Of all the Bordeaux wines, Château Angélus is perhaps the trickiest to invest in. Eighth generation owner Stéphanie de Boüard-Rivoal is very clear on that: “We want our wines to be drunk, not sitting somewhere in a storage room,” she says. “I really don’t like the idea that wine is an investment asset”. This comes as bad news for many investors, as Angélus is recognised as one of the top four Bordeaux wineries, alongside Cheval Blanc, Ausone and Pavie. It also has mythic 1954 Premiere Grand Cru Classe appellation, making it even more covetable.

The reason behind de Boüard-Rivoal’s comments is that Château Angélus has become a victim of its own success. All Bordeaux wines sell well in Asia, but Angélus is wildly popular in China, partly due to its golden bell logo that signifies “the voice of God”. Sales of Angélus were reaching over the 40% mark in Asia, which is what led de Boüard-Rivoal to reorganise her distribution structure. Reducing production by up to 50% for the 2017 vintage, production today has stabilised at around 8,300 cases per year, divided into approximately one-third Asia, one-third USA and one-third Europe. “Very balanced”, she says.

Despite the de Boüard family being in the St. Emilion region for over 700 years, Angélus is still a baby compared to many other Bordeaux wines; not having been born until 1782. Yet the estate only began properly in 1909, when Maurice de Boüard de La Forest inherited the vineyard and began purchasing neighbouring land. Angélus now has 42 hectares of land on south facing St. Emilion slopes, with 27 being devoted to Château Angélus and the other 20 to Carillon d’Angelus and Nº3 d’Angelus, their “more approachable” wines.

Located in the centre west of St. Emilion, Angélus is priced above most St. Emilion Grand Cru reds, and prices have steadily risen over the past three years. It is also consistently one of the top-performing St. Emilion Grands Crus Classés over the last 10 to 15 years. The wine has been classified as a Premier Grand Cru Classé “A" since 2012, (vintages from 1996 to 2012 are classified as Premier Grand Cru Classe B) and needs at least five years of bottle age before it should be approached.