A great wine for ageing, with a charming bouquet and a very concentrated, dense and rich palate. More info
Hermitage Les Bessards Delas Frères serve at a temperature of 16°C. It will pair perfectly with the following dishes: Volaille de Bresse aux morilles, Côte de boeuf braisée, Poularde truffée.
Peak: 2024-2029
What the experts say...
Every bit as profound as the 2010, yet in a more voluptuous, lower acid, hedonistic style, the inky colored 2009 Hermitage les Bessards (aged all in new French oak) offers incredible intensity and depth in its black raspberry, toasted bread, graphite and spice-like aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, massively endowed and with a wealth of raw material, it has high, yet sweet tannin and a finish that just won't quit. Give it 4-5 years and drink it over the following 3-4 decades. Unfortunately, this is made in tiny quantities, but count yourself lucky if you were able to grab a few bottles of either the '09 or '10.
An exceptional location, the Bessards hillside gives birth to the most famous red Hermitage cuvées. Maison Delas owns eight hectares, at the heart of the hill, where the oldest vines are found, all facing south and protected from the winds. This wine is made only in the best years, from a selection of the best sections and produced in very small quantities (6,000 bottles). Viticulture is done entirely by hand, the yields are reduced to between 15 and 20 hl/ha, and the grapes are from sixty-year-old vines. In the cellar, a two-day, cold, pre-fermentation maceration precedes vinification, which will be interspersed with daily punch-down and pump-over. Ageing takes place for 12 to 14 months in new barriques or in those which have held one wine. Enjoyed thanks to its mouth-watering aromas of blueberry, blackcurrant, blackberry, liquorice, pepper and toasted oak, this wine offers exceptional density and opulence, and can be kept for a considerable time, up to 25 years in the noteworthy vintages.
Founded in 1835, Maison Delas Frères is a part of a very exclusive circle of the finest producers in the Rhône Valley in terms of both quality and variety of appellations. The domaine was bought by Champagne Deutz in 1977 and then by Maison Roederer in 1993 but the spirit of the wines remains unchanged and faithful to their terroir. In 1996 Fabrice Rosset (Champagne Deutz) was appointed to manage the domaine and soon realised the great potential of the vineyard. He hired Jacques Grange, a young oenologue who had already proved his worth at some of the finest Rhône domaines. Thanks to him, the quality of wines at Delas has improved hugely and the domaine has invested accordingly: the winery has been entirely refurbished and 7,000 feet of vines have been replanted. It spans over 30 hectares of which 10 are in Hermitage, 18 in Crozes-Hermitage and 2 in Saint-Joseph. Delas Frères is also a negoçiant and offers wines from other appellations, such as Cornas, Côte-Rôtie et Condrieu.
iDealwine Price(1) corresponds to the hammer price and the buyer's premium charged by the auctioneer.
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