2016 Chateau Quintus Saint Emilion de Quintus Bordeaux 750 ml

Value Bordeaux from a Smashing Vintage

Third labels of Bordeaux estates are rarities in the U.S.—they make over-performing by-the-glass favorites for the Bordelais locals, and therefore tend to be claimed, and hoarded, by restaurants throughout France. But today we’ve rescued the 2016 Saint-Emilion de Quintus—a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon—from the menu pages. At less than one-third of the price of the Grand Vin of Quintus, this is an incredible value, from a Bordeaux estate that is destined for greatness.

Praised by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate for its “great intensity of black fruits,” “wonderfully plush tannins,” and “compelling savoriness to the finish,” the 2016 Saint-Emilion de Quintus is an intense dark purple-ruby color, with a nose of black plum and currant, accented by cedar, violets, and clove, and culminating in a beautiful cigar-box finish. This wine is stellar with steak frites, or pair it with mushroom ravioli and be transported to restaurant Le Quatrième Mur at the Opéra National in Bordeaux.

Consider the stratospheric standards and the careful rise of Bordeaux’s Domaine Clarence Dillon: Dillon himself, the 20th-century financier once declared by Fortune to be one of the wealthiest men in America, was an avid drinker of Château Haut-Brion, so he purchased the estate in 1935. It wasn’t until after Dillon’s passing nearly a half-century later that his family acquired Château La Mission Haut-Brion, the Pessac-Léognan property now considered on par with the Médoc First Growths.

For nearly three decades, the Domaine consisted solely of these superstar properties. When the family finally decided to expand to Bordeaux’s Right Bank, the property they felt deserved a place in that untouchable portfolio was Château Quintus in Saint-Émilion.

From the beginning, Quintus has produced a Grand Vin, as well as a second wine, Dragon de Quintus. In 2014, they introduced their third wine, Saint-Émilion de Quintus. This wine is harvested from the estate’s youngest plantings—vines that will one day mature to supply the $137 Quintus Grand Vin.

The name Quintus comes from Gallo-Roman tradition of naming a fifth child Quintus: When Domaine Clarence Dillon took over and renamed Saint-Émilion Grand Cru property Château Tertre Daugay in 2011, the estate became their “fifth child,” after the white and red wines of Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion. Quintus expanded in 2013 with the acquisition of Château L’Arrosée: The property now consists of 70 acres of vines located on a limestone hill on the western end of the Saint-Émilion plateau, west of Grand Cru Classé A property Château Pavie and south of Classé A Château Angélus. There is no question that, with Quintus, Domaine Clarence Dillon has designs on greatness in Saint-Émilion.