Aromas of crushed blackberries and blueberries with dried flowers and bark, following through to a full body with a tight and powerful palate of beautiful fruit and chewy yet polished tannins that are compressed and impressive. Extremely linear and intense. Muscular, in a toned way. Yet it opens in the mouth at you taste it. 60% cabernet sauvignon and 40% merlot. Drink after 2025.

Reminding me of the 2016, the 2018 Château Rauzan-Segla reveals this beautifully fresh, complex bouquet that still has serious richness and depth. Based on 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, raised in 65% new barrels, it offers a dense purple hue to go with gorgeous notes of blackcurrants, spring flowers, cigar wrapper, and sandalwood. A quintessential Margaux with its spicy, complex, floral character, it's full-bodied and has a supple, elegant texture, no hard edges, a solid spine of acidity, and a great, great finish. This is a brilliant, heavenly 2018 to enjoy over the coming 30 years or more.

The 2018 Rauzan-Ségla is composed of 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The wine has 14% alcohol, and it was aged for around 18 months in barriques, 65% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it comes galloping out of the glass with powerful, energetic scents of crushed black cherries, blackcurrant cordial and mulberries, plus suggestions of violets, star anise, chocolate mint and crushed rocks with a touch of tobacco leaf. The medium to full-bodied palate is jam-packed with taut, muscular black fruit layers, supported by firm, ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with fantastic length and loads of earthy sparks. This is a thoroughbred Margaux, for sure, possessing amazing power in a very sleek, sophisticated package. Give it 5-7 years in bottle to unlock all those earth, floral and mineral nuances and drink it over the next 40 years or more. An incredible achievement that adeptly sidesteps the potentially overwhelming stamps of this extreme vintage. Bravo to Technical Director Nicolas Audebert and the team at Rauzan-Ségla! LPB

A contender for the finest vintage of Rauzan Segla ever produced, the wine hits all the right notes starting with its complex perfume which is already showing off its lilacs, violets, tobacco leaf, forest floor, espresso and array of red and black fruits. On the palate, the wine really shines due to its depth of flavor, power, concentration, sensuous, elegant textures and its silk and velvet wrapped finish clocking in at 60 seconds, or more. Give it ten years or just a bit longer and this beauty will shine for 2-3 decades after that.

The 2018 Rauzan-Ségla is fabulous. Inky, rich and explosive, the 2018 offers tremendous depth and soaring intensity. Super-ripe red cherry, cedar, tobacco, mint and spice all build over time, framed by incomparably silky, polished tannins. Today, the 2018 is dense and packed. I expect it will develop into a stunning Margaux in another 10-15 years or so. Actually, it already is.

I very much enjoyed this en primeur and I am happy to see it living up to billing. There is real nuance here, with a ton of great fruit - layers of cassis, bilberry, charcoal and saffron spice. This really stands out for me as having balance, complexity and the potential to grow. These were tasted blind and I genuinely have to say congratulations to Nicolas Audebert and his team for calling it right in a year in which handling oak over ageing has proved difficult in many cases. 3.8pH. 2% Cabernet Franc completes the blend.
Tasted by Jane Anson (at Bordeaux, 10 Nov 2020)
Part of Bordeaux 2018 in bottle: full overview plus top scoring wines

The 2018 Rauzan-Ségla has a sublime bouquet of black cherries, violet and lavender, all beautifully defined and focused. The oak is seamlessly enmeshed both here and on the palate. The graphite-tinged black fruit is framed by very fine tannins and matched with a perfect bead of acidity. There is an abiding symmetry about this Rauzan-Ségla that is totally endearing, and it delivers so much freshness on the finish. Absolutely superb.

Barrel sample. Black core. Expressive cassis on the nose, just slightly herbal and very stony/mineral. This has real finesse on the palate, chalky and very fine texture. Dark, almost savoury restraint on the palate. Pretty dry on the finish but in balance with the power on the palate. Notable freshness in 2018. Needs time.Julia Harding, jancisrobinson.com, April 2019