The 2019 vintage is a terrific red Burgundy vintage, producing wines with extraordinary balance between ripe fruit, acidity, and tannin. As Neal Martin puts it, “they unexpectedly offer freshness and richness that were once thought to be mutually exclusive.”
Roger and Julie Belland are 5th and 6th generation growers in Santenay — their wines are perennial favorites among our readers, offering early drinking and friendly pricetags. Belland’s are always delicious and precocious, but in 2019s they’re even better than usual — they’re all in stock today.
Located near the southern limit of the Côte d’Or, Santenay is one of our favorite sources of value. Its finest vineyard, the premier cru Gravières, features gravelly soil (hence the name) and produces wines with beautiful mineral complexity. Pair this with the bursting fruit and rippling tension of the 2019 vintage, and this is not a wine to miss.
The nose shows violets, gingerbread, toast, and wild cherries. The texture is extraordinary — fine-grained tannins coated perfectly with smooth Pinot fruit and a fresh line of minerality. Burghound called it “outstanding,” awarding 92 points and finding “silky minerality” and a “complex, balanced and impressively long finish.”
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Belland Santenay 1er cru “Gravières” 2019
bottle price: $45