Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A red with wonderful aromas of blackberries, spices and plums that follow through to a full body, with lovely integrated tannins and a polished, fine finish. Better in 2017.
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Wine Spectator
Rather lush, with fig, boysenberry and black currant pâte de fruit notes at the fore, backed by singed spice, apple wood and charcoal details that lend balance. More flattering than austere in terms of style, with the fruit lingering in the end. Much more fresh and pure than the slightly funky and disappointing '10. Best from 2015 through 2024. 8,330 cases made.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Its bigger sister, the well-made 2011 Calon Segur boasts a dense ruby/purple color, sweet cassis and black cherry fruit intermixed with hints of earth, oak and spice, medium body, moderate tannin, a pure mouthfeel and a long finish. Give it 3-4 years of bottle age and enjoy it over the next 10-15 years.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Deeply colored, concentrated, and distinctive, St. Estephe is the go-to for great, age-worthy and reliable Bordeaux reds. Separated from Pauillac merely by a stream, St. Estephe is the farthest northwest of the highest classed villages of the Haut Medoc and is therefore subject to the most intense maritime influence of the Atlantic.
St. Estephe soils are rich in gravel like all of the best sites of the Haut Medoc but here the formation of gravel over clay creates a cooler atmosphere for its vines compared to those in the villages farther downstream. This results in delayed ripening and wines with higher acidity compared to the other villages.
While they can seem a bit austere when young, St. Estephe reds prove to live very long in the cellar. Traitionally dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, many producers now add a significant proportion of Merlot to the blend, which will soften any sharp edges of the more tannic, Cabernet.
The St. Estephe village contains two second growths, Chateau Montrose and Cos d’Estournel.