2016 Chateau Yon Figeac Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classe 750 ml

It’s easy to see why 2016 could turn out to be the greatest Bordeaux vintage of our lifetimes.

After all, Wine Advocate called it “unequivocally a great vintage” on release and “the most consistently great year since 2009 and 2010.” They noted the châteaus themselves were hailing it as legendary: “The rhetoric from the mouths of winemakers was either ‘Our 2016 is the best we have ever made’ or ‘It is the wine that I have always wanted to make.’”

Even more, the vintage is an absolute banger from top to bottom—it’s hard to think of a year where we’ve tasted more consistent excellence. We bought as much as we could when the wines first came out, but those days are well behind us—which is why the opportunity to acquire the 2016 Yon-Figeac is so special.

Château Yon-Figeac was originally part of Château Figeac—the $300 star famed for its proximity to Cheval Blanc—but in 1881 it was carved off and sold. Notably, though, it also has the coveted limestone-heavy soils that made Saint-Émilion famous, and in a drought-defined vintage like 2016, that soil’s ability to regulate water is a priceless asset.

Six years after the vintage’s release, it’s clear the 2016 Château Yon-Figeac Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé has all the answers. Thanks to deft use of oak and masterful blending, they’ve produced a triumph that’s the equal of many bottles TWICE the price. 

The result is an absolutely classic expression of the Right Bank in 2016. “Drink this complex, outstanding Saint-Émilion any time over the coming 15 years or more,” advised Jeb Dunnuck, who has also called Yon-Figeac “an estate to watch.”