Very perfumed, with aromas of dried flowers, bark, earth and crushed stones. This is really elegant, medium- to full-bodied, with an almost ethereal quality to the fruit and a strong sense of purity. Youthful and enjoyable. Drink now. 10 Years On retrospective.
This fifth growth, bought by Mouton-Rothschild in 1970 has been revitalised by the Mouton team in the past decade, especially in the vineyard, and now performs well beyond its classification. Clerc-Milon owns some 41 hectares and in 2011 opened a new, elegantly designed modern winery. A huge majority of the vines are more than 50 years old. In 2016 picking took place from 26 September to 15 October, and the blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot, and 1% Carmenere. The wine is dark, mineral and polished, very sophisticated, precise and pure, with intense ripe fruit and liquorice aromas, and a particularly silky texture. Drinking Window 2025 - 2045.
I was able to taste the 2016 Château Clerc Milon on multiple occasions and it was always brilliant, showing a deep ruby/purple color as well as sexy aromas and flavors of crème de cassis, new saddle leather, spicy oak, and graphite. Deep, powerful and beautifully concentrated, it’s a rock star of a Pauillac that’s going to keep for 30 years or more. The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot and Carménère, all aged 16 months in 50% new French oak.
The Cabernet Franc was fantastic this year, so it was all used in the grand vin. The final blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot and 1% Carménère. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Clerc Milon leaps from the glass with beautiful scents of chocolate-covered cherries, plum preserves and crushed blackcurrants with suggestions of lilacs, cardamom, underbrush and unsmoked cigars. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a firm frame of finely grained tannins and seamless freshness lifting the perfumed fruit to a nice long finish.
A fresh and stylish version, with chalky minerality running from start to finish. Succulent plum and cassis fruit flavors coil around this and absorbs this easily at first. Then pretty violet and lilac notes guild the finish, with the minerality taking a slightly firmer stand. Best from 2023 through 2035.
Dark and concentrated, this wine offers depth and intensity. It has great ripeness as well as fine tannins that are integrated into the fruit. It is so juicy and exuberant that it's hard to remember the tannins that will allow the wine to age. Drink from 2023. (Editors' Choice)
The 2016 Clerc Milon has more fruit on the nose than d'Armailhac, with blackberry, raspberry and cedar, just a touch of leather coming through with time. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, not the most powerful Pauillac, but well balanced with a grainy texture. A touch of cracked black pepper and tobacco towards the classically-styled finish. Old school in a good way. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.
TWI
93pts
The Wine Independent
The 2016 Clerc Milon is a pleasant and spicy wine, well composed with notes of wood, tobacco and elegant tannins. There are no hard edges but a fine and fruity wine with a clean and velvety aftertaste. This is ready to be approached now.