Calon Ségur 2000

The 2000 Calon-Ségur still appears quite youthful on the rim. The well-defined nose offers brambly red fruit, red currant, crushed strawberry, rose petals and cedar, and some sous-bois just loitering in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with refined tannins. This has mellowed since I tasted it in London five years ago, and touches of tobacco and tart red cherries enliven the finish. I have always loved this millennial Calon-Ségur and now it is à point and drinking beautifully. Aged in 50% new oak and 50% one-year-old for 12 months (less than nowadays.)

A powerful, brooding wine, the 2000 Calon-Ségur took many years to eventually show the promise Bob must have sensed at the outset. I buried my bottles in the cellar up until very recently. Today, the 2000 Calon-Ségur exudes Saint-Estèphe character in a style that marries classicism with exotic beauty. Dark-fleshed fruit, gravel, incense, tobacco, dried leaves and earthy notes open first in the beguiling bouquet. The 2000 is deep and layered in the glass, qualities that become even more prominent over time. Insistent tannins have finally softened, resulting in a wine that has arrived at its first plateau of maturity. The 2000 is an absolute joy to taste. Readers lucky enough to own it are in for a real treat. The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc aged in 50% new oak. It’s one of the very finest wines made under Madame Gasqueton’s tenure at the helm of the estate. Drink 2025-2050.

The 2000 Calon Segur is one of those wines that reminds you how great the millennial vintage could be. Now at fifteen years old, it has a brilliant, vivacious red berry nose infused with ash and cigar box aromas. The detail here is a beguiling and it just "sings" Saint Estèphe. The palate is medium-bodied with dense, firm tannin that provide a rigid backbone, but it is swathed in copious tobacco-drenched black fruit and a superb line of acidity. It finishes with a twist of bitter cherry on the finish that completes what is a deeply impressive Calon-Ségur; it might just outclass the 2005. Tasted March 2015. Drink 2018-2050.

Tasted at Kettners in London just after the August riots, the millennial Calon-Segur is a great wine that has a 30-40 year lifespan. That bouquet is still so bloomin’ broody and takes a while to open, eventually and reluctantly offering crisp red-berried fruits interlaced with graphite and sous-bois. The palate is medium-bodied with a firm tannic structure and very good balanced with a fan of truffle and a touch of espresso towards the masculine finish. Nice grip and persistency here. Excellent.