2018 Les Cruzelles, Lalande de Pomerol
Up until 2019 the late great Denis Durantou was the winemaker here. Denis took over his family property Eglise Clinet in the early 1980s and turned it into one of Pomerol’s superstars before turning his hand to making wines in the surrounding appellations. These are now some of the best value wines in all of Bordeaux with incredibly consistent quality, plush ripe fruit and very smooth tannins.
Les Cruzelles is just a stone's throw away from Eglise Clinet in Lalande de Pomerol with the same gravel-clay soils that you find on the Pomerol plateau. An excellent wine, as good as many Pomerols but at a fraction of the cost.
"The 2018 Lés Cruzelles impressed from barrel. Now in bottle, it has developed quite a precocious, intense bouquet of blackberry and blueberry fruit, a light savory note and earthy scents emerging with time. The palate is just wonderful: exquisitely balanced, quite structured yet not unapproachable, the acidity perfectly judged, with a ferrous note toward the finish. This is as good a Lalande de Pomerol as you will find in this vintage. Drink 2022-2040." Neal Martin, Vinous.com