Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Terra cotta, red-berry pastry and a wild-herb thread, too. The palate has firm, wrapped tannin, cradling ripe cassis and blueberry flavors. Round, juicy tannins. Some vanilla now. A blend of 57% merlot, 38% cabernet sauvignon and 5% cabernet franc. Second wine of Château Calon-Ségur. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
The second wine of Calon Ségur, this has many of the same tannins and firmness of the the senior wine while showing layers of Merlot that gives a ripe, opulent edge. Acidity and freshness are there, revealing themselves through the tannins.
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Decanter
This has a floral edge to it and a depth of blueberry fruit that's a little shy at first but comes through on the mid-palate. I like how this fits together, with carefully placed fruits and soft tannins. This isn't an especially powerful Marquis and should be ready to drink within 3 to 4 years, lasting for at least fifteen. There was no frost at Calon, just the dry summer interrupted by 40-50mm of rain at the end of June and then 80mm in September to contend with. This was around the same amount as in 2015, but in September 2015 it fell over two days, whereas this year the rain lasted around 10, which was fine for the Cabernets but a little trickier for the Merlots. 50% of production went to Marquis de Calon, and 10% to the third wine, St-Estèphe de Calon, not tasted here. 30% new oak. Yield of 43.5hl/ha. 3.6pH.
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Jeb Dunnuck
This estate has been firing on all cylinders, and they’ve produced two outstanding wines in 2017. The 2017 Marquis de Calon is the second wine and is 57% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc that was brought up in 30% new barrels and hit 13.2% natural alcohol. This medium-bodied, elegant Saint-Estephe has plenty of Merlot flesh and charm as well as terrific cassis fruit and notes of cedary herbs and flowers. It’s already impossible to resist, yet I suspect it will evolve for 10-15 years in cool cellars.
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Wine Spectator
Lively, with damson plum and red currant fruit, gilded with floral notes and backed by a bright iron streak on the finish. Very pure and fresh. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
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.