Once considered the top, if not the best, wine of the Pomerol appellation, Vieux Château Certan has come full circle in regaining its status among Bordeaux’s finest. Founded in the 1700s by négociant and wine merchant Jean Demay de Certan, the château remained in the family for generations. In 1924, a new family emerged: Belgian Bordeaux wine merchant Georges Thienpont purchased Vieux Château Certan, and directed it away from a challenging, post-Depression period in the 1930s towards a dynamic recapture of its past reputation in the following decades. Managed by Alexandre Thienpont since 1986, the estate grows predominantly Merlot (60%), with Cabernet Franc (30%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (10%) running second and third respectively. Its terrior is uniquely diverse, with areas of deep clay, clay with gravel, and gravel, but it is the iron deposits found under the top soil that makes all the difference in the character of the Vieux Château Certan grapes and, by extension, the wine. Like Pétrus and Le Pin, it has never been classified, but that has not diminished its stellar position among the best of Bordeaux. Rich, opulent, sultry, complex and highly aromatic, it is simply Pomerol perfection. Vieux Château Certan is famous for its signature pink capsule, which was first introduced by Georges Thienpont. Ever the salesman, he cleverly used it to gauge sales numbers among his clients. As a nod to its history, the pink capsule remains today, as does Vieux Château Certan’s standing as one of Pomerol’s most exquisite gifts to oenophiles everywhere.