Château Beau-Séjour Bécot 2022

What a nose! Wonderful chalky minerality over ripe fruit, violet aromas; a taut, compact palate with a sweet fruit core, energetic and juicy, excellent structure, the finest tannins, magnificent acidity; finishes exceptionally long with a red-fruited echo. Top class.

The 2022 Beau-Séjour Bécot has turned out brilliantly in bottle. It wafts from the glass with a complex bouquet of sweet wild berries mingled with rose petals, orange zest, violets, gentian and espresso roast. It’s full-bodied, supple and suave, with a deep core of cool, layered fruit, beautifully vibrant flavors and polished structuring tannins, concluding with a saline finish. As I wrote when I tasted it from barrel, this is a Saint-Émilion of breathtaking perfume and harmony that will be worth a special effort to seek out.

This is very fresh, expressive and focused, with violet, iris and rosehip notes darting to the fore, while flavors of sleek raspberry and red currant preserves race along behind. Almost flattering, but there's a subtle chalky tension piercing the finish, which sails through. A dreamy wine. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2026 through 2040. 6,250 cases made, 1,600 cases imported.

Floral notes on the nose. Tangy and sharp, lively and bright straight away, sweet and sour, so energetic and lively with a mineral grip from the fine, firm, grippy tannins. Lovely precision and almost delicate presentation of fruit. You really feel the mineral, salty, tangy aspect of the fruit, nothing feels overworked, all in balance, really quite thrilling and electric. Great purity and focus. Scintillating yet still with a lovely volume and roundness accented by touches of tobacco, clove, liquorice and cinnamon. Really well worked and fresh – this feels very modern with such control of the fruit, tannins and acidity, giving overall depth and complexity. Elegant but confident, taking the best density from clay and freshness from limestone. A very singular charm with this wine. pH 3.55. 10% press wine.

The 2022 Beau-Séjour Bécot is a total stunner. What a wine! The 2022 was magnificent en primeur, and it is all that from bottle. The aromatics alone are mesmerizing. Crushed rose petal, mint, blood orange, new leather and cedar meld into a core of pliant red-toned fruit. More than anything else, I am so impressed with the wine's precision and finesse. I have never tasted a Beau-Séjour Bécot like this.

I loved this from the barrel, and I am even happier to report that it is even better now that it is bottled! The perfume is ethereal, with a bouquet of flowers, red, black, and blue fruits, licorice, and spice. On the palate, this is where the wine truly shines. Rich, plush, incredibly dense, sensuous, opulent, and elegant, the wine feels weightless, making it effortless to drink. The purity of the fruit, paired with cashmere-like tannins, a seamless finish, and layers of fruit topped by salty, crushed stones, hits the 60-second mark and keeps on going. The blend is 76% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon. Make no mistake, this is the best wine ever produced at Beau-Sejour Becot, as well as the best deal in Bordeaux today for a 100-point wine. Drink from 2028–2060.

Tasted on multiple occasions, the 2022 Château Beau-Séjour Bécot is flat-out sensational, as well as the finest wine I’ve tasted from this château. Powerful aromatics of red, blue, and black fruits as well as crushed stone and violets define the aromatics, and it’s full-bodied, incredibly concentrated, has integrated acidity, and ultra-fine tannins. Based on 76% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, this heavenly Saint-Emilion will benefit from just 3-5 years of bottle age and have 30 years or more of overall longevity. Back up the truck.

This year the blend contains double the amount of Cabernet Franc after vineyard restructuring, and the chalkiness of the limestone underscores the curling peony and violet floral character on the opening beats, balancing the intensity of the vintage. Plenty of blueberry and damson fruit, with bitter cocoa bean and coffee, saffron and smoked dried herbs. Highly successful. No irrigation; instead they used cover crops and reduced the canopy height by 15 cm to limit transpiration. Cold maceration for 10–15 days, 55% new oak, 30% oak casks, and amphoras. Jean de Cournuaud, technical director. Yield of 33 hl/ha after frost impact, harvest from September 5 to 23. The new cellar will be ready at the end of August for the 2023 vintage.

A ripe, autumnal, heady nose with toasty, roasted aromas. On the palate, there is true intensity and immediacy. The wine floods the mouth with a sense of fluidity, unfolding rich, vibrant flavors like a roll of purple satin unfurling.

The balance between charm and freshness is at its peak; the two elements sit side by side, with neither outshining the other. Hints of eucalyptus mingle with notes of black berries and licorice, creating an inviting bouquet that paves the way for a wine combining charm and power. A mouthwatering, persistent wine.

Dark red and purple color. Intense, delicate, fruity, pure, subtle and smooth nose. Precise on the attack, very aromatic mid-palate, with classy texture and a refined style this year; the wine builds on the finish. It ends long and silky, with fine-grained tannins. Blend: 73% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc versus 13 on average, 2% Cabernet Sauvignon. Alcohol: 14.5% - pH: 3.55. Yield: 33 hl/ha.

The rising star of the Saint-Ém’ plateau confirms its potential and snaps at the heels of the Right Bank “top dogs.” The nose is seductive, bursting with lively florality and vibrant, ripe fruit. The palate follows suit, combining focused fruit, a fine, even tannic weave, and a straight, precise acidic backbone that gives the wine its energetic drive.