2019 Chateau La Grace Dieu Saint Emilion Grand Cru 750 ml

It’s grown the world over, but nowhere does Merlot shine as brightly as in its spiritual home on Bordeaux’s Right Bank—especially in the mecca of St.-Émilion. 

The Château La Grâce Dieu vineyard contains a classic St.-Émilion mix of clay-rich, limestone-and-sand soils. The product of that terroir—plus a vintage that the Wine Advocate rated 95 points, as high as any Right Bank season in the past 15 years—is an absolutely gorgeous bottling that shows exactly why the wines of St.-Émilion are so prized. 

A traditional blend built on 70% Merlot, the 2019 Château La Grâce Dieu Saint-Émilion Grand Cru delivers the best of the grape: beautiful intensity, a lush texture, and smooth tannins. Accented with lively and herbaceous Cabernet Franc and a touch of Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine is so delicious and wholly satisfying that it almost never makes it past locals and European collectors.

Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon are the two marquee grapes of Bordeaux. Slow-ripening Cabernet thrives in the gravelly soils of the Left Bank, while Merlot loves the cool, water-retaining clay soils across the Gironde on the Right Bank because they enable faster-ripening Merlot to take its time, resulting in lush, velvety fruit that’s scarcely imitated anywhere else. 

Château La Grâce Dieu is nestled among some of St.-Émilion’s biggest names. To the northwest, within a mile, you’ll find iconic châteaux Cheval Blanc and Figeac. To the southeast, within walking distance, is auction-house darling Château Angelus. Immediately next door, Château la Grâce Dieu des Prieurs crafts bottles that go for $500+.

This is a stunning bottle from one of the Right Bank’s great vintages. Opulent, aristocratic, and loaded with silky complexity, it’s Right Bank Bordeaux at its most classic.