2016 Chateau Haut La Greniere Lussac Saint-Emilion 750 ml

The experience of a great Right Bank Bordeaux can come for way less than the $50 you might expect—if you know where to look.

Château Haut La Grenière’s Lussac-Saint-Émilion shows why Robert Parker once wrote: “As with the other satellite appellations in Saint-Émilion, Lussac is a veritable treasure trove for bargains.” With the same varietal mix as legends like Pavie-Macquin and Pomerol’s Vieux Château Certan, this is a perfectly aged, perfumed dream for the Bordeaux-lover.

Lussac-Saint-Émilion is the most northerly of the “satellite” appellations surrounding Saint-Émilion, and like Montagne-Saint-Émilion and the Côtes de Francs, it’s been known for offering superb value for decades now.

This vineyard’s origins date from the 17th century. In the 1868 edition of Bordeaux et ses Vins (ed. Feret et fils), Château Haut la Grenière was already noted to be one of the most famous wines produced in Lussac. Back then, the monks of a local abbey planted and enclosed the vineyard. Today Jean-Pierre Dubreuil, the fourth generation of his family, manages these 15 hectares with great care, farming and harvesting the grapes in a way that keeps this vineyard’s stellar reputation at an all-time high.

This wine combines 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon in a sweet-fruited, approachable style that is open for business right now. There’s no need to cellar it for years—we recommend you get that hanger steak searing in garlic butter! This is just the affordable luxury the doctor ordered.