The 4 Most Expensive Saint Emilion Wine 2025
Has long been synonymous with prestige and lofty price tags. In 2025, a handful of Saint Emilion wine legends stand out as the priciest examples of Bordeaux’s Right Bank excellence. These four Grand Cru icons command astonishing prices at auctions and in the market. Below, we reveal the 4 most expensive Saint Emilion wines and what makes each of them so valuable.
1. Château Cheval Blanc 1947 - Legendary Saint Emilion Wine
A Record-Breaking Vintage of Opulence
Château Cheval Blanc 1947 is a mythic Saint Emilion wine that broke price records and palates alike. This Premier Grand Cru Classé A estate crafted an iconic 1947 vintage during a scorching summer, yielding ultra-ripe Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes. The result was a sumptuous, high-alcohol red wine often hailed as one of the greatest Bordeaux vintages ever. Its sheer opulence and rarity have made it the stuff of wine legend.
In 2010, Cheval Blanc 1947 cemented its status as one of the most expensive Saint Emilion wines ever. A rare imperial-format bottle (6 liters) sold for around $304,000 at a Christie’s auction – a record-shattering sum for any Saint Emilion wine. Even standard bottles of this vintage fetch tens of thousands of dollars today. Cheval Blanc’s combination of tiny production, historical pedigree, and 100-point critical acclaim ensures that collectors pay sky-high prices to own a piece of this wine history.
2. Château Ausone
The Rarest Premier Grand Cru Classé A Estate
Château Ausone is an equally illustrious Saint Emilion estate, famed for its minuscule production and ancient heritage. With vineyards perched on limestone slopes, Ausone produces only about 2,000 cases a year, making its wines extraordinarily rare. This exclusivity, combined with consistently perfect or near-perfect vintages, elevates Ausone among the most expensive wines in Saint Emilion. For example, top Ausone vintages like 2000 or 2010 regularly cost $600–$800 per bottle upon release.
At auctions, Château Ausone has proved its worth. In the late 1980s, a single 19th-century bottle (an 1849 Ausone) reportedly sold for around $30,000 – an impressive figure for the time. More recently, cases of Ausone have commanded five-figure prices at international auctions. Collectors covet Ausone for its silky power, longevity, and the prestige of owning wine from one of Saint Emilion’s original Premier Grand Cru Classé A châteaux. Its limited supply and high demand ensure Ausone remains a treasure for which enthusiasts will pay a premium.
3. Château Angélus 2012
Celebrating a Premier Grand Cru Classé A Promotion
Château Angélus earned its place among Saint Emilion’s elite more recently, and it celebrated in luxurious style. In 2012, Angélus was elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé A, joining the top rank of the appellation. To commemorate this achievement, the château released its 2012 vintage in a special edition bottle – an all-black bottle embossed with 21.7-carat gold lettering. This one-time design underscored Angélus’s new status and immediately became one of the most expensive Saint Emilion wine releases of the modern era.
Beyond that collectible 2012 bottle, Château Angélus’s wines have surged in value over the past decade. Renowned for their lush, Merlot-rich profile and the estate’s signature bell emblem, Angélus wines often score in the high 90s from critics. Recent top vintages (2015, 2016, 2018) approach $400 per bottle retail. Angélus’s combination of brand glamour, consistent quality, and media spotlight (it even featured in a James Bond film) means wine lovers are willing to pay steep prices. Its rise shows how a Saint Emilion wine can quickly join the price league of Bordeaux’s established legends.
4. Château Pavie
From Underrated to Ultra-Premium Right Bank Star
Château Pavie rounds out the list as another Premier Grand Cru Classé A that commands high prices. Once upon a time, Pavie was considered an underappreciated estate – but no longer. With investments in the vineyard and winery in the 1990s and 2000s, Pavie’s quality soared. By 2012, it too was promoted to the top classification tier. Parker and other critics awarded Pavie several 100-point scores (for example, the 2009 and 2010 vintages), boosting its prestige. Today Pavie is a Saint Emilion wine revered for its intensity, ripe fruit, and velvety power.
The price of Pavie’s wines has climbed accordingly. A bottle of Château Pavie from a great vintage now averages $300–$400, a dramatic rise from decades past. Some older Pavie vintages – once affordable – have become collectibles, with prices multiplying as the château’s reputation grew. While Pavie might be slightly less expensive than Cheval Blanc or Ausone, it firmly sits among Saint Emilion’s most expensive wines. Its story – from undervalued gem to luxury icon – reflects the overall trend of Right Bank wines reaching the apex of both quality and price.
In summary, these four Saint Emilion châteaux – Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, and Pavie – represent the pinnacle of Bordeaux’s Right Bank in 2025. Each combines limited production, outstanding terroir, and celebrated vintages that drive intense collector demand. Their wines routinely achieve stratospheric prices, underscoring Saint Emilion’s elite status in the wine world. Yet for most wine lovers, tasting these legends is a rare privilege.
Don’t be discouraged, however: you don’t need to spend a fortune to enjoy the essence of Saint Emilion. While the wines above are ultra-premium, there are many excellent Bordeaux wines from Saint Emilion and its neighbors that offer a glimpse of this region’s magic at more accessible prices. Explore our selection of Right Bank Bordeaux bottles at Garrafeira da Ilha to find a taste of Saint Emilion that suits your budget. Cheers to discovering the allure of Saint Emilion wine – whether in a legendary auction bottle or a delightful weeknight glass!
