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2012 Château Nénin, Pomerol

2012 Château Nénin, Pomerol

Pomerol, Bordeaux, France

Velvet and Backbone

Rich, purposeful and beautifully composed, the 2012 Château Nénin brings together ripe plum, blackberry and black cherry with rose petals, liquorice and a savoury thread of earth and smoke. Cocoa, roasted coffee and gentle nutty notes add depth around the fruit, while a subtle saline freshness keeps the aromas defined. This is Pomerol with substance and personality, combining generous fruit with a firmer, more classical bearing.

The palate is ample yet controlled, with fine-grained tannins giving shape to its rounded fruit and silky texture. Fresh acidity carries the wine through a persistent finish of dark berries, spice and savoury oak. Bottle age has given its structure time to soften and its flavours room to unfold, making this an appealing choice for the dinner table now. Well-stored bottles should continue to offer pleasure towards 2030, particularly alongside dishes that complement its richness and gently grippy finish.

For when: Sunday lunch becomes a long afternoon, and the second helping deserves a proper claret.

Pairs with: Roast rib of beef, duck breast with a red wine reduction, rosemary-studded lamb shoulder, venison casserole, porcini and chestnut pie or aged Comté.

Cabernet Franc makes up a substantial 30% of this vintage, bringing aromatic lift and definition to Merlot’s generous fruit. That balance is central to Nénin’s appeal: a Pomerol with the depth and texture to satisfy immediately, and the structure to reward patience.

Whats in the bottle
70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc

Notable Awards
94 points, Tim Atkin MW

£96.00 - £96.00
£96.00
£96.00 - £96.00
£96.00
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Château Nénin entered a new chapter just before the 1997 harvest, when Jean-Hubert Delon purchased the estate from his cousins, the Despujol family, who had owned it since 1847. The Delon family, also associated with Château Léoville Las Cases, began a thorough programme of improvements, reviewing vineyard management, upgrading drainage and modernising the cellars.

The estate’s vineyards span contrasting parts of the Pomerol plateau and its slopes. Deep clay, gravel and iron-rich soils provide complementary growing conditions, supporting the depth of Merlot and the freshness and aromatic complexity of Cabernet Franc. Careful attention to these differences helps shape a wine with both generosity and definition.

The family regards Nénin as a Pomerol built to develop in bottle. Their approach places particular value on balance, purity and longevity, with Cabernet Franc playing an increasingly important role in the estate’s identity. The result is a distinctive style that combines substantial fruit with a clear sense of structure.

The 2012 blend comprises 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc, harvested between 21 September and 10 October. A cool, wet spring delayed growth and produced uneven development across the vines. Dry, sunny weather from mid-July helped the season recover, supporting ripening through to harvest. The grapes remained healthy despite showers during picking.

Nénin’s traditional cellar approach uses temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats for fermentation, allowing extraction to be managed carefully. The combination of ripe Merlot and a significant proportion of Cabernet Franc gives this vintage its balance of flesh, freshness and tannic definition.

The wine underwent oak-barrel maturation before bottling. Subsequent bottle ageing has allowed the fruit and oak to knit together while retaining the structure that distinguishes the estate’s grand vin.

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