The Bellevue is very concentrated on the nose with blackberry, crème de cassis and a vanillary oak that will be subsumed with time. The palate is ripe and rounded on the entry, showing a little more extraction than the Angelus. I like the minerality here, the backbone and although it does not quite have the panache of Angelus, the clarity on the finish is impressive. Tasted April 2013.

A wine with blueberry, chocolate and spice character. Full body, with silky tannins and a refined and pretty finish. Long and polished.

Yields for the 2012 Bellevue were 27 hectoliters per hectare and the wine came in at 13.8% natural alcohol. The final blend was 98% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. The harvest occurred between October 10-12. Dense, rich, full-bodied and concentrated with a strikingly intense chalkiness/minerality that gives it a formidable personality as well as sweet tannin, it appears to be slightly closed at present despite its obvious concentration and depth. Forget it 4-5 years then keep your fingers crossed as, hopefully, the fruit will hold up to the wine’s structural components. This will endure and evolve for 20+ years.

[98M/2CF] Ripe blackberry Merlot nose; medium full wine with a very fine tannin, an appealing balanced of sweet fruit and crisp acidity, a sort of sub Pomerol style, with and attractive richness, quite complex, juicy, appetising and long. Very nicely conceived. 2017-25 [M.Schuster, Bordeaux Mar/Apr 2013]

Drink 2018-2025 Inky with black core. Deep cassis fruit overlaid with strong savoury oak char. Dense and dark, with dark chocolate finish. Powerful but not a lot of charm, though the fruit fills the structure. Just a bit tough on the finish. (JH)