A delicious Grand Cru St.-Émilion for $20 does not exi…

BOOM. Not a Puisseguin-St.-Émilion, or a Lussac-St.-Émilion, we’re in St.-Émilion proper, baby.

Here’s that bottle that does not break the bank. But it will be the hit of the party this Fall. And you’ll be the only one laying claim to it. Carefree cork popping with zero guilt at just $20!? Forget QPR - this is MPP, “Maximalist Price to Pleasure” ratio.

By the winemaking genius of Patrick Todesco, no less. This seemingly pretentious N°1 in the game is juxtaposed by the very antithesis of pretentious at a price like this.

This Wine Spies exclusive one-off project exists thanks to the abundant and exceptional 2022 harvest. Arguably one of the best in recent memory, and one combining quality and abundance.

Wine Spectator is spot on, “the hype for France’s most prominent wine region is mostly warranted this year: 2022 is a no-brainer classic.”

That very same article, by James Molesworth, titled “2022 Bordeaux: An Instant Classic” explains, “Merlot played a standout role in 2022 despite the warm and dry weather pattern. The thin-skinned and early ripening grape delivered beautifully pure fruit with alluring floral aromatics… tannins are copious but refined and supple, allowing the fruit to drape seductively. Acidities are low, but there is a feeling of freshness in the wines… Thanks to its reliance on Merlot, along with greater consistency, I tilt the vintage slightly in favor of the Right Bank, where I rate the 2022 vintage 97 points.”

Which leads us into how so much “yum factor” was squeezed into this for a mere $20, thanks to this 70% OFF deal we got.

Patrick Todesco is a third-generation vigneron at Château Les Reuilles, a family estate rooted since 1910 on the Right Bank frontier. He took command in 1992 after formal studies in viticulture and enology. The house style is precision over noise: ripe black cherry and dark berry, sweet wood spice, a thread of cocoa and hazelnut, and a discreet vanilla exit. Structure is youthful and firm; decanting is advised. This project is in alliance with Jean François Réaud, a Right Bank vigneron who established a fair-trade network that guarantees winegrowers transparency front, and contracts are honored even when the markets wobble. That stability keeps families on the land, vineyard crews happily employed, pruning, picking, and sorting within standards where they belong: high. That is why this Grand Cru reads right on the palate: ripe fruit with definition, oak that supports rather than shouts, tannins with structure, not splinters.

Not to oversell a wine so affordable, it’s jam-packed with dark berries, succulent currants, a Panettone cake’s worth of sweet baking spices, and bittersweet chocolate-coated cherries. It’s serious enough to deserve the Grand Cru status, yet with some decanting, it’s got the oomph and the scrumptiousness of Napa’s best in there, to help those California palates ease into the riches of the Right Bank. Talk about a crowd-pleaser that over-delivers!

This tasting note for the 2020 N°1 by the Hachette Guide says it all, “This cuvée is complex and flavorful, combining black fruits (blackcurrants), spices, and a noble oaky note. Ample and balanced, with fat, length, and good dynamism, the palate unfolds without austerity, already well-blended and open. It makes you want to pair it with a nice rib-eye steak.”

Forget the ribeye. You’ll have money left over for a Waygu. But this little discovery is going to move faster than your propane grill can heat up…get it while you can!