La Gravette de Certan 2010

This wine from Pomerol and 2010 is absolute stunning! Below is an extraction of an article from the Crush wine & spirits site which sums it all up.

The 2010 Bordeaux produced wines that are built for the ages. This is a vintage that harks back to the wines of old.

This is a special vintage for Bordeaux.

More importantly, for us, it is a vintage that marks something of a return to a more classic idea of Bordeaux. These are poised to be some of the longest lived modern-day examples.

Vieux Chateau Certan (VCC) has turned out two absolutely stunning wines. And note we wrote “wines” – plural. The 2010 vintage at VCC is not only about the Grand Vin. In fact, one of the most sought after wines of the 2010 vintage is the estate’s second wine, La Gravette de Certan.

There’s no way around the fact that Pomerols are pricey. It’s almost impossible to find sub-$60 Pomerols that deliver the level of quality that have made the area famous. Forget about finding something with the pedigree that 2010 Gravette de Certan delivers at this price point. This is a don’t miss.

If there is a signature at VCC, it is elegance and this played to the strengths of the 2010 vintage. Alexandre Thienpont and his team tamed the massive tannins and managed to weave the bright acidity into the balanced, structured wines.

The quality at VCC is at a peak; Alexandre Thienpont is turning out his best wines ever and the vineyards are in spectacular shape. We have heard from numerous Bordeaux-diehards (professional and insiders) that the trilogy of 2008, 2009 and 2010 are the three greatest modern-day vintages at VCC, in the same qualitative league as the legendary 1947, 1948 and 1949.

Parker quoted Alexandre Thienpont as saying that “La Gravette de Certan is better in 2010 than many of the vintages of Vieux Chateau Certan produced in the 1970s.”

These are serious words and serious praise from one of the most reserved and modest winemakers in all of Bordeaux.

Any historical analysis of Bordeaux prices reveals a rather dramatic increase. While a great many of the Grand Vins are today solidly entrenched at three- and four-digit pricing, it’s refreshing to find serious, classic and structured Bordeaux for the cellar at reasonable prices.

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