Winemaker Notes
The estate’s Second Wine offers a different interpretation of the Calon terroir. With an average of 75% Merlot in the blends, Le Marquis de Calon Ségur is totally distinct from the First Wine. “It benefits from a true expression of its own”, underlines Vincent Millet. “The plots are separated out from the beginning.” Le Marquis de Calon Ségur provides immediate enjoyment, warmth and a velvety texture. It is carefully aged generally for 17 months in oak barrels, a third of which are new. Deliciously easy-drinking, silky and expressive, its charm comes to the fore, while at the same time bringing to our minds the elegance of the Grand Vin.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Fresh berries, quite ripe and forward on the nose, more fruity with some chocolate and cinnamon notes. Super-high acidity, really quite mouthwatering on initial impact, this has a nice weight and balance in the mouth, a soft plumpness and wide frame. Nothing too much, it keeps the intensity but also the focus. You do get a sense of the hot vintage in the slightly spiced undercurrent but this has a nice playfulness. It's bouncy and lively, really accessible, integrated, very slightly grippy tannins. Good push from start to finish. Round and smooth, easy to have with food, lovely generosity and openness while keeping the strict St-Estèphe touch.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The second wine of Château Calon Ségur, the 2020 Le Marquis De Calon Ségur is unquestionably noteworthy. A blend of 54% Merlot, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc, it spent 17 months in 30% new French oak, with the balance in once-used oak. Redcurrants, chocolate, spice, graphite, and a kiss of spicy wood all define the aromatics, and it's medium to full-bodied, with silky tannins and terrific purity. I'd happily drink a glass any time over the coming 10-15 years.
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James Suckling
Fresh blackberries, blackcurrants, graphite, chocolate and spearmint on the nose. Medium to full body, with sleek and well-integrated tannins. Fruity and approachable for the appellation, with a cool, minty finish. Second wine of Calon Segur. Better after 2024.
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Wine Enthusiast
This second wine has firm tannins and ripe black fruits. It certainly has the density and structure of classic Saint-Estèphe, giving a wine that has weight and needs time to develop. Drink from 2027.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Le Marquis de Calon-Ségur blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 49% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, with an alcohol of 14.6%. It is aging for an anticipated 17 months in French oak barrels, 30% new. Deep purple-black in color, it bursts from the glass with bombastic scents of stewed black plums, crème de cassis and blueberry pie with nuances of violets and licorice, plus a waft of menthol. The medium to full-bodied palate is chock-full of juicy black fruits with plush tannins and just enough freshness, finishing spicy. This is a very different style from the grand vin (Calon-Ségur), but also very delicious.
Barrel Sample: 89-91 -
Wine Spectator
Broad and fresh, with damson plum and black cherry notes that glide along, laced with a bright iron hint and backed by a violet accent. Approachable now. 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.