2018 Chateau Martin Saint-Estephe Bordeaux 750 ml

“I firmly believe there is a Bordeaux for all seasons,” says Elizabeth Schneider of Wine for Normal People “As the weather gets colder, wines that have a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon are awesome: They warm you up, they’re satisfying, and they are true food wines.”

Saint-Estèphe, of course, is home to $200 Super-Seconds Montrose and Cos d’Estournel. But the real testament to the quality of the neighborhood is that so many of its “unclassified” wines are so expensive. Overachieving châteaux like Phélan Ségur, Le Boscq, Haut-Marbuzet, and Meyney are all north of $50 per bottle.

That’s what makes the 92-point 2018 Château Martin such a stellar bottle. It marries Saint-Estèphe’s powerful personality to what James Suckling called an “exceptional” vintage—one that delivered extra layers of fruit and richness—and it’s perfect for a special dinner, a weeknight whim, whatever. 

2018 in Bordeaux was the Napa Cab lover’s vintage par excellence. The hottest, driest summer in half a century yielded the sort of rich, pliant, extravagantly sumptuous wines you’d associate with Oakville, not somber Pauillac. In other words, thanks to a steady uptick in temperatures, this is not your grandfather’s claret.

Château Martin handled the heat brilliantly thanks to their mixture of clay-limestone and gravel soils. The estate has been family-run since 1960, and in that time has grown to include 28 hectares of vines. Not all of that fruit makes it into this wine, meaning the size of the property works to the château's advantage in an extreme year like 2018. In that season, they achieved a remarkable Bordeaux that will satisfy you anytime you crack it open.