classe A
Unlike the 1855 classification
Saint-Emilion's classification is amended from time to time with different Chateau being promoted or relegated
based on the quality of their flagship wines
So then tell me a little bit about that the classifications. How did they work? How should I navigate? It seemed quite complicated
Yes, on the left bank, you know the classification in
1855 the same classification
since the beginning and
On the right bank, we have another classification and they we start in
1955 and
We changed every ten years to classification and the last classification on the right bank starting
2012.
Bordeaux, Grand Cru
Classe, it means a different thing if it's from the left or from the right. Yes different tips because
We have Saint-Emilion Grand Cru-Classe, and we have Medoc
Premier, Deuxieme, Troisieme, Quatrieme, Cinqiem, Grand Cru-Classe difference. To try and understand the best way to navigate this slightly complicated system,
and say I'm on the the right bank. Saint-Emilion, and you know Saint-Emilion classification
Yeah, we have to appellation Saint-Emilion and Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, you know and in Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, We have a
Grand Cru-Classe. Classe A and Grand Cru-Classe B
I gotta say and Grand Cru-Classe A
Angelus, Pavie, Cheval Blanc, Ausone
and Grand Cru-Classe B,
We have 14 different chateau and then Grand Cru-Classe we have around 60 different chateau.
In contrast to Saint-Emilion with its two distinct Appellations and intricate classification system
Pomerol has no classification and all chateau are unranked. That being said
Pomerol's reputation for the quality of its wine does not rely on official classification
And is instead upheld by the critical acclaim of its most famous producers
none are more famous than Chateau Petrus a quaint little chateau that makes some of the greatest and most
Renowned red wines in the world with just a single bottle demanding over a thousand pounds
My understanding is that Pomerol doesn't actually have a classification. Is that true? Yes, it's true because we have
Chateau Petrus and the Chateau Petrus, This is a classification when we think about Pomerol
We think about Chateau Petrus and we don't need to have a classification
Classified or not Saint-Emilion and Pomerol at the heart of Bordeaux's right bank and leaders of Merlot dominant wines around the world
despite being geographical neighbours
There are distinct nuances within this style of these wines from the elegant and silky nature of Pomerol to the richer and more powerful
Saint-Emilion, tasting these two side-by-side is the best way to explore these benchmark Bordeaux Appellations.