PRE-ARRIVAL Bellefont-Belcier Grand Cru Classe 2016

Description

NOTE Bellefont-Belcier is sold En-Primeur. Stock due to arrive mid-late 2019. See the En-Primeur here.

Saint-Emilion

With approximately 5400 hectare planted it is a vast appellation with a few distinct personalities. Like the famous neighbour Pomerol the wines are Merlot dominant and offer the silk, perfume and charm that Merlot can give. The best of the wines will live as long as, if not longer than most Left Bank wines and often cost two or three times more.

Merlot

It gets a tough time most of the places it is grown. But in Pomerol and Saint-Emilion Merlot not only dominates but makes some of the best wines in the world. Perfume, silky and plush. Cabernets Franc and Sauvignon season the wines with structure and acid but in some places, like Petrus they are almost not needed.

Cabernet Franc

Is actually one of the parents of Cabernet Sauvignon… along with Sauvignon Blanc (oh! The name makes sense now!).  It is most famous for being the third most important grape in quality Bordeaux. But also excels in the Loire Valley (where it lived before it went to Bordeaux), especially Chinon and Saumur. The wines are bright red in colour, highlight aromatic with raspberries, rose petals, violets along with tobacco, cassis and some herbal elements. The best examples can live as long as any great wine.

2016

A vintage of two extremes which counteracted each other and we ended up with one of the best vintages we’ve seen in a while.