While the rest of the fine wine world tries to figure out how to sell $500 bottles of Bordeaux futures for the 2020 and 2021 vintages (in the face of a global recession and rising inflation), we are turning back the clock here at Mission. With the way things are going right now, I have no idea where I’m going to be in two years, let alone if I’ll be ready to commit to $2000 worth of bottles that won’t show up until the end of 2023!!
Rather than sell you bottles today that you won't even get into your possession for the next two years, let alone be able to drink, I’m spending most of my time searching through Bordeaux's best cellars and negotiant warehouses for extreme values that are ready to drink today! Today's example: the 2015 Château Plince—a plush and heady Merlot-dominated blend from Bordeaux's renowned Pomerol appellation.
It's not often we find value from Pomerol with $5000 bottles of Petrus stealing most of the limelight, alongside cult labels like Hosanna and Clinet. There simply isn't much production from this Right Bank region, the smallest in production of Bordeaux's main appellations. Hence, when we find a great wine, from a great producer, in a great vintage, for a great price, we want to make sure you get first access! No need to cellar the 2015 Plince, as it's been matured for you and is ready to drink tonight. Simply decant, fire up the grill, and treat yourself to a fantastic bottle of Bordeaux.
2015 Château Plince Pomerol $39.99
93 POINTS: JAMES SUCKLING - Attractive red berries and light licorice notes with a lick of iodine lead to a palate that has plenty of red-fruit and -licorice flavors. Smoothly groomed tannins and a fresh cherry-pip finish. Try from 2020.
90 POINTS: WINE SPECTATOR - Steeped plum, blackberry and black cherry fruit forms the core here, while a liberal dose of warm fruitcake, mulling spices and bramble kicks in through the finish. All the elements meld well enough, with a slightly chewy hint at the very end. Best from 2021 through 2030. 4,100 cases made.
89 - 91 POINTS: ROBERT PARKER'S WINE ADVOCATE - The 2015 Plince is a blend of 72% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc. It has a broody, sous-bois tinged bouquet, dried flowers tincturing the mulberry fruit that opens nicely in the glass, but never fully lets go. The palate has pleasing fatness and weight on the entry, grippy tannin, smooth and velvety in texture with a savory, almost meaty edginess on the finish. Drink over the next decade.
-David Driscoll