I Mistyped…I believe '47 Lafleur brought Parker to tears
I find it interesting that Jeff rates Clinet at a higher level than others do on this thread. Clinet is the only winery I have been to where they quote Jeff’s ratings in their promotional materials. I guess they like each other.
I have yet to be moved by Le Pin. Chalk it up to style, but for me what makes Pomerol as opposed to a Merlot is that tension, precision and slight austerity, and I find little or none in Le Pin. It is big and lush and long. Whenever I taste it alongside the VCC of the same year, the VCC will always win.
For me, though Petrus still stands alone.
2nd tier Lafleur, VCC and Trotanoy.
3rd tier Le Pin, L’Evangile (on the cusp of second tier) La Conseillante and Lafleur Petrus
A huge gap to the
4th tier Latour a Pomerol, Certan de May, Clinet etc
I’m not a Clinet fan. At all.
I like Ian’s ranking, though I’ve only had a few Petrus and Lafleur. And I’ve never had a Le Pin so have no opinion there. I would put Clos L’Eglise with the seconds and Clinet with the fourths.
Good ranking! What about L’Eglise Clinet? Up on 2nd alongside Lafleur/VCC/Trotanoy, or do you not think it’s good enough in smaller vintages to stand up to the others across the board?
The issue with Eglise-Clinet is more about how long it has been good, rather than how good it has been since the mid- to late-1990s.
Sorry, brain freeze. For me it is third tier, cusp second tier. Personally I just own a couple of bottles since it is a little too fruit juicy for me, but it is hard not to recognize the quality of the current wines.
Fair enough, they had a dip in the late '70s to mid '80s but older vintages of L’Eglise Clinet has given me some of my most memorable experiences of Pomerol (admittedly I haven’t had Petrus all that many times). The 1953 was out of this world both times I’ve had it, the '61 is a truly legendary wine (possibly the best in Pomerol that year, I preferred it to the amazing Trotanoy I had alongside it). Also, the '62, '71, and '75s I’ve had were phenomenal. In fact I’d say that IMO the Chateau (or Clos as it was up until '54 or '55 I think) was, if anything, better pre-1980s than it is now. Though as most of it was sold off to Belgium, genuine pre-70s bottles are now exceedingly difficult to get a hold of so perhaps its reputation suffers accordingly (saying that, the same could be said for other Chateaux, like Lafleur etc.).
Fair point, re. the fruit juice. I have some older vintages but nothing post 1992 I think (remarkably good given the year).
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How did you know that I like it?
It’s interesting how VCC has been on a roll since 2005. The 2005 was for me one of the two best wines of the vintage, and I actually preferred it to Petrus.
Prior to that, I would have put it on the same level as Conseillante and L’Evangile, since then, it seems to be at least on a par with Lafleur, and at a fraction of the price.
Fair enough. My pre-1980s experience only extends to a marginal 1952, from which I won’t extrapolate.
The post-war period was so great in Pomerol. Did you ever drink any old Rouget?
Haha, don’t mention post-war Rouget here, it might increase the competition the next time a few bottles pop up… I’ve only ever had a '50 but it was superb. Shame your '52 L’Eglise Clinet wasn’t great. I do wonder if some of those Belgians Hermitaged their Pomerols as well as their Burgundies, with varying degrees of success. There might even have been some in the '53s I had - they were dark as hell (tasted with a few mates they both guessed 1980s…) and one of them even had a pretty low level (just on the cusp of the Shoulder). Still, it was superb so I’m not going to worry too much about it…
Most of the best Chateaux have already be mentioned above …
I would put Petrus AND Lafleur on top … they are as different (if not more) as Ausone (the old one) and Cheval blanc, but equally individual and of high quality (with some exceptions) …
(I have not had enough Le Pin (unfortunately) to have a well-founded opinion … certainly not “bad” 
)
In the 2nd group there is Conseillante, L´Evangile AND Trotanoy … I have made verticals of all three, and there is no real difference in overall quality for me …
VCC also belongs here … and most probably Lafleur-Petrus (at least since 1998) …
also in question L´Eglise-Clinet … not only was the 1985 superior to ´85 Petrus … I had some really great wines from this producer …
3rd group: Latour a Pomerol, Gazin, Le Gay, Certan de May, Clinet, La Fleur de Gay and maybe some others …
I haven´t had enough La Violette and Hosanna (former Certan-Giraud which was not outstanding), to be sure about these …
Other good producers:
Clos L´Eglise, Bon Pasteur, L´Enclos (1990!), Petit-Village, Nenin, Rouget, La Grave (a Pomerol/Trigant de Boisset), de Sales (1978+1979 !) …
This is NO complete list …!
Yes, 1964 can be very fine (if a good bottle) … and also 1959 and 1966 were very good … 1975 not so …
I like L’Eglise Clinet a lot. But I do not agree with you both, a bit for different reasons.
L’Eglise Clinet was not always L’Eglise Clinet. During much of its early years, until 1954, the wine was sold as Clos L’Eglise-Clinet. 1955 saw the vineyards split to create Clos l’Eglise and l’Eglise Clinet. Different wines and vines for sure.
During the 60’s, 70’s and early 80’s, with the exception of the 1961, which I have tasted, the wine was more than unremarkable. Starting in 1985, after Denis Durantou took over, things really stepped up here.
In 1998, they made another big jump in quality, pushing their wines close to the top of the Pomerol pyramid.
IMO, the wines have been good for almost 35 years and really good for 20. That seems like a long enough track record.
Is that a global statement— all vintages before 2005? I would not profess to having deep experience here in direct comparison, but anecdotally I’ve had them side-by-side during 1964 and 1971 horizontals, and the VCC was younger, fresher, more complete, more complex, and longer even though La Conseillante and L’Evangile were both outstanding as well.
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VCC produced excellent wines also before 2005, no doubt (and 1964 is a dear memory), but maybe not as consistantly as L´Evangile and La Conseillante …
Just take the 1982 VCC - an excellent wine, maybe just short of outstanding, but L´E and LC made simply great wines
(also in 1985 and 1989/90) …
(all imho)
As with most Bordeaux, there are some high spots. I agree that the 1964 is pretty special, as is the 1959. The 1947 is legendary, never had it, although I have just secured a bottle for a major vertical we are planning in the Fall.
My point actually was that the greatness of a chateau is not only those high points, but also its consistency over many years, and i would argue that currently VCC is not only incredibly consistent but also producing one of Pomerol’s top two wines in almost every vintage since '05. For example, the 2014 is breathtakingly good, and for those of you who love great old fashioned Bordeaux, you should be going out and buying as much of this as you can afford. Not even a great year, but a great wine. The 2008 and 2012 were also extremely strong, and well worth picking up.
The 2002 VCC was pretty impressive about a year ago.