Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesLots of blueberry and blackberry with crushed-stone and limestone undertones. It’s full-bodied with firm, silky tannins that are wonderfully polished.
Barrel Sample: 95-96
Based on 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc, the 2020 Château Poesia has a wonderful purity and freshness in its ripe blue fruits, tobacco, cedar, and spring flower-like aromas and flavors. Medium to full-bodied, it has good acidity, ultra-fine tannins, beautiful overall balance, and just a classy, seamless, incredibly elegant profile. It's another gorgeous wine from this incredible team.
Revealing a deep purple-black color, the 2020 Poesia bursts with flamboyant notions of stewed black plums, mulberries and juicy blackberries, plus hints of tar, licorice, potpourri and dried mulberries with a waft of incense. The medium to full-bodied palate is charged with a racy backbone of freshness, delivering layers of dried berries and exotic spices with a plush texture, finishing long and perfumed. Barrel Sample: 91-93
Barrel Sample: 91
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.