Château Fontenil Fronsac 2016

A polished, perfumed red Bordeaux, Château Fontenil Fronsac 2016 comes from the home estate of famed oenologists Michel and Dany Rolland and captures one of the Right Bank’s finest recent vintages at an exceptional price.

The Rollands, whose consulting work has shaped estates across the globe, acquired a few hectares in the commune of Saillans in 1986, naming the property Château Fontenil after one of the vineyard’s plots. Their roughly 11 hectares are planted predominantly to Merlot on a south-facing slope of clay and limestone overlooking the Isle River, and the vineyards are sustainably farmed and manually harvested. Old vines matter here: the fruit for the 2016 came from vines averaging more than 45 years of age, and the estate has long been counted among the properties that raised Fronsac’s reputation.

Deep garnet-purple in the glass, the 2016 opens with lifted aromas of red cherry, black raspberry, plum, and wild blueberry, accented by cinnamon, cedar, tobacco leaf, and a hint of forest floor. The palate is medium to full-bodied and velvety, with bright acidity carrying the fruit, finely integrated tannins, and a chalky mineral thread that leads to a long, perfumed finish. True to this celebrated vintage, it pairs ripeness with real freshness and balance, and is now entering a lovely drinking window.

Elegant, expressive, and backed by critical praise in the low 90s, this is Right Bank Bordeaux of genuine pedigree at a fraction of the cost of its Pomerol and Saint-Émilion neighbors.