2015 Chateau Pavie Macquin Saint Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe 750 ml

Smart Buy of 2015 Right Bank Premiers Grands Crus Classés

The superstar team of Nicolas Thienpont (Le Pin and Vieux Certan) and Stéphane Derenoncourt (author of 100-point La Mondotte) has taken full advantage of the best Right Bank vintage since the historic 2005s, by turning in a full-bodied wine bursting with black cherry, cassis, exotic spices, mocha, tobacco and supple tannins—a wine that has many glorious years ahead of it. Not surprisingly, the critics have responded with raves: James Suckling gave it 98 glowing points, making it one of the best buys of all 2015 Premier Grand Cru Classé estates (see our chart). Vinous called it a “positively stellar,” “vivid, head-spinning wine,” and, with a 97-point score, placed it alongside legendary Bordeaux from both banks like Lafite, Château Palmer, and Saint-Émilion jewel Cheval Blanc. Top wine, top vintage.

For a moment, let us take you back—and into the future: Just one year ago, we secured some beautifully aged, 96-point Château Pavie-Macquin from the 2005 vintage. Of course, we offered this decade-old Grand Cru Classé Bordeaux at the best price we could—which was more than double the price of today’s offer. Wine Access clients snapped up every last bottle in record time, and happily. But we can’t help but think that they all were wishing they had purchased the gorgeous wine on release.

Five or ten years from now, you will remember today’s offer as when you had a chance to get ahead of the game and claim that same stellar wine from another historic vintage. 2015 is the highest-rated Bordeaux vintage since 2005, and Pavie-Macquin’s bona fides are just as impeccable as ever. Robert Parker calls the organically farmed Pavie-Macquin “one of the stars of Saint-Émilion,” thanks in large part to perhaps the greatest winemaking duo in all of Bordeaux, Nicolas Thienpont and Stéphane Derenoncourt. The meticulous property manager and the super-oenologist are from different backgrounds—Thienpont’s family owns Château Le Pin and Vieux Château Certan in Pomerol, while Derenoncourt hitchhiked to Bordeaux in 1982 and started his career working harvests in Fronsac—yet the men’s styles have meshed perfectly, producing many massively concentrated and broad-shouldered 98-, 99-, and 100-pointers.

Pavie-Macquin has never outgrown its “underrated” status, which is both a miracle and a boon to the savvy collector. The 2015’s price-to-score ratio is proof: The Médoc and Right Bank Grand Crus that landed alongside Pavie-Macquin in Vinous’s 97-point neighborhood—Lafite, Château Palmer, and Cheval Blanc among them—are fetching $350-$800+ per bottle. So take a  moment, envision your future self scanning the cellar for a beautiful Bordeaux, and act accordingly.