2020 Bordeaux En Primeur Report – Episode 8 – Bélair Monange

2020 Bordeaux En Primeur Report

Episode 8 – Bélair-Monange

2020 Château Bélair-Monange, Premier Grand Cru Classé B, Saint-Émilion

98% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc

16-18 months in 50% new oak

Heroic scale and ripeness are matched with epic freshness and spice on the finish and this makes it a sensational experience in 2020.  The perfume is beguiling and multi-layered with rose petal and violet as well as luxurious black fruit and hedonistic dark chocolate notes.  The freshness on the finish is lip-smacking and the tannins are so controlled and refined that I can conceivably see this wine drinking extremely young in its life as well as having the skill to live for a long spell, too.  A lesson in balance and also exoticism, this is one of the most pleasing and succulent wines of the vintage. 18.5+/20

Scores – I have attached my scores out of 20 for each wine.  If a score has no ‘+’, this indicates a wine that is in balance and can be drunk relatively young thanks to its precocity and charm. One ‘+’ indicates a wine that will benefit from medium-term ageing (in accordance with the style of the wine), while two ‘++’ indicates a wine that should manage to make the long haul, softening and evolving as it goes.   A ‘?’ means that I am unsure about an element within the wine – this will be explained in my note.