Chateau Belair-Monange Grand Cru 2009.

Château Bélair-Monange traces its origins back to Roman times. Situated at the highest point of Saint-Émilion’s renowned limestone plateau, it has long been considered one of the region’s very best crus. In 1850 it was ranked by Cocks & Feret as the leading wine of Saint-Émilion, a position it held well into the twentieth century.

Établissements Jean-Pierre Moueix purchased the iconic property in 2008 and immediately undertook extensive renovations of the vineyard, winery, underground quarries, and château in order to restore the cru to its earlier historic status. Originally known as Château Bélair, the property was renamed following the acquisition; in addition to its literal translation, ‘my angel,’ ‘Monange’ was the maiden name of Jean-Pierre Moueix’s mother, Anne-Adèle, the first Moueix woman to call Saint-Émilion her home.

Château Bélair-Monange combines the terroirs of the most privileged sites of Saint-Émilion. The limestone from the central plateau parcels offers freshness, minerality, and delicate, lingering aromatics, while the dense, blue clay of the slopes provides intensity, length, and a unique elegance to the wine.

This extraordinary terroir, now exploited by Edouard Moueix, the son of Christian, seems to be coming to life in a dramatic fashion. Never a hedonistic wine, but very intellectual, the 2009 suggests a liqueur of crushed rocks intermixed with black currants and black cherries. Still somewhat closed, medium to full-bodied, and impressive rather than seductive, this is a structured wine that needs to be forgotten for at least a decade, and then drunk over the following 30+ years - Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.