Very deep perfumed nose; the 1% Petit Verdot is quite potent and intense with ripe fruit aromas. Super-smooth and silky on the palate however, just so juicy and lovely with ample balance. A lovely energy and freshness comes across as both sharp and well defined – succulent but remaining intense and linear in terms of structure. The weight comes from plump, ripe fruit – the blackcurrant, black cherry and plum offset by a cooling minerality and wet stone, pencil lead minerality. It has richness for sure, the concentration is there, but also sleight of hand, so well executed and long. Really very impressive. Drinking Window: 2029 - 2048
Tasted by: Georgina Hindle (at Bordeaux, 03 Jan 2023)
Part of Bordeaux 2020 in bottle: overview plus top-scoring wines

Very deep perfumed nose; the 1% Petit Verdot is quite potent and intense with ripe fruit aromas. Super-smooth and silky on the palate however, just so juicy and lovely with ample balance. A lovely energy and freshness comes across as both sharp and well defined – succulent but remaining intense and linear in terms of structure. The weight comes from plump, ripe fruit – the blackcurrant, black cherry and plum offset by a cooling minerality and wet stone, pencil lead minerality. It has richness for sure, the concentration is there, but also sleight of hand, so well executed and long. Really very impressive.

Even visually this stands apart with its inky, glass-staining ruby colour. Rich and powerful but restrained, this is a brilliant Calon Ségur, more old school than the past few vintages in that there is tight cassis, eucalyptus and mint leaf restraint, but still utterly luscious black cherry and damson fruits, concentrated, supple and chiselled tannins with a touch of crème de cassis and incense. Exceptionally impressive. 47% of overall production, 33hl/h yield, 100% new oak, 3.85ph. Vincent Millet director as well as technical director.

The 2020 Calon-Ségur is a brilliant wine from an estate in the ascendant. Wafting from the glass with aromas of cassis, red berries, fresh mint, pencil shavings, violets and rose petals, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with a vibrant core of fruit, powdery structuring tannins and a long, perfumed finish. Integrated and harmonious, this pure, concentrated and dynamic wine is one of the finest vintages that Vincent Millet and his team have produced to date.

If you are not familiar with everything going on with Calon Segur these days, you need to taste this wine. Deeply colored, without hesitation the wine shoots from the glass with Asian spice, boysenberry, black currants, cedar, cigar box, tobacco leaf, lead pencil and forest leaf. Full-bodied, concentrated, powerful and rich, yet it is also balanced, refined, and intense. There is purity in the fruits, freshness and symmetry, ending with seamless waves of perfectly ripe, creme de cassis. Let this rest for at least a decade and enjoy for 3 or more decades after that. The wine blends 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. 13.8% ABV. 96-98

Blueberries, blackberries, spearmint, currants and sweet spices on the nose. Mocha and walnuts, too. Lots of flavor here, with a medium to full body and muscular yet velvety tannins that melt seamlessly into the wine. Long, polished and delicious already. Keeps going. Better from 2025.

The 2020 Calon Ségur is a powerhouse. A blast of dark cherry fruit, menthol, tar, licorice and gravel infuse the 2020 with remarkable depth. Sumptuous and full-bodied, the 2020 shows all the richness and textural depth of the year. The tannins are imposing, but there's a good deal of fruit too. This is an especially opulent Grand Vin, in line with vintages like 2018 stylistically, but with 1% less alcohol. Tasted two times.

Drink Date
2026 - 2060

Reviewed by - Lisa Perrotti-Brown

The 2020 Calon-Ségur is a blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. It is aging in 100% new French oak barrels for an anticipated 18 to 20 months. The alcohol is 13.8%. Displaying a deep purple-black color, it straight away springs up with bright scents of freshly picked black raspberries, kirsch and blackberries, needing considerable swirling to reveal a vast array of nuances—rose oil, cardamom, iron ore, graphite, lavender and aniseed. The medium-bodied palate has a solid structure of firm, ripe, grainy tannins and plenty of freshness supporting the tightly wound red and black fruit layers, accented by lots of mineral and floral sparks, finishing with impressive length and depth. Beautiful, beautiful wine!

The flagship 2020 Château Calon Ségur is also brilliant and certainly brings up the intensity, depth, and richness, although it’s nowhere near the exotic, almost over-the-top style of the 2018. Gorgeous crème de cassis, tobacco, roasted coffee beans, lead pencil, and sappy herbs all define this beauty, which is full-bodied, beautifully balanced, and has incredible purity of fruit. It might have some up-front appeal as well, yet smart money will hide bottles for at least 7-8 years.

The 2020 Calon-Ségur is allowed to open for over 90 minutes, unfurling in the glass with blackberry and bilberry scents, cedar and floral scents (almost identical to how it showed in barrel.) It just oozes pedigree. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins and quite plush red fruit. It is very well balanced without the backbone and depth of say, Montrose or Cos d'Estournel. It has gained a bit of heft on the finish during its élevage. However, it fans out in assured fashion. This should drink beautifully for 25 to 30 years.

(78% CS, 12% M, 9% CF, 1% PV; 33hl/ha; 13.8% ABV; 20% new)
A very “refined” nose, subtly gravelly, almost smoky, and notably persistent; rich, full, concentrated wine, fresh in acidity, very firm in very fine tannins; freshly sweet-cored to taste, discreet, refined, long, complex, and graceful with great length of flavor, no sense at all of excess, with a lovely generosity of presence, fresh for its fairly large scale, particularly elegant and poised. Super-fine-textured in tannin and with great fragrant scent on its very long finish. A wonderfully complete Calon, of tremendous finesse, probably even finer than than its 2019. 2030–55+.

78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Classically structured and Cabernet-driven without the opulence of 2018 or the finesse of 2019. Pure and precise on the nose with cassis notes prevalent. Crunchy fruit on the palate with powdery tannins that build and drive to a dry finish. Verticality as in 2019. Perhaps a little chew but clean and saline on the finish. (JL)

Tasted blind. Deep crimson. Open, dark-fruited and peppery with a lovely dark savoury character. Powerful, dry, elegant and all set for the long term. Really well integrated. (JH)