Château Val Beylie "Plaisir" Bordeaux

Tasting notes & discussion 15

Typically $18/bottle from Château Val Beylie
Vintage 2015 from the Bordeaux Rouge AOC
Available for AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; NC; NE; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY
Sold by participating winery or licensee, fulfilled by Wine Country Connect

About Château Val Beylie: “The vines here may not be perfectly manicured, but they are pulsing with life – The air is loud with insect calls and flowers of all colors shoot up from the wild grass below the estate’s organically farmed vines. Christophe Pont runs all aspects of this operation with his own bare hands. The ten acre spread of Val Beylie is large enough to feed the family and small enough to avoid the need for employees – Just the right size for a man driven to keep life simple and fulfilling.”

Plaisir Palantír

TASTING NOTES: ‘Plaisir’ means ‘pleasure’ in English. The wine presents a deep purple color with a clean, fruit forward nose, smooth in the mouth with red berry candied fruit with hints of smoke and good acidity, nice and balanced on the finish. While Christophe’s first vintages were aged in barrique, his new ‘sans chêne’ approach creates a naked example of Merlot where you can smell and taste the dense clay soil that makes Beylie’s terroir special. This is an amazing wine full of freshness and elegance. (AbV 14.1%, pH 3.58, TA 3.25 g/L, RS <2 g/L)

VARIETALS: 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc

BARRELS: Stainless steel.

PAIRS WITH: N/A

THAT REMINDS ME OF: The palantíri of Middle Earth.

In the undying lands of Aman to the West, there was an elf by the name of Fëanor. He was a prince, the eldest son of Finwë, the king of the Noldor elves. He was also a master craftsman. Eventually he would create the gems of light known as the Silmarils, but before that, he made at least eight crystal spheres that were called the palantíri.

Unbreakable, dark crystals of varying size, a palantír when touched could show a person visions of another place, of the past, and even of another’s mind if they were also touching one. The palantíri can only show true thing, but the user, particularly when broadcasting to another user, can be selective about what is shown. Because of this, they can be used to influence or trick the receiver. Sauron is unintentionally fooled by Pippin’s use of the palantír into believing he is the ring-bearer. Sauron fools Denethor, steward of Gondor, into thinking an enemy fleet was approaching to overwhelm the city while not showing that Aragorn had commandeered it.

The lesson: don’t immediately believe everything you are shown, because what you are shown might not be everything.

Château Val Beylie "Plaisir" Bordeaux

Who's buying this?

How are you buying your bottles?

Ever spent a significant amount of time in France?