Chateau La Providence, Pomerol, France, 2011, 750ml

The 2011 Providence is one of the finest young vintage of this wine that I can recall ever tasting. It is not as powerful as the very successful 2010 version, but stylistically, I may have a very slight preference for this beautifully balanced 2011. The very refined nose wafts from the glass in a complex mélange of black cherries, raspberries, espresso, woodsmoke, complex soil tones and a deft base of new wood.

On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, pure and complete, with a superb core of fruit, excellent focus and balance, ripe tannins and a very long, bright and properly reserved finish. This is a very impressive young Pomerol that should absolutely delight the senses after it has slept away the next dozen years or so in the cellar. I am sure that Christian Moueix does not need my aesthetic advice, but Providence might get a bit more respect in the marketplace if it were adorned with a more traditionally styled label, as the modern label on this wine seems somewhat at odds with its very classic and classy profile in the glass. (Drink between 2025-2075) – John Gilman, View From the Cellar (38), April 2012