2016 Château Monbousquet Angélique de Monbousquet St.-Émilion Grand Cru 750 ml

Some Bordeaux properties seem perpetually undervalued. For us, St.-Émilion’s Grand Cru Classé dark horse, Château Monbousquet, is right at the top of that list.

Under the direction of Gérard Perse, a pioneer in the modern Bordeaux style, and master consultant Michel Rolland, the Grand Vin is a textbook expression of the appellation—rich, velvety, harmonious—minus the blue-chip price tag.

But their second wine, the excellently structured Angélique de Monbousquet, takes that value proposition to another level. It’s a Right Bank blend that has the richness and depth you associate with the benchmark Château Pavie (also owned and operated by Perse), yet is priced for weeknight drinking.

Laying on a 93-point score, James Suckling praised the 2017 Angélique de Monbousquet for its “delicious finish,” adding admiringly: “Hard not to drink now.” Jeb Dunnuck calls the bottling “incredibly delicious,” possessing “outstanding purity, ripe tannins, and one seriously good mouthful of wine.”

Make this a mainstay of your dining table for just $29. Spilling over with ripe plum and mulberry centered around a ripe black fruit core shrouded in fleshy tannins, this is a stellar opportunity to satisfy the craving for inky St.-Émilion power at under $30. Let your classified growths slumber in the cellar and stock up on this one, assured you’re getting one of the best deals on the Bordeaux market.

Monbousquet often gets overlooked compared to its big brother, Château Pavie, which boasts the highest ranking in St.-Émilion—Premier Grand Cru Classé (A)—alongside Château Angélus and Château Cheval Blanc. We hope that oversight never changes. For Bordeaux drinkers in the know, the Angélique de Monbousquet is a go-to case-buy.

Founded in the late 16th century, the property passed between many hands before Perse acquired it in 1993. In a process he would repeat five years later with Pavie, Perse undertook a complete renovation of the estate, analyzing and draining the vineyards and rebuilding the facilities, including a new barrel-aging cellar. The warmer soil supplied grapes with hefty concentration and ripeness, enhanced by Perse’s rigorous commitment to low yields.

Robert Parker, among others, noticed his efforts, raving: “Château Monbousquet under Gérard Perse’s guidance is exceptional. Right now this growth is probably the most exotic and most sensual wine in St.-Émilion, if not in all of Bordeaux.”

Their Angélique de Monbousquet consistently displays ripeness, richness, and lush tannins that belie its everyday price. Made by Jean-Philippe Lavautour, the former assistant to Michel Rolland for 6 years, and consulted on by Rolland himself, the combined talent shows in the wine’s glossy polish. The 2016 in particular reveals a density imparted from an excellent vintage.

Join the ranks of St.-Émilion aficionados who make this wine a regular purchase—it’s plush Right Bank depth for a bargain.