2021 Le Marquis de Calon Ségur, St Estèphe, Bordeaux
Critics reviews
The 2021 Le Marquis de Calon Ségur was picked at 36hL/ha and matured in 30% new oak for a planned 17 months. Made from 58% Merlot and the remainder young Cabernet Sauvignon, it nods to the Right Bank in style, offering ample dark cherry, cedar and damp earthy scents. The palate is medium-boded with lithe tannins and modest weight and concentration, tapering in a little toward the finish, which has an attractive marine tincture. This is fine Marquis that should drink well over 12–15 years. 13.2% alcohol.
Drink 2024 - 2036
Neal Martin, vinous.com, (May 2022)
The 2021 Le Marquis de Calon Ségur shows all of the freshness of the year in its bright, vibrant personality. Black cherry, plum, lavender, licorice, spice and mint all open effortlessly. Merlot drives the blend in a striking, mid-weight Marquis that hits all the right notes. There's a generosity to the Marquis, but it is balanced by notable vivacity. En primeur samples were taken from new barrels only, but the final wine is projected to have 30% new oak.
Drink 2029 - 2041
Antonio Galloni, vinous.com (May 2022)
Red- and dark-fruit notes but discreet. Round and full with substance on the mid palate. Freshness and length as well. Tannins present but fine. Well constructed and with a serious edge. Successful for a second wine this year.
Drink 2026 - 2036
James Lawther, jancisrobinson.com (May 2022)
Offering up notions of blackcurrants, spices and cigar box, the 2021 Le Marquis de Calon-Ségur is medium to full-bodied, layered and lively, with powdery tannins and an impressively penetrating finish. It's a blend of 58% Merlot with 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, the latter mainly from young vines. Director Vincent Millet explains that he doesn't want the gap in quality between his second wine and the grand vin to be too flagrant and that he'll take lots from the Calon-Ségur blend to improve the Marquis if necessary—as it was in 2021.
William Kelley, Wine Advocate (Apr 2022)
Very fresh and fine with silky tannins for the appellation. Medium body. Slate and oyster shell to the wild-bramble and blackberry fruit. Elegant. 58% merlot and 42% cabernet sauvignon.
James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (May 2022)
About this WINE
Chateau Calon Segur
Château Calon-Ségur, the most northerly of all the Médoc Grand-Crus Classés, is the château with a heart on its label. That is because the former owner, Marquis de Ségur, though he owned such Estates as Lafite and Latour, he declared "My heart belongs to Calon". For the last century it has been owned by the Gasqueton family.
Calon-Ségur's 74-hectare vineyard, which is partly enclosed by a wall, is located just to the north of the village of St-Estèphe. The vineyards (Cabernet Sauvignon 65%, Merlot 20%, Cabernet Franc 15%) lie on up to 5 metre deep gravel beds mixed with sand and, in parts, limestone and clay.
The wines are fermented for 3 weeks in enamel-lined steel vats and are then matured in oak barriques (40% new) for 18 months. Recently, Calon-Ségur has hit form with notable successes in 1995 and 1996 and 2000. At its best, Calon-Ségur produces meaty and concentrated wines displaying excellent depth of fruit and superb length. It is classified as a 3ème Cru Classé.
Saint-Estèphe
Saint-Estèphe is the northernmost of the most important communes of the Médoc and borders Pauillac on its southernmost border, with only a gully and stream separates it from Ch. Lafite. To the north lies the Bas-Médoc.
Saint-Estèphe is defined by the depth of its gravel, which is ubiquitous but of varying depths and occasionally very shallow, when clay predominates. This keeps the soil cooler and wetter than its counterparts so that the wines can appear fresh in lighter vintages, but superbly successful in hot, dry years.
The best châteaux in the south of the commune have the deepest soil and the thickest gravel. Cos d'Estournel has an exceptional terroir with its vineyards being located on a south-facing ridge of gravel with excellent drainage.
Saint-Estèphe is the least gravelly of main Médoc communes and in the north of the commune the vineyards are heavier and more clay-based leading to a rustic style of wine being produced.
The wines can appear austere in youth with a discernable ferric note at some châteaux, but the best typically display good depth of colour, pronounced acidity an tannins in youth and are exceptionally long-lived. At their best, they are the equal of almost any Bordeaux. The well-regarded St Estèphe co-operative controls the production of about half the appellation.
Recommended Châteaux
Cos (Ch. Cos d'Estournel), Ch. Montrose, Ch. Calon-Ségur, Ch. Lafon-Rochet, Ch. Les Ormes de Pez, Ch. Beau-Site, Ch. Cos Labory, Ch. Phélan-Ségur
Cabernet Sauvignon Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.
In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and Australia.
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Description
Merlot 58%, Cabernet Sauvignon 42%
About two-thirds of this wine now comes consistently from the same plots. The remainder are assessed after fermentation, usually coming from younger vines. However, this year, Vincent Millet opted to include a premium Merlot plot that usually goes to the grand vin, to give this wine more density. This is a successful second wine in the context of the vintage, with some earthy, spicy notes accompanying the bouncy blueberry fruit. There is good creamy depth to the palate, too. Everything feels really well managed. Drink 2025-2035.
Our score: 16/20
Berry Bros. & Rudd, April 2022
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