Château De Sales Pomerol 2019 (750ml)

 

Rated 93 Points by James Suckling

 

A combination of floral and earthy character here, with aromas of ripe dark and blue fruit and hints of licorice, nut shell and wet earth.  Cigar box, too.  Medium-bodied, chewy and lingering with bright, vibrant fruit.  It has a firm, savory finish with hints of crushed stones.  Very typical and true to its terroir.  Best from 2024.

 

Rated 93 Points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

 

The 2019 De Sales has a deep garnet-purple color, rolling effortlessly out of the glass with impressively intense baked cherries, plum preserves and fruitcake scents with nuances of potpourri, licorice, chocolate box and fragrant earth.  The medium to full-bodied palate is chock-full of ripe, seductive black fruit preserves, framed by rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and perfumed.  Range: 91-93

 

Rated 92 Points by Decanter

 

Bristling blueberry fruits, softening into raspberry and blackberry through the mid palate.  Clear austerity at this point but a lovely supple feel overall, and an impressively focused and sleek finish with touches of salt crackers.  Enjoyable de Sales, a softer approach to the vintage than some Pomerols but one that will give lots of pleasure, and is given savoury focus by the high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon and Franc.  15% new oak.  Tasted twice.

 

Rated 90 Points by Jeb Dunnuck

 

A classic, fresher, elegant Pomerol from the vintage, the 2019 Château De Sales has a ruby hue as well as a pretty nose of red, black, and blue fruits intermixed with sappy herbs, flowers, and cedar pencil.  Medium-bodied, elegant, very pretty, and lightly textured, I love its purity of fruit as well as its balance, although I'd like to have seen a touch more richness and depth.  Drink bottles over the coming 10-12 years.  Best after 2022.

 

Château De Sales Pomerol 2019

 

Château de Sales, the property's great wine, reflects the complexity and finesse of its terroir.

 

This wine for laying down is the result of a rigorous selection, with a blend composed mainly of Merlot.

 

Château de Sales is aged in barrels, approximately 15% to 20% of which are new, for 12 months.

 

Château de Sales is bottled at the Château, approximately 18 months after harvest.

 

Tasting Notes

 

An attractive crimson, the wine has a refined and complex nose on black fruit aromas with subtle oaky notes.  From an elegant attack, the full-bodied and well-balanced mid-palate reveals rich ripe fruit flavours, especially blackcurrant and black cherry, leading into a long finish underpinned by refined, silky tannins.

 

Varietal Mix:  72.5 % Merlot 15 % Cabernet Sauvignon 12.5 % Cabernet Franc

 

Barrel Maturing:  15% New Barrels, 85% 1 to 3 Year Old Barrels

 

“Château de Sales has an extensive vineyard with remarkably consistent geological characteristics that give it a strong identity.

 

The winemaker humbly seeks to express those distinctive qualities so that the wine continues to be true to itself, telling its own story and bringing pleasure to winelovers.”  Jean-Claude Berrouet, Consultant Winemaker for Château de Sales

 

2019 Vintage Report

 

2019 started with a mild and damp winter.  Relatively high temperatures in March caused early budbreak, from 22 March to 4 April depending on the grape variety.  The amount of rainfall in spring was consistent with the average.  Temperatures in May were lower than normal for the season, with morning frost on 5 and 6 May, though there was no damage to the vines at Château de Sales.  Flowering lasted from 23 May to 11 June.  Less favourable conditions after 4 June caused some shatter (coulure) and poor fruit set (millerandage).  Temperatures in early summer were two degrees higher than the average for the last 13 years, with peaks between 26 June and 23 July.  However, the Château de Sales terroir limited the incidence of water stress to only a few parcels.  The grapes changed colour between 26 July and 15 August, after storms in July.  The harvest took place in very fine weather between 20 September and 8 October, yielding a crop that showed excellent phenolic maturity.

 

 

Château De Sales

 

The Largest estate in the Pomerol Appellation

 

Château de Sales is located in the north-west of the Pomerol appellation.  With 47.6 hectares (117 acres) under vines out of the 90 hectares (222 acres) that make up the property, it is the largest vineyard in the Pomerol appellation.  Except for three hectares (7 acres) lost during the French Revolution, the property limits are the same as in the 16th century.

 

The majority of vines are Merlot (73%) which, combined with Cabernet Sauvignon (15%) and Cabernet Franc (12%), finds its full expression in a terroir of gravel and heat-retaining sand which also contains iron oxide.  On average, planting density is 5,900 vines per hectare.

 

Château de Sales, which has had HVE High Environmental Value certification since 2020, promotes virtuous vine-growing practices which incorporate and enhance biodiversity (no chemical weedkiller, sexual confusion against grape berry moths).

 

In The Vineyard

 

The vines are grown in the traditional way: the soil is regularly ploughed, vineyard practices are environment-friendly, leaves are removed and clusters are thinned meticulously and the grapes are harvested by hand at optimum maturity for each parcel.

 

In The Winery

 

The grapes are sorted on arrival at the winery, where they are carefully destemmed and lightly crushed then left to ferment in temperature-controlled concrete tanks.  Alcoholic fermentation is followed by a period of maceration, for a total vatting time of around three weeks depending on the lots and grape varieties.

 

Tastings take place after malolactic fermentation in order to select the lots for the first wine, Château de Sales, and the second wine, Château Chantalouette.

 

In The Barrel Hall

 

Château de Sales is matured for 12 months in oak barrels, 15-20% of which are renewed each year.  Château Chantalouette is matured partly in oak barrels, partly in tanks.  The wines are bottled at the Château about 18 months after the harvest.

 

Leadership

 

Since 2017, in a quest for excellent quality, production methods have started to change under the guidance of the CEO, Vincent Montigaud (who worked for Baron Philippe de Rothschild for 23 years, including 16 years at the head of Domaine de Baronarques) and the Technical Manager, Frédéric Laborde.  They are supported in their choices by Jean-Claude Berrouet, consultant winemaker, and Gilles Rey, vineyard consultant.

 

History

 

Family properties are becoming increasingly rare… However, the largest in Pomerol has belonged to the same family for nearly five centuries, which is quite exceptional in Bordeaux.  Indeed, the Château de Sales has been entirely transmitted from generation to generation since the 16th century, when it was acquired by the Sauvanelle family.  Since 1578, four families have succeeded each other in Sales: the Sauvanelles, the Desaigues, the de Laages and the Lamberts, the name changes resulting from transmission by women.

 

Direct descendants of the Sauvanelles, the Lambert heirs and their children are the current owners of Château de Sales.