More seamless and elegant than the more powerful, structured Pavie Decesse (these all emerge from the Perse team), the Merlot-dominated 2019 Bellevue Mondotte just about jumps out of the glass with its ripe, spicy red, blue, and black fruits as well as spring flowers, graphite, chalky mineral, and violet-like aromas and flavors. Almost Pomerol-like with its seamless, polished tannins and gorgeous mouthfeel, it's flawlessly balanced, has a deep, layered mid-palate, and a great, great finish. This stunning Saint-Emilion will benefit from just 4-6 years of bottle age and cruise for 30+ years in cold cellars.

Opaque in color, initially you notice flowers, licorice, black plums, cherries, blueberries, chocolate, and espresso, though they take a bit of coaxing to come out. The wine is full-bodied, rich, deep and intense. The finish coats your palate with layers of dark fruits along with crushed stones and a background note of cocoa that lingers with a dash of salt at the end. Drink from 2030-2050.

This is dense and layered, but with very fine, creamy tannins. Weightless and punchy from the bright acidity. Vivid and long. Tight at the end, but then kicks off with minerality and stone. 90% merlot, 5% cabernet franc and 5% cabernet sauvignon. Try after 2025.

The 2019 Bellevue Mondotte, picked at 18hL/ha on a single day (October 5) has a tightly wound bouquet of blackberry, briary, blueberry and light violet petal scents, but less of the marine aromas that I picked out from the barrel sample. However, there are some lovely orange pith scents that percolate through with continued aeration, and these are accentuated after a couple of hours. The palate is medium-bodied with gentle grip, good acidity and fine backbone. This is quite a sturdy Saint-Émilion with impressive density toward the finish. It needs just a little more charm and personality, though they may develop with time. Very fine, but patience required. -- Neal Martin

Dark perfumed berries on the nose with black cherries and sweet black liquorice. Textured, this is fleshy and chewy, full bodied, juicy and round with some sweet acidity. Plum and blackcurrant dominant with tannins that are smooth and silky but coat the mouth entirely. Really feels quite bold and plush to begin with then changes and the cool fruit and mint comes in giving it direction and forcing it to be more linear and driven towards the finish. Such focus and precision. A blend of 90% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Drinking Window 2025 - 2045

This starts off with closed-in brooding tannins but expands to show creamy fruit in the middle palate, has a real iodine, oyster shell edge that is essential in a wine with such big shoulders. Powerful black fruits, this ends with a savoury kick, and it a brilliant example of this wine. 70% new oak. A 2ha vineyard located just next to Pavie Decesse, with clay limestone soils.