Arrived yesterday morning from M&S so I thought I'd get a tn in for Duncan who joined me in buying a case of this
Initial verdict is promising. Unmistakably Bordeaux nose
Perhaps a little thin upon opening but given a little while in the glass it opens up nicely.
Definitely more left bank with a little more casis coming through over the plum & cherry notes
Nice tannic bite and finishes with juicy acidity

Very decent for the price we paid. Let's see what day 2 brings....T

Hi Shez,
Thanks for staying up late to let me know. I can relax now, as that sounds just as it should for a petite chateau Medoc on the '09 vintage. I'm jolly pleased that it is not soft, as are many of the PCs on the affordable right bank (mid Bourg, Blaye & EDM).

Great News.

My M&S order arrived 20 minutes ago, a day early.

I'll probably crack a Ch. Le Beyan '09 next, this because I have one short of a dozen, and I know now that Bellegrave is a good'un. Cheers.

Well done in getting your T Terraces PN for a tenner a bottle, I'm sorry you missed the leader board free case by just a couple of minutes I think the '11 will be better than the '10 in Marlborough, more racy, less "NW ripeness", and more minerality.
One to Enjoy - before 2020 .

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Duncan

I've left half a bottle in the fridge under vacuvin to have another go at either tonight or tomorrow
For the price it seems a good house claret but I'd probably advise you have a go some time in the near future to make sure your assessment is the same as mine

Nice of yours to arrive a day early, looking forward to hearing the latest assessment off the Le Beyan

I was actually surprised the Terreaces PN didnt fully shift but glad it made it to the best px
I didn't get my hopes up regarding the leaderboard but it would have been nice to have another 6 thrown in for free
If the Stockman Station 06s I had recently are anything to go by I have to try to leave these alone for a couple years to develop some secondaries but its pretty hard when these NZ PNs tend to drink so well early on too

Will Do - I don't see it being at odds with your opnion we both know what we look for in a Medoc.

I wonder why Marks did not say that Bellegrave made it into the:
Sélection Offi'cielle 2009
Crus Bourgeois du Médoc
Under the new system, the selection took place in September 2011, 246 properties were admitted, 243 were admitted for the 2008 vintage

It appears that CBs are checked for quality every year now

Perhaps they'd already signed the supply contract

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Duncan

Well if that's the case, that's very promising at least

Yep, Shez has that TN right, I completely concur.

This wine will benefit from cellaring, and has the structure, and sufficient acidity. On the 3rd Day, a glass full left in the re-sealed bottle was fully open for flavour, had built a fuller and juicy palate and a comfortable mouthfeel.
The last glass was delicious.

Another M&S petite chateau claret bargain on the wonderfull 2009 vintage

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Duncan

A note for claret folks who have affordable right bank '05s

Cracked another bottle of Bellegrave '09 on Boxing day with afternoon lunch - hard cheese course at the end.

The cork end very good, a realy good seal and very dark and covered in substance deposits.

A dark and deep claret with plenty of dark & smooth tannins, and yet, great lift to the ripe fruit, cab in particular. I think there is a bit of bottle variance with this Bellegrave, this one was more robust than the last one, with more potential sediment material in the wine.

This Medoc nearly destroyed a St Emilion grand cru 2005 ( not a classe' A or B designation) from Laithwaite's consumed an hour before. A point of note:-

Your petite chateau St Emilion grand crus, even on '05 may not be holding as well as the reference books would have you believe. The '05 power is there, but the merlot fruit is declining, still a good flavour, lovely oak integration, but going over the hill quite fast. I've drunk 3 different St. E GC '05s recently, they appeared / seamed to have peaked. Check your cellars, your stock just to be sure. It is a good time of year to check mid term claret .

My star this season so far has been a Chanson Beaune Teurons 1er 2005. Very fresh, yet maturing fruit, evolving nicely, bright, builds fullness in the decanter, with a lovely finish. Another 5 + years I'd say, maybe longer.

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Duncan

Glad to hear this has got another strong write up from you Duncan
Quite a surprise that 2005 claret is already hitting its peak

Shez, Err - No, I didn't say that ! But for affordable / cheaper Saint Emilion grand cru from some growers are not keeping very well, peaking early though. Probably the most dissapointing recent one, and during this Christmas, was Chateau Mauvinon Bellevue '05 from Laithwaites. I had half a dozen but 4 were drunk some time ago. Another, Chateau Boutisse was loosing fruit and dumbing down pretty fast - or never making it ? There have been a number of them this Autumn, here or at our friends.

I see that someone on CT was not impressed at all in 2010 with M. Bellevue, whilst I found them quite nice a few years ago in their youth. I must find the remaining one for January. These lesser ones are difficult to predict.

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Duncan

My bad Dunc: lazy posting by me. Wasn't implying that you were saying all 2005 claret is better to be drunk up but rather that I'm surprised that some of the cheaper GCs are already peaking this early when 2005 vintage is still meant to be a hd for many wines of that vintage

Yeah, I knew you meant that really - But there are other folks, way off yonder, who read this stuff - I think ?
I am a very bad Dunc: I should have checked on those cheap/cheaper St. Ems a lot earlier. However another firmer and well oaked Lussac St. Em '05 I have, more of a vin du garde is as sturdy as expensive mountain boots - was tasting hard & horrible in 2008 so ~~~~~~.

We need, and I need to keep an eye on those bargain 2009's Medocs & Haut Medocs we've bought, over the next 4 years. I don't want to be caught again. However, I am of the opinion that it is the petite chateau merlot fruit that is not keeping up. That sweet merlot ripeness and the PV being the part of the wine that makes these '09s so approachable early.

GK put a link up for Cheval Blanc 1947, a premier GC classe' group A, and Jancis R. said on the radio recently that this wine would be in her final mixed case, if she were on her death bed ! Heaven forbid. Looking at Cheval Blanc '47, a huge amount of very dark & ripe Cab Franc at 47%, and 14.5% ALC that year is keeping it UP, almost like a port wine, they say.

BTW - I extend a Happy and prosperous New Year greeting to folks here. Cheers

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Duncan

Another bottle if this consumed in Thursday night
Nicely approachable now.
Nice fruit from the cab and merlot. Not as much cedar/oak driven flavour that I like from a claret
A little short on the finish perhaps but a nice glugger
Can't complain at ~£6 a bottle

Shez,

I think I'm rating Bellegrave a wee bit higher than you

They do vary a little, 3 consumed so far, the last one I enjoyed had a small amount of sediment that I appreciate, so the wine is not heavily filtered, and is still very much alive. Appeared fuller than hitherto (memory) and openned with more-of-a mahogany nose, more reminisant of a Merlot / Cab Franc mix, with less Cab Sauvignon (say 30%) . . . . so cedar may never make a real statement. I don't know what the mix is.

The wine is maturing faster than we 1st thought, these '09s are reported to be very approachable at 3rd growth level at the Tesco fine wine tasting according to Oz Clarke and Jamie G. recently. The buying price was marvelous, and a great glugger, the oak is right for a lovely little claret, IMHO, more oak would be pretentious.

As for length and complexity . . . . .well, not everyone can find Le Boscq St. Estephe and Belgrave 5th growth HM at the Co-op for £7 or so. Your palate for mid-week has got expensive

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Duncan

Ha, good point Duncan, although I've only tried the one Le Boscq so far

Glad you've enjoyed the Bellegrave so far. I may have been having an off day and did rush the bottle down so never gave it much of a chance to settle and breathe much