Chateau Calon Segur 3eme Cru Classe, Saint-Estephe

This needed a lot of air to open up. Opaque. Structured. I got a little minerality. Overall, it was nice.

2009 vintage

Decanted two (2) hours. Presents an array of of dark fruit aromas. Dark cherry, black plum, blackberry, blueberry, and cassis joined with accents of, graphite, cedar, & violet. Supple presence on the palate. Powdery tannins are nearing full resolution. Ample acidity drives long, dry, mouth-puckering finish. Nice aged Bordeaux squarely in its drinking window. Displays adequate structure to drink well through the decade and beyond.

2009 vintage

Bu au resto AVV La suite de Sherbrooke. Très beau claret, Souple et bien fruité. Sur les cerise et la terre. Un peu de chocolat et de graphite. Assez long en finale. Superbe.

2009 vintage

Base neck fill. Bottom quarter of cork soaked but solid. In a decanter for 30 minutes, which is all it needed. Only a half teaspoon of fine sediment. Color still strong. Black, blue and red fruits in waves. Touches of sweet Oak, mocha, tobacco and dried herb. Silky smooth. The wine lacks the weight of so many other left banks, and its finish tops out at about 20 seconds, which are the only real detractions. This bottle had at least …

1996 vintage

Commanderie de Bordeaux: Winter Tasting- St. Estephe (Bucheron, Mpls) : Very dark red plus color. Slow O for 4 hours. Drank a glass over 2 hours. It's been a surprising 7 years since l had this last. This came on strong in the glass and show the glass and lovely '96 vintage nicely. Very minty, saddle leather, sweet tobacco, gravel and mineral driven, cassis, dried herbs, and black cherry. Nice structure and poise. 92+ to 93pts.

1996 vintage

This was a really good wine. Balanced and still had good fruit and the tannins integrated nicely. It was decanted and let stand for 2 hours. I recommend letting it open for around 2 hours. It drank well and stood up to a 2009 Opus One which was consumed just after. It was not the best wine of the night but it was in the running. Others included a 2012 Leonetti Cabernet Sauvignon and 2015 Casanova di Nero Brunello Di …

2009 vintage

30 minutes in the glass opened up with cherries, cassis, leather, and forest floor.

1989 vintage

Cedar, leather nose. Crisp and firm tannins. Looking forward to continuing to enjoy

2006 vintage

Quite tight, definitely needs a decant. Medium ruby with a hint of purple. Staining. Oak dominant right now, but blackcurrant pushing through. A bit tough to love right now, although one can see it has the right stuff. Tannins still there but toned down. This worked well with braised beef ribs, but it really needs more time in the cellar. Tons of potential.

2009 vintage

Good wine, but rediculously prices.

2006 vintage

This was in a lovely spot, delicious immediately after opening. While we decanted it for 1.5 hours, I'm not sure it gained anything -- and if anything it might have lost some precision. Classic St-Estephe: cedar/cigar box, tobacco, and still some blackcurrants. Tannins quite resolved, it didn't need the decant. If it has a fault, it's that it's not put on any weight. I suspect it will develop a bit further but would think about this as a 5-10 year …

2006 vintage

This was given about half an hour decant. It was amazingly accessible for a young Bordeaux...good nose, tannins are in check, quickly consumed by the group Fwiw this wine had less than ideal storage for its first year.

2018 vintage

Nose - beautiful dark fruit, slate Mouth - loads of fruit on the attack with a bit of heat.

2018 vintage

Medium-bodied wine which played both its aromatics and palate close to its chest. Quite muted nose which never really came around even after a 5 hour decant but what could be coaxed out was subdued notes of dark berries, earth and spice. Quite austere palate with dark fruit, cedar and spice on a slighly drying finish. This was a well-stored bottle so not sure where the wine is headed as I had a similar encounter a few years ago. Overall, …

2003 vintage

A great example of a (finally) fully matured 2009, with a very good balance of fruit, structure, and classic Bordeaux signature spices.

2009 vintage

Mature bordeaux, with dark fruit, pencil lead, and earthy flavors, well balanced and drinking very nicely.

2003 vintage

This was a bit austere and almost tart on the palate. A pleasant bouquet, albeit a quiet one. Friends didn’t like it. I did like it. But I didn’t love it.

1988 vintage

Beautiful and yet restrained. Subtle and delicate. Vanilla, tobacco and capsicum. Fully mature with a long, lingering finish.

1996 vintage

opened for about an hour decanted and poured. This showed quite well from the first pout, expressive nose, good balance of acid fruit and tannin. After a couple hours in the decanter the aromas largely disappeared, and the fruit became more subdued. Still good four hours in, but at its best during that first couple hours.

2003 vintage

Forest fruits and graphite on the nose, then a smooth, velvety attack of muted blackcurrant and earthy dark cherry, not much more in the middle section apart from some bitter chocolate due to the tannins, and a reasonably long finish. Very classic in style, with a certain aloof austerity. In the same style as Duhart but not as good. It lacks some oomph and rising fruit midpalate. I bought this for 60€ in 2018 which was already quite a lot, …

2006 vintage

Delicious in November 2025

1996 vintage

Probably not the best vintage, but the wine has remained in excellent condition, without a trace of fatigue, with hints of still-juicy dark fruit, plus, of course, cedar, cigar box, smoke, tobacco, and dried herbs. Beautifully integrated tannins. The finish is long and pleasant. In my humble opinion, this is a great moment for this vintage, because everything is in balance.

2003 vintage

I loved the svelte and complex ‘96 Calon Segur. The nose features an intoxicatingly perfect melange of ripe bell pepper and crunchy red fruits, driven by a noticable sense of energy. On the palate, there’s plenty of youthful sucrosity and a layer of oak that will integrate with time, but the virile acidity, fine tannic structure and high degree of alcohol integration promise a long life ahead.

1996 vintage

St. Estephe Lunch (YH Beijing - SF) : I get a whiff of brett on the nose, but otherwise it's mainly a mix of purple fruit and cured tobacco. Quite juicy and elegant on the palate with some in-your-face fruit, but balanced with mineral and leathery complexity, which develops into pronounced smokiness on the finish. Really quite delicious.

1996 vintage

St. Estephe lunch (YH Beijing, SF) : Classic old school St Estephe at peak! Lovely purple fruits (cassis, mulberry), pipe tobacco and worn leather. Midweight density, and doesn't quite hit the highs of the '00, but zero complaints about this wine - it's flat out delicious.

1996 vintage

Really excellent bottle. The nose was quite oaky with cherries, mineral, milk chocolate. Very voluptuous on the palate, ripe, seamless, finishes quite dry and tannic. Hides the 15% alcohol very well. On Day Two the oak had subsided a bit and the wine was better integrated. I’m sure this vintage will outlive me.

2018 vintage

Last bottle is the best. Not spectacular, but solid. Ugly duckling morphed into ... mature duck, that sort of transformation. Still darkly coloured, no sign of bricking. Fairly simple reticent nose, full-bodied lightly tannic taste. Longish finish. Good, not great.

2003 vintage

drinking nicely now and this really was quite lovely and a good example of the excellent 2009's - should get better and better - perhaps my last bottle was not in good shape

2009 vintage

What a ravishing bottle of CS. By far the youngest I’ve tasted, but all worries of infanticide evaporated 30mins in.. the wine is really well integrated with its dark ruby glossy fruits in full glory. Tannin is very persistent yet fine, no rough edges. Enjoyable now with a short decant, but no doubt a long life ahead.

2018 vintage

Plum, cassis, blackberry, earth, graphite, vanilla, and tobacco, garrigue. Unripe berries, fresh, herbal and savoury. Med, unripe tannins. Somewhat lacking in complexity and vibrancy, although a decent showing from an otherwise lacklustre vintage.

2021 vintage

From the ine list at Terroir, NYC. Decanted 30 minutes ahead. Cedar and blackcurrant were the main notes on both nose and palate. Smooth wine with a hint of fine tannins still. Paired very nicely with ribeye steak cooked perfectly. Notes seem v similar to my Sept 2013 note here, which surprises me: the hot year was meant to limit aging…but although not much complexity, this wine still very much ‘with us’.

2003 vintage

This is still super dense, even after 3 hours in the glass, true Calon segur. Very intense wood still, graphite, vanilla, cherry, basil, thyme. Very present tannins. Really nice with food and an absolute long distance runner, like so many CS. Though, to my opinion the wood is too much of a marker in this wine and the grainy cognac notes are just a bit over the top. It remains excellent, but in a more new world type.

2003 vintage

merlot for the win. this was so wonderful and fresh, lively and a fruit bomb. drank so well and prime in the window. definitely one of the top of the night

1996 vintage

Top shoulder fill. Cork was perfect. Color still strong. Strained into a decanter for 30 mins, then back in the bottle. Less than 1/2 teaspoon of sediment. Same flavor profile as last month's bottle, but less dark fruit and more tobacco. I wonder whether the little extra air this time around took away from of the dark fruit or whether this wine simply needs more time or a lot more air for the fruit to come through. I'll experiment more …

1996 vintage

Corked, some notes of fruit after 15 minutes.

1996 vintage

Bob's cellar. Dark ruby red, some bricking. Faint fink on the nose, deep damson and cherry emerge pretty quickly, plenty of black cherry fruit, gentle peppery tannins, some sharp red cherry and smoky note too. After a couple of hours in the decanter this has opened up nicely. There is persistent red fruit acidity which nicely supports the good black cherry and damson fruit, forest floor and a bit of funk in a good way. Overall retained acidity makes this …

1996 vintage

Perfect closure. Full ruby with narrow clear rim. The slightest hint of bricking up when giving a swirl. Classic Bordeaux nose of graphite, eucalyptus and leather. Day1 - palate quite intense but a little unbalanced. Heavy oak and very firm tannins. Decant was only one hour so decided to leave overnight. Day 2 - refreshing and juicy with well resolved tannins soft and fine grained with a long finish. Suggest minimum 4 hour decant.

2009 vintage

On the nose, the classic Bordeaux style is easily recognizable: tobacco, leather, and black fruits. On the palate, it's certainly not the Bordeaux with the greatest depth or length, but it's nonetheless a pleasant and refined wine with a silky texture. The juice is very fluid, with this leather/tobacco/black fruit combination, very elegant and fluid at the same time, with a wine that glides across the tongue. A beautiful, silky finish with leather and sweet spices. A very good Bordeaux …

1996 vintage

Some Wine Tasted Watching the Chicago Air & Water Show; 8/16/2025-8/17/2025 (Chicago, IL) : Plump and ripe black fruits with some meaty notes. Still nicely fresh enough, even if not the most nuanced expression of Left Bank wine.

2003 vintage

zero decant. earth, graphite, pencil on nose. On palate: very light tanin, mushroom, plum, great easy drinker. Great restaurant wine that needs little to no decant, great right out of bottle. Not much complexity though.

2021 vintage

Graphite, some dark plum notes that are just a bit syrupy. I wondered if the lighter style of the vintage would get me back on the Bordeaux train but it did not (although I do find it less offensive than some of the bigger Bordeaux I've had recently).

2021 vintage

On the nose, the wine is restrained, showing little fruit but offering notes of graphite, and earthy tones. The palate follows in the same vein, very light, with minimal tannic structure, moderate acidity, and a thin, almost watery mouthfeel. The finish is short and offers little complexity. At this stage, it drinks more like a simple restaurant pour than a classified growth, with no benefit from decanting.

2021 vintage

Elegant Saint-Estephe with dark fruit, spice, and graphite. Full-bodied and structured.

2003 vintage

PnP, consumed over 1 hour. Appearance: Clear, medium ruby. Nose: Clean, medium intensity with aromas of blackberry, black cherry, graphite, bell pepper, and baking spice. Palate: Dry, medium acid, medium+ tannin was slightly grippy, medium+ intensity, medium+ body, 15.0% abv with developing flavors of red and black fruit, flint, and clove with a medium+ finish. This was shared amongst 6 people as a PnP. It was tight, definitely needs air if opening today. I could still sense the beast beneath …

2018 vintage

Cork in great shape, 1/3 soaked. Into neck fill. Pop and slow Ox for 30 minutes. Cigar box all the way with some hard leather then came the moderately ripe black cherries, blueberry/mocha elements and then some raspberries. Very smooth, near silky. Easily another 5 years of quality drinking ahead. Classic Left Bank Bordeaux and would easily be picked as such blind.

1996 vintage

the first of my bottles and from a half, this was surprisingly mature almost in need of drinking - still quite delicious, I wonder if it was an odd bottle

2009 vintage

In a great place. Lots of life but ready. Old school and classic.

1996 vintage

I’ve used CellarTracker for years, tasted hundreds of bottles and have never written a public review, but I’ve decided to start tonight. So here goes: fresh acidity, classic St. Estephe dark fruits on the nose, medium-long finish. Very enjoyable indeed. Fine-grained tannins still present but becoming well integrated. Clearly has a long future ahead but very approachable today with a hefty (4+ hour) decant.

2009 vintage

From auction, cork in good shape. Decanted off a bit of sediment, followed over the evening. Open from the beginning. Beautiful nose matched the palate, cassis, blackberry, plum, graphite, cigar box. Nice intensity, while remaining medium bodied, fresh acidity, tannins starting to become silky. I can’t call a wine this classy rustic, but lovely St. Estephe character. Peak for me, no rush for well kept bottles.

1996 vintage

Bright ruby colour with black and red cherry aromas and flavours. Concentrated with cedar spice with.a little heat on the finish. Not my favourite claret.

2006 vintage

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Chateau Calon Segur 3eme Cru Classe, Saint-Estephe

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