Even in the context of Pomerol, Clos l’Eglise is a tiny property. In an average year, its 5.98-hectare vineyard (which isn’t a walled ‘clos’) yields only 2,800 cases of wine, and given its rising popularity, stocks are quickly exhausted. The secret to its success – alongside the huge investment by its owners the billionaire Garcan-Cathiard family – is its sandy-gravel topsoil, hard-pan subsoil and climate which is drier in the summer and winter than further west in the Medoc. Critics have raved

95 Points - Decanter. Like many leading properties in Saint Emilion, Château Fleur Cardinale produced an outstanding wine in 2019. A severe frost in May saw the loss of over 1.5 hectares of grapes, and the heat that followed further reduced yields leaving a small, exceptionally concentrated crop. Being a blend of 71% Merlot, 24% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet it will drink well young, but has the structure and abundant fruit to age and develop over the next two decades. Decanter awarded the Châ

93 Points - Wine Enthusiast. Château Fonroque produced an excellent wine in 2017. The 2017 vintage was unusual and not without its challenges. A hard (-6°C) frost on the 28th of April reduced the potential crop significantly as did a lack of rain in the spring. Happily a dry summer and sunny autumn allowed Fonroque to bring in a relatively small, but healthy harvest. The grand vin is a blend of 93% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc, a mix that played to the vintage’s strengths. Typically powerful and

90 Points - Jeff Leve. Château Vrai Canon Bouché hails from Canon Fronsac and since 2005 it has become one of this commune’s leading wines. Its single vineyard is planted with a blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc and is hand-tended like it was a garden. The owners have steadily reduced the use of chemicals and have deployed natural methods to restore the soil’s vitality. 2017 was a particularly successful year for the property. Writing in the Wine Insider, Jeff Leve awarded it 90 points

Blason d’Issan 2017 is the second wine of the illustrious Margaux Grand Cru Classe, Chateau d’Issan. Composed of a blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon mainly from the estate’s younger vines, in 2017 it produced a wonderfully stylish, elegant wine that is typical of this famed commune’s greatest wines. The Blason d’Issan is designed to drink well young but has the capacity to develop over several years. It is widely regarded as one of Bordeaux’s best-value second wines. Vivino Rating:

92 Points - Wine Enthusiast. Chateau Petit Bocq made the most of its scattered Saint Estèphe plots and selected only the finest fruit for its Grand Vin in 2017. This Cru Bourgeois Supérieur is made up of 50% Merlot, 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2% Petit Verdot from vineyards that border the likes of Cos d’Estournel and Montrose.  Known as one of the best value wines in all of Saint Estèphe, it’s been described as a ‘…seriously structured wine. It also has density and solid black fruits that are r

Clos-La-Gaffelière is the second wine of Château La Gaffelière, one of the oldest family-owned estates in Saint Emilion. It is also one of the most prestigious having been ranked as a Premier Grand Cru Classe in the original 1955 Saint Emilion Classification. It lies to the south of the town of Saint Emilion on the Saint Emilion plateau neighbouring Chateau Ausone and Chateau Pavie. The vineyards are predominantly Merlot with a little Cabernet Franc. There’s a noticeable elegance to it, though i