The Bellisle-Mondotte property is quite small by Bordeaux château standards, with just 4.5 hectares of vineyards planted to 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. The estate is owned by the Escure family (who also own Château Grand Pey Lescours, also in Saint-Émilion), while the viticulture and winemaking are overseen by Jean-Marie Bouldy, who has garnered widespread acclaim for his work at his family estate, Château Bellegrave, in Pomerol. In a region where itinerant consultants apply their style across a huge number of client properties, Bouldy is still working at an artisanal scale, and it shows: his wines don’t feel stylized, but rather soulful and earth-driven. Bellisle-Mondotte’s sloping, south-facing vineyard boasts an average vine age of about 35 years. Soils are Saint-Émilion’s characteristic mix of clay and limestone.

The 2008 vintage in Bordeaux was relatively cool and the growing season was quite long—not a blockbuster year in terms of concentration, although you’d never know that by tasting Bellisle-Mondotte’s version: This is a luxurious red that is starting to blossom now, and while collectors are being advised to start drinking their ’08s, I’d say try some now, sure, but don’t hesitate to cellar some as well. In the glass, the ’08 Bellisle-Mondotte is starting to show its age, with a dark garnet core moving to light orange hues at the rim. The nose is textbook Right Bank Bordeaux—heady and seductive and full of complexity. Aromas of dried red plums, red and black currants, wet gravel, cedar, tobacco, dried herbs and pencil lead carry through to the palate, which is medium-plus in body and still lifted by freshness. The tannins have softened to a very fine grain but still frame the wine nicely—the texture is silky smooth and what’s especially appealing is the mix of sweet and savory elements. It is luxurious, but not in that buffed-to-a-high-shine kind of way, with only subtle oak influences showing through (it was aged in one-third new oak). Decant this wine (watching for sediment) about 30 minutes before serving at 60-65 degrees in Bordeaux stems. There is no decline whatsoever over the course of a long meal, which is the proper application for a Bordeaux of this pedigree: Give it a try with the attached recipe for tea-smoked duck—it has both the stuffing and the exotic spice to make it work!