CRITIC REVIEWS
Neal Martin
The 2019 Belair-Monange has a more tertiary nose, backward and broody, almost Left Bank in style. This demands much more coaxing from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with a slightly chocolaty opening. The oak a little too thick maybe? Plenty of fruit behind it, quite plush on the finish, but missing the intellect that previous bottles have displayed. Maybe entering an awkward adolescence? Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.
William Kelley
Like Trotanoy, though of course not to the same extent, the 2019 Belair Monange is another of the richer, more powerful wines in the Mouiex portfolio this year. Offering up aromas of sweet cherries, wild berries, vanilla pod, plum preserve, warm spices and cedary new oak, it's full-bodied, broad and muscular, with a deep and layered core of ripe, sun-kissed fruit that's framed by lively acids and ripe, powdery tannins.
JancisRobinson.com
96% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc. Cask sample. Fresh, poised and intense with red-fruit aromas and a brush-stroke of chalk. Voluptuous fruit on the palate but plenty of energy and drive, the fruit juicy and refreshing. Plentiful tannins but very, very fine, the finish long and persistent. Pin-point execution. (JL)