This is loaded with dark and winey plum sauce, blackberry paste and fig compote flavors that glide through over notes of warm earth, sweet tobacco and anise. A subtle singed alder hint infuses the finish, along with a flicker of violet, while the fruit takes an encore. This shows seriously hefty fruit matched with a terrific underpinning of terroir. For the cellar. Best from 2024 through 2039. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.
BOW (8.50)
Robert Parker (93)
While the 2019 Hermitage Les Bessards features classic notes of crushed stone and cassis on the nose and is nicely medium to full-bodied on the palate, it doesn't show the impressive richness and texture of either the 2018 or 2020. Black olives and dark berries are borne on a creamy palate, and the finish is silky and licorice tinged. Perhaps it was just at an awkward stage post-bottling, as it did seem to improve dramatically with air. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.
Vinous (97)
Opaque ruby-red. A highly perfumed and expansive bouquet evokes dark berry and cherry preserves, Indian spices, olive and incense; a smoky mineral nuance emerges as the wine opens up. Fleshy and broad on the palate but surprisingly energetic as well, offering intense, mineral-driven black raspberry, boysenberry, kirsch, allspice and licorice flavors, with a suave touch of candied flowers. Finishes chewy, vibrant and impressively long, with resonating florality and youthfully firm tannins that don't detract from the wine's intense fruit.
Jancis Robinson (18)
100% Syrah. Aged for 12–14 months in a mix of new and second-use French oak barrels with regular racking. Barrel sample.
Tasted blind. Very appealing nose with ripe fresh blackberry and graphite notes. A floral note to the structured, chewy and vibrant palate, firm tannins are well integrated to the ripe and fleshy sweet fruit core. A chalky feel alongside a long salty liquorice-infused finish. (AC)
Wine Enthusiast (95)
Sourced from the oldest plot of Les Bessards in the heart of Hermitage, this limited-production, site-specific Syrah expresses the heat and power of the 2019 vintage with elegance. Massive in structure and richly extracted, it's packed with lip-staining blueberry and cassis flavors. A perfumed lift of violet and lingering notes of smoked tea leaves and vanilla mark the finish. Seductive already, the wine will show best from 2025 to 2040.
