La Belle Connivence, Pomerol  2019

Alexandre de Malet Roquefort, already in charge of 1er Cru Classé La Gaffelière in St Emilion, always wanted to make a top notch Pomerol and, on this year’s showing, this is precisely what he is achieving. The vineyard is a tiny 1.4 hectares on a mix of clay and gravel and even within that small plot there are a multitude of different subsoils which make all the difference. On a recent visit, a series of deep trenches had been dug to investigate the lower soils, some with pure sand at the bottom, others iron-rich limestone and others with clay – such diversity in such a small area! This forensic analysis helped the Connivence team to understand why some parts of the plot just didn’t thrive with Merlot and these have now been replanted to Cabernet Franc which is starting to come into its own, adding an extra layer of power and complexity to the wines.