Tasting notes
Antonio Galloni · Vinous · 98
The 2023 Beau-Séjour Bécot is fabulous. Vibrant and delineated, the 2023 is a gorgeous, statuesque beauty. The precision here is just unreal. Soaring aromatics, vibrant red-toned fruit and polished tannins convey finesse. Vibrant saline notes stain the palate on the finish. Beau-Séjour Bécot is one of the very finest wines of the Right Bank in 2023.
Yohan Castaing · Wine Advocate · 98
The 2023 Beau-Séjour Bécot has turned out beautifully in bottle, revealing a perfumed, fresh and finely detailed bouquet of rose petals, dark cherries, wisteria, lilac and dark berries. Medium- to full-bodied, it is layered and seamless, suave in texture, built around a pure, vibrant core of fruit framed by powdery, velvety tannins and concluding with a chalky, ethereal finish. The estate’s long-standing commitment to precision—most notably its block-by-block harvesting and increasingly precise viticulture—now places Beau-Séjour Bécot among the most compelling addresses on the Right Bank.
Georgie Hindle · Decanter · 97
A brilliant wine from this estate in 2023. Gorgeous bright purple rim. Fresh blueberries and black cherries on the nose with crayon, pencil lead, tapenade, olive and liquorice. Tangy and so alive on the palate, crystalline and pure, really clean and clear. The limestone comes through strongly in the wet stone aspects, a metallic coating of the mouth. This has a touch of tension, with mouthwatering acidity, as well as some subtle fleshiness that really expands towards the finish, where the wine settles and grows. A lovely, very singular style. Great juiciness, almost salty strawberry juice with cranberry and raspberry that really lingers. This will grow into a beauty. Tannins are flawless, there’s density but no heaviness. One of the best! The second year with a significant part of massale selection Cabernet Franc in the blend. 39hl/ha yield. 3.5pH, 68 IPT.
Drink 2033 - 2048
James Suckling · James Suckling · 96-97
A wine with very bright and al-dente fruit. Aromas and flavors of redcurrants and minerals with lavender and chalk. Medium to full body and a solid core of tannins integrated with the dark fruit. Toned-muscle quality to the tannins. Fresh and vibrant at the end. Pure fruit. Energy. 77% merlot and 23% cabernet franc.
William Kelley · Wine Advocate · 96-98
The first vintage produced in the estate's highly functional new winery, the 2023 Beau-Séjour Bécot has turned out beautifully and looks likely to rival or surpass the brilliant 2022. Unfurling in the glass with notes of raspberries, dark berries and minty cherries mingled with notions of iris, wisteria and lilac, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and velvety, with a suave attack that prefaces a cool, complete core of fruit that's pure, perfumed and mineral, concluding with a long, saline finish. It's a blend of 77% Merlot and 23% Cabernet Franc that was harvested from September 7 to October 4, sub-block by sub-block.
Jeb Dunnuck · Jeb Dunnuck · 95
Based on 77% Merlot and 23% Cabernet Franc and aged 14 months in 55% new French oak with the balance in one-year-old barrels, foudres, and amphoras, the 2023 Château Beau-Séjour Bécot is a beautiful 2023 that's incredibly classic as well as very much in the style of the vintage. Pure black raspberries, spring flowers, graphite, and crushed stone all emerge from the bouquet, and it's concentrated and medium-bodied on the palate, with a pure, juicy, seamless mouthfeel, nicely integrated acidity, and fine tannins. It's all about elegance and finesse. I suspect it's going to gain some weight with 4-5 years of bottle age and will keep for 30 years. It reminds me of an improved 2001. There are roughly 6,250 cases produced. Drink 2029-2053.
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW · Wine Advocate · 95-97+
A blend of 77% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2023 Beau-Sejour Becot has a pH of 3.5. It is ageing in 55% new oak barriques, 20% one-year-old barrels, and 25% in a mix of amphorae and 20 hl oak casks. It has a deep garnet-purple color and comes galloping out of the glass with notes of crushed plums, black raspberries, and Morello cherries, opening out to a delicate undercurrent of garrigue, crushed rocks, violets, cranberry sauce, and pencil shavings. The medium-bodied palate is breathtakingly elegant and racy, with intense red and black berry layers and a fine-grained texture, finishing with energetic mineral sparks.
Jane Anson · Decanter · 95
Ruby red, glass staining, peony and violet flowers on the aromatics, plush velvety tannins that cushion plump damson and pomegranate fruits through to a juicy salinity on the finish. Estate identity in full effect here, shot through with the sheer pleasure of limestone, harvest September 7 to 28 for the Merlot, with Cabernet Franc through to October 4. 39hl/h yield. 55% new oak for ageing. First year in the new cellar, Jean de Cournuaud technical director.
Neal Martin · Vinous · 92-94
The 2023 Beau-Séjour Bécot has the highest percentage of Cabernet Franc to date after the introduction of vines planted with a north-south orientation eight years ago, from a massal selection. The Merlot was picked from September 7 until October 4, a long harvest. It underwent a ten-day cold pre-fermentation to fix the aromatics and enhance volume, then it was matured in 55% new oak—25% one-year old and 20% foudres. It has a crisp, well-defined bouquet with lifted red cherry, wild strawberry and crushed limestone aromas. This is classy and complex. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid red fruit, fine acidity and moderate grip. The texture is slightly chalky and reminds me of Troplong Mondot, which is no surprise given the similarities in their respective terroirs. Just a touch of salinity surfaces on the finish. This is a sophisticated and quite cerebral Saint-Émilion that should age with style.
