Winemaker Notes
The wine's extremely intense color is black and concentrated, predominantly violet, tingeing the walls of the wineglass with its rich hue. The aromas are fresh, with delicate, black fruit. The scent of this wine, so powerful, concentrated and lively is almost astounding. The oak aging is evident, but the wine has the personality make its presence amply felt. The first impression in the mouth is firm, with fine, gripping tannins that are young but balanced by the wine's acidity. There's an imposing freshness from Bellevue Mondotte's Merlot, expressing the terroir and the maturity offered by the vineyard's sun-rich exposition. The finish is very long and inviting, with flavors displaying themselves very well indeed. This is a wine which shows its Merlot wonderfully, with a sharper, more lively expression than the variety achieves in neighboring vineyards. Still spirited and full of energy, the wine will settle down with aging to produce a style with power, roundness, taste and pleasure. The vintage was a challenging one, but the vineyard's ideal situation produced the goods.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
There was no frost in the vineyard in 2017, due to its elevation. Deep garnet purple in color, the 2017 Bellevue Mondotte is composed of 90% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. It is a little closed to begin, opening out to reveal vibrant notes of crushed blackberries, warm plums, black raspberries and wild blueberries plus wafts of star anise, garrigue and lavender. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with tension and intense blue and black fruit layers, framed by super firm, super ripe, fine-grained tannins, finishing very long and earthy. Rating:97+
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Vinous
Powerful, dark and explosive, the 2017 Bellevue Mondotte bristles with the energy and tension that is such a signature of this tiny 1.5 hectare Saint-Émilion cru. Graphite, smoke, crème de cassis and menthol race out of the glass. As always, Bellevue Mondotte is a tannic, searing Saint-Émilion with bracing acids and tons of structure. It is also one of the most fascinating wines in Gérard Perse's lineup. – Antonio Galloni
Barrel Sample: 95-97 -
Jeb Dunnuck
Based on 60% Merlot and 15% each of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, brought up in new barrels, the 2017 Bellevue Mondotte sports a deep, inky color as well as a seamless, seductive, opulent style that's rarely found in the vintage. Creme de cassis, cold iron, macerated cherries, and toasted spice as well as touch of chocolate give way to a massive, full-bodied, rounded 2017 that already offers tons of pleasure.
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Wine Spectator
Beautifully rendered, with a long beam of pure cassis and crushed plum fruit, flanked by subtle chalky minerality and backed by violet, anise and smoldering black tea notes. The sleek, lengthy finish pulls everything together with metronomic precision. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2022 through 2038. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.
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James Suckling
A chewy 2017 with lots of wet-earth and dark-berry character. Some bark, too. Full body, a medium center palate and a flavorful finish. Wait and see how it comes together.
Barrel Sample: 92-93 -
Wine Enthusiast
This big, spicy wine has dark tannins and rich berry flavors. With its concentration, this wine from the plateau of Saint-Emilion offers structure, layers of black fruits and ripe acidity. Drink this wine from 2023. Vignobles Perse.
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Decanter
Located right next to Pavie Decesse, this is gourmet and very good quality. It hangs on through the palate, offering dark choclate flavours, although a little less light and dark relief than with the Pavie Decesse. This is a vintage where the Perse team can go all out and the brakes come naturally. Drinking Window 2025 - 2042
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.