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Released this morning for sale en primeur, 2024 Château Calon Ségur is offered at £360 per six, and scores 96-97 points from JamesSuckling.com.  This is a 23% reduction on the opening price for the '23

We loved tasting the '24 and liked it more than other recent releases.  It seemed to us that the character of the vintage has restored a sense of restraint, elegance, and finesse that we have missed and which for us makes a Calon a Calon.  The Wine Advocate's William Kelley echoes this, calling the '24 "one of the most classically proportioned vintages this estate has produced over the last decade."

Also released is the 2024 from Calon's sibling estate in St-Estéphe, the excellent value Château Capbern, at £174 per dozen and with 93-94 points from Suckling.  The winemaking expertise from Calon is very much shared with Capbern and we found it a nuanced, layered, and complex claret, with remarkable elegance at this price level. 

Offered en primeur, on allocation.  Landing spring 2027.

Magnums available with £20 ex-VAT bottling surcharge per six, please enquire for other formats.

All previous offers of 2024 Bordeaux can be found here.

 

 

 

Producer Profile

Château Calon-Ségur

Château Calon-Ségur is a troisièmes cru classé estate in St-Estéphe and is the northernmost of all the cru classé estates.  

Calon dates back to the Gallo-Roman era. Its name comes from “calones”, which referred to small crafts navigating on the Gironde’s estuary.  Wine production can be traced back to the 12th century, but it was in the 18th century, with the Marquis Nicolas-Alexandre de Ségur, also owner of Latour, Lafite and Mouton, that the name came to prominence.

The Marquis de Ségur and son of Alexandre expanded his family estates with the acquisition of Mouton. At this point in time, with the exception of Château Margaux, all the future first growths of the Médoc were now in his ownership.  Louis XV nicknamed him the Prince of Vines. In an early nod to the importance of terroir, each button of his jacket was a pebble from his vineyard.

Despite his embarrassment of First Growth estates, Ségur placed Calon foremost in his affections:  "I make wine at Lafite and at Latour, but my heart is at Calon". In the nineteenth century, his words were commemorated by the engraving of a heart in the stonework of the château, later becoming an emblem on the label.

Calon and it’s next-door neighbour Capbern were owned by the aristocratic Gasqueton family until 2012, when the Suravenir insurance company purchased them.  The château and estate have been extensively renovated and the wine has shot up through the ranks, now nearing in quality the First Growth estates which were once owned by Ségur. The estate has been managed by Vincent Millet since 2006.

Calon’s terroir is unique.  The highest point is only 13 metres of but the sharp relief of its slopes allows for good drainage.  Deep gravel layers deposited by the river during the quaternary era cover a largely clay sub-soil.  The top-soil is made up of a thin layer of clay of lacustrine origin.  This combination of gravels and clay, among other factors, explains the power and finesse of the wine.  The vineyard is formed by three gravel outcrops that protrude towards the estuary.

Éric Boissenot is the consultant. The 55 ha estate is planted with 50 ha of vines: 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, 2 % Petit Verdot, averaging 21 years of age, at density of 8,000 vines/ha, yielding an average of 45hl/ha.  The wine is aged for 18 to 20 months in 100% new barrels.  Around 80,000 bottles are produced.

Château Capbern (known as Capbern-Gasqueton until 2014) is an estate in Saint-Estèphe, formerly a Cru Bourgeois until it opted out of the classification.  A long-standing favourite (we have been drinking and enjoying the 2011 of late), Capbern is also an estate well on its way to ascending into a different league of winemaking, first under Laurent Dufau and, since 2020, under Vincent Millet.

Dufau and Millet are credited with the rapid progress made at Calon-Ségur, under the same ownership as Capbern since 2012.  Calon is challenging Montrose and Cos d'Estournel as the leading wines of Saint-Estèphe and each new vintage of Capbern shows some of this ambition too.  The 33 hectares of vines are hand-harvested and the wine is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, aged for 18 months in 60% new oak barrels.

 
RED 2024 Château Calon Ségur 75cl £360 per case of 6 Château Calon Ségur
2024 / / 75cl
£360 per case of 6
IB
Tasting Notes"Beautiful red ruby expression. A slimmer more finessed expression of Calon than in recent years, that gives it less estate signature than some, but this has beautiful cassis bud, rose petals, peony, iris, cocoa bean and graphite. Subtle but with real charm. 3.60 pH. 45 hl/ha. 100% new oak. Vincent Millet director, Harvest 23 September to 9 October. 92 points" janeanson.com------"The 2024 Calon Ségur was picked from September 23 until October 9 at 45 hl/ha with no breaks between those dates. It then matured in 100% new oak, as usual, for 20 months. This has a well-defined bouquet, with more prominent wood than previous recent vintages, which consequently obscures the property's DNA. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid black fruit tinged with black olive. It's quite lively, with a liberal sprinkling of white pepper and thyme. I admire the freshness of this Saint-Estèphe and there is decent length on the finish. This is not a top-ranking Calon-Ségur, but it should still provide up to 20 years of drinking pleasure. 2029 - 2048. 91-93 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com------"Deep garnet-purple colored. It's a little shy to start off, needing some swirling to bring out notes of black raspberries and red cherries, followed by wafts of cassis, mint tea, and milk chocolate with a hint of pencil lead. The light to medium-bodied palate delivers very good tension and bright, red berry flavors with savory sparks and fine-grained tannins, finishing with a refreshing lift. 92-94 points" Lisa Perotti-Brown, The Wine Independent ------"As to the Grand Vin, the 2024 Château Calon Ségur checks in as 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot, hitting 13.1% alcohol and a pH of 3.6, all resting in 100% new oak. It brings more richness and depth, with beautiful cassis fruit intermixed with spring flowers, violets, lead pencil, and a terrific sense of minerality. Medium-bodied, beautifully balanced, and reasonably concentrated, it's all about finesse, elegance, and balance. It's a brilliant wine in the vintage. 93-95 points" Jebdunnuck.com------"The 2024 Calon-Ségur is a terrific effort. A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon (picked late, between October 2 and October 9), 9% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, it unwinds in the glass with notes of plums, cassis and iris mingled with hints of burning embers and incense. Medium to full-bodied, supple and layered, it's suave and seamless, with good depth at the core, powdery tannins and beautifully integrated acids. At pH 3.50 and 13.1% alcohol, it's also one of the most classically proportioned vintages this estate has produced over the last decade. 93-95 points" William Kelley, RobertParker.com------"The 2024 Calon Ségur is shaping up very nicely. Dark and ample, with terrific balance, the 2024 is another strong wine from the team led by Technical Director Vincent Millet. Readers will find a Calon Ségur of inner strength, its deceptively mid-weight structure notwithstanding. The 2024 is a wine of restraint and class more than power, never a bad thing at this property. The 100% new oak is very nicely balanced, even in the early going. This has great potential. Drink 2034-2054. 93-95 points" Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com------"A fruity wine that’s approachable but still serious and complex, with cocoa, currants, paprika and berries. Medium- to full-bodied. The tannins are taut, chalky, caressing and superbly knit with the fruit. Really juicy and long, and there aren't any hard edges. 82% cabernet sauvignon, 9% merlot, 8% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. 96-97 points" Zekun Shuai, jamessuckling.com

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