A wine that has been under the radar from the very start, Château Sociando Mallet lies a couple of kilometres north of Calon Ségur, on some of Bordeaux’s finest gravel terroir overlooking the Gironde estuary. This gravel is a continuation of the “Terrace 4” that runs through the heart of Montrose, Ducru, Lascases and all four Médoc first growths.

Owned and run by Jean Gautreau, and now his daughter, since 1969 the viticulture here has always been uber-traditional, harvesting done by hand and fermentation in steel and concrete: the wine only goes into barrel for ageing. The result is deeply traditional, artisanal claret, without the polish of some of its more “modern” peers.

The property wasn’t classified in 1855, quite possibly on account of the extra distance required to get there from the city, though the general consensus of opinion is that the wines easily warrant classed-growth status; “Sociando-Mallet has a strong case that it is a classed growth in all but name”, writes Neal Martin in his 2019 article for Vinous on the property.

We have just shipped a parcel of the 2016 vintage, which we are offering at £340 per dozen in bond. Critical review is unanimously solid and the sample we opened in the office more than exceeded our expectations: this is seriously good, proper claret with an individuality that is so much more than scores out of 100. We gave it half an hour in a decanter and pretty much all agreed that this is a wine that takes you back to the 1990s. There is no fancy polish or gloss, no excessive barrel influence, just impeccably proper claret of considerable character, one which clearly comes from seriously good vineyards.

Our stock is packed in wooden cases of twelve, is lying with us and ready to go. Drink now, even better with a decant, or keep for a decade. At just under £38 a bottle after taxes – a rather good deal for a ten year old wine from a great vintage - fans of proper claret will find this very hard to beat.