Château Bellefont-Belcier - Subskription -

96-97/100 Jamessuckling.com This well-defined and sophisticated wine shows a gorgeous center-palate of near perfectly ripe fruit. Lots of dark berries and minerals with some pine, while the texture is full and compact with layers of well-integrated, fine tannins. The finish is seamless. Just a hint of salt at the end of the pretty fruit. 72% merlot, 18% cabernet franc and 10% cabernet sauvignon. - James Suckling 94-96/100 The Drink Business Bellefont-Belcier (St Emilion; 72% Merlot; 18% Cabernet Franc; 10% Cabernet Sauvignon; a final yield of 45 hl/ha; 14.5% alcohol; from 14 hectares on clay-limestone and Molasses de Fronsadais; tasted at the Association des Grands Crus Classés at Dassault and then at the property with Emmanuelle Fulchi and Jean-Christophe Meyrou; as at all of the Vignobles K estates, there were essentially no losses here to mildew). Wow! Lovely and highly expressive aromatically. I find this incredibly exuberant in its florality – lifted notes of hyacinth, peony and gladiola, saffron too. A touch of first press olive oil with all its pepperiness. This is spicy, with a touch of cinnamon and nutmeg. Gamey too, with almost a lièvre à la royale rich meatiness to it. Super-svelte, mirror pool cool at the centre and crystalline, but with excellent Côte de Pavie density and compactness. This is truly excellent for the vintage and one really feels the sharpened attention to detail. Fantastic and the best I’ve ever tasted from here. A veritable coup de coeur. - Colin Hay 93-95/100 Wine Advocate The 2023 Bellefont Belcier demonstrates this property's continuing renaissance, exhibiting more density and seriousness as the team starts to get the best out of their holdings on the plateau of Saint-Émilion overlooking the slopes that surround the château. Offering up aromas of dark berries and cherries mingled with hints of burning embers and iris, it's medium to full-bodied, supple and fleshy, with a layered core of fruit, powdery structuring tannins and a long, penetrating finish. - William Kelley 93-95/100 The Wine Cellar Insider Spice, crushed rocks, flowers, red plums, incense, and mint create the nose. On the palate, the wine is racy, silky, lifted, elegant, and polished, with cocoa-topped black cherries, and plums from start to finish. The wine blends 72% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.14.5% ABV, 3.56 pH. Harvesting took place September 19 - October 5. Drink from 2027 - 2048. 93-95 Pts. - Jeff Leve 92-94/100 Vinous The 2023 Bellefont-Belcier is dark, pliant and super-expressive. This heady, explosive wine is packed with dark fruit, gravel, incense and licorice. Pencil shavings, lavender and chocolate linger on the potent, resonant finish. Interestingly, Bellefont-Belcier was once quite opulent. Consulting winemaker Thomas Duclos dialed it back starting with the 2018 vintage but now seems to be searching for more of a middle ground. Tasted three times. - Antonio Galloni 92-94/100 Jeb Dunnuck The 2023 Château Bellefont-Belcier is beautiful, with a more focused, elegant, mineral-laced style. Black raspberries, chalky minerality, and spring flowers are just some of its nuances, and it's medium-bodied, with a supple, layered mouthfeel, ripe yet present tannins, and a solid spine of acidity. It's going to need some time, but it's clearly a beautiful wine. The blend is 72% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Cabernet Sauvignon, resting in 30% new oak, with 40% in once-used barrels and 30% in foudre. - Jeb Dunnuck 94/100 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Fresh aromatics, attractive raspberry leaf and violet, deeply coloured, well textured, there is clear oak influence, but it is well integrated, and the texture has resistance and rise through the finish. Good quality. 30% new oak. 45hl/ha yield, Vignobles K owners. - Jane Anson 95-97/100 Yvesbeck.wine Bellefont-Belcier und ich haben schon immer gut miteinander kommuniziert. Ich glaube, ich war für einige dieser Eigenschaften früher empfänglich als andere (was ein gutes Omen für einen Schweizer ist, der bei Weinproben oft ein wenig langsamer ist). Unabhängig davon profiliert sich der Wein auf gelassene und enthusiastische Weise. Das Holzmanagement ist erwiesenermaßen gut (30% neue Barriques, 30% eiförmige Fässer, 40% Barriques mit einem und zwei Weinen). Der Einklang zwischen kreidigen, fruchtigen und holzigen Nuancen spricht für die olfaktorische Komplexität. Der schmackhafte Auftakt ebnet den Weg für einen Wein mit straffen, aber eleganten Tanninen, während die Säurestruktur im Hintergrund wirkt, indem sie Temperament und Salzigkeit verleiht. Ein Bellefont-Belcier, der sowohl mit der Kraft seines Terroirs als auch mit dem Charme der Merlot-Traube, aus der er zu 72% besteht, zurechtkommt. Ein sehr schöner Erfolg mit einem tonischen und saftigen Finale. - Yves Beck 94/100 Falstaff Deep dark ruby, opaque core, purple reflections, subtle ochre rim. Delicate aromas of candied violets and liquorice, ripe cherries, fine blackberry confit, black cherries, candied mandarin zest. On the palate juicy and elegant, fresh dark forest berries, substantial texture with firm tannins, salty minerality in the finish, chalky terroir savouriness in the aftertaste. Remains persistent, conveys freshness and length, good ageing potential. - Peter Moser 93/100 My Bettane + Desseauve Tout est fondu dans ce vin frais et sensuel au tannin satiné, d’une profondeur subtile, terminant sur une note saline. - Bettane & Desseauve