2016 Chateau de Beau Site Graves Bordeaux 750 ml

What, other than prestige and bragging rights, do winemakers really get when they buy an estate that dates back to the 17th century?

José Rodrigues, who acquired Château de Beau-Site in 2013, told us he gained something far more valuable than status: accumulated wisdom. The generations of winemakers that preceded him at the Graves-based locale had already tested thousands of variables—varieties, clones, rootstocks, locations—to determine the best layout for the vineyard.

When José and his family arrived, they introduced their own improvements, including rigorous organic farming and high-density plantings that forced the grapevines’ roots to reach deep underground.

Listed by Decanter as among the best buys from Graves in a vintage they called “one of the finest of the century,” the 93-point 2016 Château de Beau-Site is a classic expression of the appellation’s elegance and boldness. This is affordable Bordeaux at its finest.

After José purchased Château de Beau-Site (not to be confused with Saint-Estephe’s Château Beau Site), one of the first things he did was get out the shovel. He and his crew started a dig that, once they had gone 19 feet underground, had laid bare a sandwich-like structure: a thin top layer of soil, followed by a deep middle section of gravel, and at the bottom, a rich bed of limestone and clay, which held moisture. Vines whose roots could sink all the way down and connect to the bottom layer could withstand just about anything above.

José’s preference for Left Bank properties lies in his belief that they offer more early-drinking pleasures while still guaranteeing plenty of cellaring potential. This gorgeous 2016, full-bodied and with an almost New World boldness, amply proves his point.