It will be interesting to see the 2018 and 2019 vintages in St Estèphe side by side during their evolution. I’ve previously written about the wonderful qualities of 2018 St Estèphe, but 2019 has also produced brilliant wine in the appellation and qualitatively speaking it’s a bit of a photo-finish. The top properties here are profound. They start with a spellbinding effort from Château Calon Ségur. This property has been on a roll in the past decade with significant investment and an ambitious team let by Vincent Millet. 2019 Calon currently offers up a wonderfully beguiling aromatic display and a layered and deep palate. You can drink this now to enjoy the prodigious fruit aspect almost [though it has the balance to age]. Château Cos d’Estournel offers up a creamy blackcurrant aromatics in a cool, pure style. It’s inky and tight on the palate but shows enormous potential. Château Montrose was extremely backward on the day of tasting but there is super concentration here and evident depth, but the wine has most certainly crept into its shell. It needs five years at least, though it appears to have the structure to last a century!

The following four wines were tasted at the MW Institute’s Annual Bordeaux tasting at Vintners Hall in London on Tuesday 31st October, 2023. I hope you find the notes useful.

Château Calon Ségur, Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2019

Deep and saturated in the glass; colour tight to rim; wonderfully flattering aromatics; blackcurrants, stone fruits and integrated new oak; really enticing; layered and profoundly deep on the palate; wonderful blackcurrant fruit, ripe and textured; terrific texture to be precise; wonderful balance. Vying with the 2018 for perfection here. You can drink this now but it will live for fifty years. [73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot, 14.5% alc]. Tasted 31/10/23. Drink 2024-2060. 98+

Château Lafon-Rochet, Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2019

Deep; little reduced to start with; bottle stink blew off to reveal earthy, stalky blackcurrants; similar tones on the palate; some spice. Bit clipped on the finish, but struggles coming after Calon to be fair! Tannins bit hard on the finish. [65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 14% alc]. Tasted 31/10/23. Drink 2028-2039. 88

Château Montrose, Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2019

Deep and dark; chalky, wet stone notes on the aromatics; blackcurrants emerge but this is a wine firmly in its shell; more blackcurrant tones unfurl with aeration; much more backward and reticent than Calon at this stage; there is lots here though even if it feels a bit impenetrable at present. Excellent texture on the finish and Rolls-Royce tannins. Needs a decade and will probably last a century. [64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 14.5% alc]. Drink 2030-2070. 97+

Château Cos d’Estournel, Cru Classé, St Estèphe, 2019

Deep and vivid in the glass; offers up creamy blackcurrant aromatics; primary and elemental but very deep; in a bit of a slumber like the Montrose currently; evident depth and concentration; inky blackcurrants on the palate. Freshness on the finish. Needs five years but balanced for the long haul. [65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 13.5% alc]. Drink 2030-2070. 97+