Best-In Class Bordeaux Awards
You Can’t Go Wrong – Stunning Value
Bellefont-Belcier, Sansonnet, Laroque, Barde-Haut, and Tour St-Christophe still amaze me for what they deliver for the price—polished, precise, refined, and simply delicious examples of St-Emilion.
2021 Tour Saint Christophe, St-Emilion (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $30) $24.99
2020 Laroque, St-Emilion (Pre-Arrival) $37.99
2022 Barde-Haut, St-Emilion (Pre-Arrival) $37.99
2020 Bellefont-Belcier, St-Émilion $47.99
2019 Sansonnet, St-Émilion (1.5L) $84.99
Best Buys on the Left Bank
Phélan-Segur and Branaire-Ducru keep getting better and better, while I would highly recommend going big on recent vintages of Gloria. Tronquoy-Lalande (now just Tronquoy) and Dame de Montrose are perhaps the best second wines going, and hold their own against many a Grand Vin.
2019 Tronquoy-Lalande, St-Estèphe (Pre-Arrival) $29.99
2019 Gloria, St-Julien (Elsewhere $60) $44.99
2020 La Dame de Montrose, St-Estèphe $45.99
2020 Branaire-Ducru, St-Julien $47.99
2020 Phélan-Ségur, St-Estèphe $49.99
Top Collectibles
I keep going back again and again to Montrose and Pichon-Lalande. Their 2016, 2019, 2020, and 2022 will easily rival their all-timers, and still deliver a world-class experience for a relatively reasonable price. Canon also operates in the same space, and you really can’t go wrong with anything from them in the past decade.
2018 Canon, St-Émilion (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $175) $139.99
2019 Canon, St-Émilion (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $180) $144.99
2019 Montrose, St-Estèphe (Pre-Arrival) $194.99
2020 Pichon-Lalande, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $235) $199.99
2019 Pichon-Lalande, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $275) $219.99
2016 Montrose, St-Estèphe (Pre-Arrival) $229.99
You Can’t Go Wrong – Collectible Sweet Spot
For the best collectible sweet-spot buys, Léoville-Barton, Rauzan-Segla, Domaine de Chevalier, and La Gaffelière are right at the top of my list.
2021 La Gaffelière, St-Émilion (Pre-Arrival) $64.99
2020 Domaine de Chevalier Rouge, Pessac-Léognan (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $100) $72.99
2020 La Gaffelière, St-Émilion $89.99
2019 Rauzan-Ségla, Margaux (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $150) $99.99
2009 Domaine de Chevalier Rouge, Pessac-Léognan (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $140) $109.99
2016 Léoville-Barton, St-Julien (Pre-Arrival) $149.99
2010 Rauzan-Ségla, Margaux (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $190) $164.99
Producers on the Rise
And for up-and-coming properties that folks should take the time to taste and discover for themselves, Les Carmes Haut Brion, Beau-Sejour-Becot, Brane-Cantenac, and Troplong-Mondot are unique, full of character, and going through a renaissance at their respective addresses.
2021 Brane-Cantenac, Margaux (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $68) $54.99
2018 Troplong Mondot, St-Emilion (Pre-Arrival) $114.99
2018 Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan (Pre-Arrival, Elsewhere $180) $159.99