2018 Vieux Maillet
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Tasting notes
The 2018 Vieux Maillet has a well-defined bouquet, perhaps a little more refined than I have found recent vintages. Black cherries commingle with blueberry, and there’s just a touch of pencil lead in the background courtesy of the 15% Cabernet Franc/Sauvignon. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and quite high-toned, but it retains balance, leading into a sapid, marine-influenced finish. Give this a couple of years in bottle because there is still a touch of bitterness on the aftertaste. Tasted twice with consistent notes.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Beautiful black cherry and blueberry fruits as well as spice, cedary pencil, violets, and chocolaty earth emerge from the 2018 Château Vieux Maillet. Medium to full-bodied, it has a rounded, elegant texture, beautiful tannins, and a great finish. Another gorgeous, outstanding Pomerol in 2018, it has some up-front appeal yet will evolve for 15+ years.
The 2018 Vieux Maillet is a potent, deep Pomerol endowed with notable textural richness. Inky dark fruit, graphite, lavender, mint, chocolate, new leather and spice lend striking depth. This is a decidedly extroverted wine. My sense is that it is still recovering from bottling, as there is some tightness that needs to resolve. Vieux Maillet is a pretty hedonistic wine, but it has plenty of energy, too.