Dense, ripe, cassis-laden, southern French Cabernet, with claret-like suavity. The Belle of 2023 Winemaker Mark Hoddy reserves the Belle Roche label for a red wine made from the best parcel of grapes of the vintage. In 2023 he found just the ticket in a few rows of dark, thick-skinned Cabernet, grown in high-up Languedoc vineyards close to Carcassonne. There the climate benefits both from Mediterranean and Atlantic influences, hence a wine that echoes both the warm ripeness of the Med with the structure of Bordeaux. It’s a densely flavoured red, its colour almost black the reason he calls it his precious black diamond of the vintage. Meticulously crafted by Mark at the cellar, Belle Roche is best decanted an hour before serving, just like a claret. Its ideal with a juicy steak, a rich lasagne or a hearty casserole. Decant.