Many consistent but non-Cru Classe wineries that have been producing outstanding wines in the left bank, once again over-delivered at the prices they command, with great wines under $50 and some even under $30. Producers like Sociando-Mallet, Meyney, Haut-Marbuzet, Beau-Site, Lilian Ladouys, Chateau de Lamarque, Potensac, Le Crock, Siran, Haut-Bergey, and Lespault-Martillac are among the superb values from the left bank from 2018, and all scored 94-95 pts. Chateau Marsau and Puygueraud consistently over-perform from Francs Cotes de Bordeaux, an area in the catch-all appellation Cotes de Bordeaux that is easily overshadowed by its neighbor St.-Emilion, which itself is a trove of great value wines.

Below are 12 great value reds from 2018 currently available for less than $40 a bottle (mostly available with a pre-arrival price in the US market) and rated 94 points and up. These wines represent unparalleled value from some of the top appellations of Bordeaux, including St.-Emilion, St-Estephe, Pessac-Leognan, Pomerol, and Haut Medoc.

From a property owned by the Hong Kong businessman Peter Kwok, Château Tour Saint Christophe St.-Emilion 2018 (97 pts) is the best buy of all. Kwok also owns several other wineries, including Chateau Bellefont-Belcier, a grand cru classe in St.-Emilion, and Chateau Haut-Brisson, another great-value producer. He is also the owner of Chateau le Rey of Castillon Cotes de Bordeaux, which makes some fresh, racy, and unwooded red wines with some wines aged in amphoras that might revolutionize Bordeaux’s contemporary winemaking. Chateau Sansonnet is another winery in St.-Emilion whose advancing quality over the last decade shows in its 2018 vintage – a nicely hedonistic, merlot-based wine with density, layers, and polish.

Check out the following 12 bottles, buy in advance and keep them until they are ready to open up from 2022 onwards. 

– Zekun Shuai, associate editor

Poesia St.-Emilion 2018 – JS95 
Available at Zachys.com: $34.99(Pre-arrival)