Chateau Belair-Monange Saint-emilion 1er Grand Cru Classe 2010 750 ML

Rather toasty today, with mocha and baker’s chocolate notes weaving around the dense core of black currant and plum sauce. Flashes of hoisin sauce and tar add a nicely edgy feel on the long, dense finish, which needs cellaring to unwind fully.

Producer Information

Château Bélair-Monange is a Bordeaux winery and vineyard rated as a Grand Cru Classé B in the classification of Saint-Émilion estates. It makes red wine based on Merlot with a subsidiary component of Cabernet Franc. It was known as Château Bélair (Dubois-Challon) until the 2008 vintage. The vineyard is located just outside Saint-Émilion village. Since the 2012 merger with Châtea Magdeleine (see below) it covers 23.5 hectares. 2014 saw the debut of the second wine, Annonce de Bélair-Monange. The third wine is Haut Roc Blanquant (Grand Cru). Vineyard and terroir: Plantings are 90 percent Merlot and 10 percent Cabernet Franc. The last few vines of Malbec and Petit Verdot were removed by the current owners, Établissements Jean-Pierre Moueix. Vines are on average around 40 years old, with some planted in the 1930s and a few plants dating back as far as the 1900s. A large scale replanting programme is being spread out over the coming decades. In the sections of vineyard on the plateau and top terrace, soils are limestone. Vines at the peak of the plateau (88m/288ft) are considered to enjoy the best terroir. The parcels on the lower slopes have a combination of clay and limestone.