2015 Chateau Troplong Mondot Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe 750 ml

The 2015 Château Troplong Mondot first hit our palates while we gazed at a sea of meticulously manicured vines from La Terrasse Rouge, an outstanding restaurant in Saint-Émilion. The bottle arrived alongside veal chops served with demi-glace and roasted fingerling potatoes, and we almost lost ourselves in the bouquet.

Troplong Mondot is one of the great wines of the Right Bank. A perennial favorite of ours (and of Wine Access members), the deep, inky wine can be mistaken for Right Bank Bordeaux legends Pétrus and Cheval Blanc if tasted blind. The price, on the other hand, bears no resemblance. 

Our server, with whom we shared a pour, pointed roughly south-east toward a small rise in the distance, to the Troplong Mondot vineyards that occupy the highest point in the Saint- Émilion appellation.

With their vines extending down a hillside and up another, the estate enjoys a 360-degree exposure, which gives them the best of all aspects and angles to grow their grapes. The optimal sunshine, plus the cool clay and limestone soils in which Merlot thrives, is a recipe for Right Bank greatness.

In a 2015 vintage that James Molesworth of Wine Spectator called the best since 2010, the pieces came together with stunning results. From a collector’s perspective, the 2015 Troplong Mondot boasts unrivaled value: Critic Jeb Dunnuck awarded 99 points to both it and 2015 Pétrus, which checks in at well over $5,000 per bottle.