The 2008 Château Calon-Ségur offers vibrant blackberry, cedar, and graphite aromas, with a medium-bodied palate that’s both harmonious and smooth, though slightly edgy on the finish. Its acidity is well-judged, creating a well-balanced wine. The oak and black fruit flavors are well integrated, offering a modern style with great value. Ready to enjoy now, and can age well through 2030.

The Wine Advocate | RP 93
Published: Oct 29, 2016
Drink: 2018-2035

Tasted from an ex-Chateau bottle at BI Wine & Spirits Calon-Segur dinner in London. I praised the 2008 Calon Segur when I tasted it blind in 2012 and I have no reason to change my opinion three years later. Here it has a surprisingly deep hue for a 2008. The nose is very detailed and lively, more breezy and carefree than the 2009 with vivacious blackberry, cedar and graphite scents. The palate is medium-bodied and slightly brittle in texture on the entry. The acidity is beautifully judged here with superb balance: smooth and harmonious, though it just tapers in towards the edgy, maybe angular finish. This has a sense of joie-de-vivre perhaps not common in Calon-Segur's wines. It is one of the best Left Bank wines in 2008 and given its price, one of its best values. Tasted March 2015. 

Jamessuckling,com | JS 93
Published: Dec 20, 2010

A solid red, with plum, spices and cedar character on the nose and palate. Coffee too. Full and dense, with a long finish. Solid red here. Superb for the appellation. Best after 2013.

Jancisrobinson.com | JR 17
Published: Feb 20, 2018
Drink: 2015-2030

Expressive new-oak scent with a toasty style to the aroma. Black cherry and blackcurrant fruit – ripe and satisfying and modern, and the oak and fruit flavours are well integrated.

Calon-segur.fr

The Grand Vin of Calon Ségur mirrors its terroir. It is rare, authentic and stirs the soul. In the most natural way, it reveals both great delicacy and outstanding intensity. All the magic of Calon is in this balance. The wine is aged in new oak barrels for 20 months, the tannins of the oak integrating harmoniously over time with the tannins of the grapes. The style is brought by a Cabernet Sauvignon which expresses its finesse without arrogance. Elegance is to be found everywhere, in the purity of the wine’s flavours, in the delicacy of its texture, while its depth and length are also superb. The wine’s extraordinary ability to age many years in bottle is another feature of the estate. The 1947, 1953 and 1982 vintages, by way of example, still display astonishing signs of youth.

APPELLATION
Saint-Estèphe.
Third classified Growth in 1855.

CONSULTANT ŒNOLOGIST
Éric Boissenot.

SOIL
A thick layer of gravel laid down during the Quaternary Period. Predominantly clay
sub-soil from the Tertiary Period. At the summit of the gravel deposits, there is also
a fine layer of clay of lacustrine origin.

VINEYARD AREA
55 ha (136 acres).

AREA IN PRODUCTION
45 ha (50 ha planted).

GRAPE VARIETIES
57% Cabernet sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 7% Cabernet franc, 2% petit Verdot.

AVERAGE AGE OF THE VINES
20 years.

TRAINING METHOD
Double Guyot.

PLANTING DENSITY
8,000 vines/ha.

HARVEST
Hand picking. A first selection of grapes on the vine. Mechanical sorting of the grapes by vibration, followed by hand sorting.

VINIFICATION
Temperature-controlled tronconical stainless-steel tanks. Vatting period for 18 to 21 days. Microbubbling. Co-inoculation, exogenous yeast and bacterias, in stainless steel tank at 25°C.

AGEING
20 months, 100% new barrels. Fining with egg white.