Chateau Bellevue 2018
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker - Decanter
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Jeb
Dunnuck
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Blueberry, plum, praline, dark=chocolate and cedar aromas. Dried lavender, too. It’s full-bodied with firm, sleek and caressing tannins. Polished, seamless layers of fruit and wood with a long finish. Such polish and class. Try from 2026.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Made of 100% Merlot, the 2018 Bellevue is deep garnet-purple colored and gives up wonderfully expressive scents of baked black cherries, plum preserves and blueberry coulis with hints of mocha, licorice, dried spearmint and chargrill plus a waft of cardamom and Indian spices. Medium to full-bodied with bags of rich, seductive fruit, it is laden with bright earthy sparks and has a soft, plush texture, finishing with fantastic freshness and energy.
Barrel Sample: 92-94+ -
Decanter
There is clear austerity on the approach, with the fruit pulling inwards through the mid-palate before widening out. It has an impressive texture with fleshy plum and ripe red apple fruit. You can feel the softness of the tannins, gently laying in wait, and this gets pretty big on the juicy, seductive finish, where there's a ton of liquorice to fall into. An organically-certified estate owned by the de Bouard family. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040. Barrel Sample: 93
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Jeb Dunnuck
Lots of red and blue fruits, violets, orange blossom, and more exotic notes emerge from the 2018 Château Bellevue. Medium to full-bodied, it offers beautiful purity, ripe tannins, and a good spine of acidity that keeps everything fresh and vibrant. Beautifully done, it will benefit from 2-4 years of bottle age and keep for upwards of 15 years or more.
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2022-
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James
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Jeb
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Robert
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Jeb
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James
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Robert
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Wine
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Enthusiast
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
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James
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Robert
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Robert
Parker -
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Robert
Parker
It is the de Lavaux family who hold the other half of the property. Together, the two families will carry on the work started in 2000 by Nicolas Thienpont and Stéphane Derenoncourt. The promotion of the property will be reinforced by the dynamism of Chateau Angelus.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.