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  • Country ranking ?

    191
  • Producer ranking ?

    3
  • Decanting time

    4h
  • When to drink

    2025-2040
  • Food Pairing

    Grilled Duck, roasted Guinea Fowl & fried wild boar fillet

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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The Story

Each year, Château Beauséjour hDL takes into consideration the quality of the harvest and adapts its vinification accordingly. A subtle balance between the frequency and intensity of the "pumping-over" process must respect the wine's maceration, which varies in duration, in order to extract the best tannins.

For over thirty years, the Michel Rolland Laboratory has accompanied Château Beauséjour hDL during the vinification of each vintage. The wine is afterwards refined for 16 to 18 months in oak "shook" barrels, then aged in bottles at a constant temperature in limestone quarries.


A portion of the vineyard is rooted in argilo-calcareous soil with an asteriated subsoil, while the remaining vines are rooted in the limestone that, here and there, rises to the surface at the top of the hill. 


Today, the vineyard's varietals are made up of 81% Merlot, which particularly appreciates the coolness and humidity of the clayey soil and contributes fruitiness and fullness to the château's wines, and 19% Cabernet (16% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon), which provides powerful aroma and structure. On average, the vines are between 35 and 40 years old.

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Vintage 2019

BORDEAUX 2019 VINTAGE

When I was visiting Bordeaux early March, Corona was a threat on the horizon and France has been more concerned by a strike of the air traffic control. However, I was travelling to Bordeaux and had the chance to get some first insights to the 2019 vintage. I was very much looking forward to the “en primeur tastings” which were scheduled for March 26, 2020 but the tastings were cancelled mid-March. Immediately I contacted the different associations and wineries in Bordeaux and asked for samples.

The result was a small number of wines which arrived in Essen before the shutdown of France made shipments rather difficult. These first samples of the vintage 2019 were tasted under pristine conditions to assure a fair and equal assessment of all qualities. In fact, the samples proved right the opinion of some of Bordeaux’ leading figures. Bruno-Eugène Borie from Château Ducru-Beaucaillou sees 2019 in a line with the excellent vintages of 2016, 2010, 2009 und 2005.

Henri Lurton talks about his best vintage, along with 2016, he has ever vinified at Château Brane-Cantenac. Philippe Dhalluin from Château Mouton-Rothschild asses the vintage as rich and abundant in quality and also in quantity. After some smaller crops they came back to an average production.

Emmanuel Cruse from Château d’Issan sees that 2019 has a lot in common with 2016 yet preserving more freshness. It is a very good vintage but appearing at a very difficult time on the market. In fact, the start of this vintage was very positive. Enough precipitations during winter were retained by soils like chalk and clay. Vineyards on these water retaining soils had a huge advantage in the future growing period. With exception of a wet June, the vintage has taken advantage of a rather dry climatic condition, which prevented diseases in the vineyards to a huge extend. No chance for powdery or downy mildew. Even the heat waves were not really harming the vines as rain set in, always at the last moment but still early enough to prevent massive water stress and a slow-down of the maturity. The late physiological maturity brought a lot of alcohol, but the wines show more freshness as in the previous years.

Fabien Teitgen, Winemaker of Smith-Haut-Lafitte relates this freshness to the good acidity “due to cool night temperatures during the ripening period”. This fact is also good news for white wines. „They are the big surprise “, says Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier.

At Château Coutet in Barsac, Philippe and Aline Baly were harvesting in three passes with a total of 19 harvesting days. They judge the conditions as rather ideal: “These climatic conditions have generated a harvest whose quality is indisputably present.” Same samples made their way to Essen and I have tasted them. Some more samples are announced and will hopefully arrive during the current week. There will be a weekly update of my tasting notes, whenever samples will arrive.

Unfortunately, 2019 arrives in a difficult time, the Corona virus puts the world in fear and makes trade more and more difficult. Trade berries and new customs duties create a difficult frame for this vintage. However, we should not forget one thing: there are wonderful 2019s waiting for us, wines with ageing potential and charm which will survive every crisis.

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Latest Pro-tasting notes

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Written Notes

2019 Beausejour Duffau Lagarrosse 97-98p
Tasted in November 2021. I wrote in June 2020 while tasting a barrel sample of 2019 BDL. "It's a beautiful effort!  Remarkable intensity of black cherries, dark chocolate and cocoa powder, fleshy on the palate with high complexity and sophisticated touch, luxurious and lingering finish. This wine oozes sheer class! 97-98p". From the bottle, it is identically impressive and got some elegance. 

  • 98p

Dark purple colour with violet hue and almost black core. Powerful yet elegant nose with multi-layered fruit, dark berries, cherries and hints of sloe, fine toasting, well integrated oak and elegant mild spices in the background. On the palate opulence in combination with freshness and elegance, quoting the fruit of the nose, with lingering mild spics in the finish. An excellent wine with depth and length. 

  • 97p
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Information

Origin

St Emilion, Bordeaux

Grapes

81% Merlot
3% Cabernet Sauvignon
16% Cabernet Franc

Drinking temperature

16-18C
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