In the hierarchy of Bordeaux wines, the Bordeaux AOC category offers nice expressions of the region's wines, made to be enjoyed in their youth with relatively fruit-forward characteristics. They are generally not aged for long in barrel and offer easy-drinking. Take it one step further to Bordeaux Supérieur and you get a bit more quality, owing to older vines requirements, lower allowed yields, and longer aging requirements in French oak barrels. Coming from a vineyard on the border of the Margaux appellation that takes its name from a nearby chapel, the grapes are sustainably grown and vinified by the renowned team at Chateau Siran in Margaux. Clay-based topsoil over a gravel subsoil favors Merlot here, unlike the gravelly, Cabernet-dominant soils of Margaux proper. Edouard Miailhe is the sixth generation of his family to run the 88 hectare chateau, of which 38 hectares are planted to vines and the other fifty hectares are left as woods and meadows for their beauty and to promote biodiversity. The 25 year-old vines of 80% Merlot, 10.5% Petit Verdot, and 9.5% Cabernet Sauvignon are aged for twelve months in French oak of unspecified, but subtle, newness. The blackberry, currant and bing cherry notes get an accent of cedar, vanilla and gravel, and the velvety tannins are plush enough to drink unaccompanied, but have enough intensity to stand up to a Santa Maria Rub Tri Tip.