In a region lauded for its plush fruit and generosity, Pavie Macquin broods with a controlled, calculated brilliance. It is a wine apart – a Sigma Saint-Émilion.

It is a property that consistently overperforms with a quiet dignity in a landscape of dramatic attention-seekers and larger than life personalities. It flies under the radar. As Spies, we respect that.

The story of Pavie Macquin starts with the terroir. Looming atop the limestone plateau that dominates Saint-Émilion, its mere 37 acres of vineyards start at the top and dip just over the edge. The vines are blessed with a calcareous clay soil that allows them to ripen slowly and with more structure than many wines of the appellation. Sited between Ausone to the West, Troplong Mondot to the East, and Pavie to the South, it lies in the heart of the area’s prime terroir. And while you could spend 2 to 10 times as much for a bottling from its neighbors, today, thanks to a Top-Secret deal that we’ve secured, we can offer the 2019 Pavie Macquin for a cool 34% off!

Behind this phenomenon find are the duo of Nicolas Thienpont and Stéphane Derenoncourt. If the name Thienpont seems familiar it’s because he’s part of an extended lineage with deep ties to the Right Bank – his family owns and manages the prestigious properties Vieux Chateau Certan, L’If, and Le Pin in Pomerol, while Nicolas helms Pavie Macquin and Larcis Ducasse in Saint-Émilion. For his part, Stéphane Derenoncourt as a consulting oenologist also works on Smith Haut Lafitte, Clos Fourtet, Les Carmes Haut Brion, and many others. But he made his name as a pioneer of the garagiste movement, taking La Mondotte from an unranked property straight to 1er Grand Cru Classé – a rare feat!

The second in a trio of great vintages, critic Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW called out the 2019 for producing “wines with gravitas, weight, and jaw-dropping intensity.” Tightly wrapped in velvety tannins, the palate is firm and textured with black plum and blackberry fruit with complex top notes of violets and tea leaf and underlying currents of spicebox and cedar. It is a powerfully structured 2019 that stands apart from its peers. Enjoyable now for its intensity and depth but structured for long cellaring to let it mellow and pick up greater complexity.

And now, the bad news… there are only 5 cases! Stop reading and grab some before its gone!!!

97 Points – James Suckling “Lots of roses and dark fruit, such as blackberries and brambleberries on the nose. Full-bodied, yet tight and poised, with real focus and firmness and seamless tannins that run the length of the wine. Minerality and persistence in a cool way. This is very serious for the vintage and for the cellar. Try after 2025.”

97 Points – Decanter “Violet-edged floral attack, hitting you straight up with the full range of concentrated black fruits and spices. Such a great quality wine that stands out from the pack. Full of nuance, just when you think you are done it pushes another flavour into the room. The texture is controlled and precise, with slate edges that slow down its progress through the palate; just all round excellent terroir and winemaking. Tasted twice, a week apart, and its the depth to the palate that really sets it apart, and the mouth-scrapingly slow slate finish. Drink 2028-2044”

97 Points – Andreas Larsson “Beautiful perfume of truffle, chalk, fresh dark fruit like cassis, blackberry and fine tobacco notes. The palate combines great concentration with vigorous freshness, perfectly rounded tannin, plenty of crushed dark berries and a very long lingering finish.”