| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
Chateau Belair is now owned by the Moueix family, and has had a new name since the 2008 vintage. This is one of the best vineyards in Saint Emilion, perched at the top of the slope right next to Ausone, near Canon and above Angelus. Despite the brilliant terroir, the wine-making here had been mediocre for many years until the Moueix purchase. It is clear that Edouard Moueix is going to transform this Chateau into one of the stars of Saint Emilion. The vineyard is planted with 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc - the yield is miniscule as some of the vines are 100 years old and there are many gaps to be filled. Of the 23.5 hectares only 16 are currently in production. A second wine "Annonce" is now produced from the younger vines.
Wonderful aromas of fresh flowers, blackberries and cherries. Licorice and lilacs, too. Full-bodied, yet so tight and refined, translucent and weightless. Incredible purity and excellence. This is the heart and soul of the property in a glass. Really pinpointed at the end. Enchanting and thought-provoking. Needs time to open and soften. Try after 2028.
The 2019 Belair-Monange is made from 96% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple in color, it needs a lot of coaxing to unleash aromas of baked black plums, blackberry compote, and dark chocolate, leading to suggestions of lavender, crushed rocks, and black truffles. The full-bodied palate is full-on hedonic, delivering a refreshing backbone and grainy tannins, finishing long and earthy.
Like Trotanoy, though of course not to the same extent, the 2019 Belair Monange is another of the richer, more powerful wines in the Mouiex portfolio this year. Offering up aromas of sweet cherries, wild berries, vanilla pod, plum preserve, warm spices and cedary new oak, it's full-bodied, broad and muscular, with a deep and layered core of ripe, sun-kissed fruit that's framed by lively acids and ripe, powdery tannins. Drink Date 2027 - 2057
The 2019 Bélair-Monange has a more tertiary nose, backward and broody, almost Left Bank in style. This demands much more coaxing from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with a slightly chocolaty opening. The oak a little too thick maybe? Plenty of fruit behind it, quite plush on the finish, but missing the intellect that previous bottles have displayed. Maybe entering an awkward adolescence? Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. Drink 2025-2045.
Such a lesson in limestone terroir with its precision, knife-spliced and restrained violet flowers, raspberry and redcurrant fruits. You need to chisel through the austerity to get to the creamy, fleshy side of these fruits but it is very definitely there. So good, enjoy, take your time, give 6 to 8 years to fully let that creamy raspberry puree and deeper black cherry side come out to join saffron, sage and slate minerality. Love it. Harvest September 19 to October 3. 50% new oak.
Tasted blind. Concentrated, youthful nose. Just a little bit obvious in terms of sweet, spicy oak. Chocolatey. But very dense. 15%
Drink 2028– 2045
The 2019 is 100% Merlot - the replanted Cabernet Franc is promising but still too young to be included in the blend. The wine will be aged in 50% new French oak. Bright but deep ruby in colour, the nose here is effusive of redolent strawberry and caramel. The palate is crunchy, with grippy tannins framing ripe, plummy red fruits. This succulent fruit is cut through with fresh acidity that adds floral overtones to the long finish.
The flagship 2019 Château Belair-Monange checks in as 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc from 25-year-old vines and raised in 50% new French oak. It's a magical wine in the vintage and offers more depth and richness than just about every other Saint-Emilion out there, all while holding onto a gorgeous sense of finesse and elegance, which would almost have me guessing Pomerol in a blind tasting. Deep red and black fruits, truffly earth, tobacco, and spring flower notes all emerge on the nose, and this puppy is full-bodied, has a layered, seamless mouthfeel, gorgeous tannins, and one heck of a great finish. It's stunning, and while it offers incredible pleasure today given its purity and flawless balance, it deserves 7-8 years of bottle age and will evolve for 30 years or more.
98% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc. Barrel sample.
Reticent but lifted nose. Very much a dark-fruit aspect. Delicately fine tannins. Refined in temperament and style. Long and linear. Poised and refreshing. Clean, palate-cleansing finish. (JL)
Drink 2027 – 2040
The 2019 Belair-Monange is a blend of 96% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it sashays out with alluring notions of black raspberries, redcurrant jelly, preserved plums, and wild blueberries, plus hints of cinnamon stick, rose oil, underbrush, and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, concentrated, and impactful, it has a solid line of ripe, rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long and fragrant.
The 2019 Bélair-Monange shows wonderful delineation and focus on the nose, which presents a cornucopia of red fruit, crushed stone, wilted rose petal and light black truffle aromas. It seems to gain complexity with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red berry fruit, fine delineation and a velvety texture. This builds toward a lavish finish, with dark chocolate and cocoa notes lingering on the aftertaste. It will need several years in bottle but should repay those with the wherewithal to cellar. Drink 2026-2050.
The 2019 Bélair-Monange, currently undergoing extensive renovation, was picked from 19 September to 3 October and matured in 50% new oak. It certainly leans upon red fruit on the nose with vivacious wild strawberry, cranberry and Morello scents, wonderful mineralité emerging with aeration. This really repays patience. Monitoring it over an hour it uncovers more black fruit - keeps you on your toes. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins and a sensual silky texture that belies the sheer depth of this Saint-Émilion. It fans out with abandon on the finish - just an outstanding wine that will offer drinkers many years of pleasure. 2024 - 2055.
Tight and minerally with tar, currant, and wet-earth aromas and flavors. Medium-to full-bodied. Some salt and white pepper to the black fruit. Black olives, too.
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Belair Monange comes sashaying out of the glass with a graceful hair-toss of fragrant red roses, cinnamon stick, cardamom and cumin seed notes over a core of Morello cherries, dark chocolate, wild blueberries and blackberry pie plus a touch of pencil shavings. The medium to full-bodied palate is just scrumptious, offering layers of perfumed black fruits and bright floral sparks, framed by exquisitely ripe, satiny tannins and an invigorating line of freshness, finishing on a lingering aniseed note.
