2020 Chateau Capbern Saint-Estephe [JD95][JS93][WE92][D91][WA91][V90] WINE

“Another terrific Saint- Estephe is the 2020 Chateau Capbern, which comes from the same team as Calon Segur. (Current director Vincent Millet was brought on board in 2021.) Coming from 33 hectares of vines on sandy, gravelly, clay soils, the final blend is 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The elevage spanned 18 months in 60% new French oak, and this beauty hit just 12.8% natural alcohol. Gorgeous cassis, violets, damp earth, iron, and classy oak all emerge on the nose, and it’s full-bodied on the palate, with beautiful tannins, a layered, seamless mouthfeel, and the vintage’s pure, focused, age-worthy style front and center. Give bottles just 4-6 years and enjoy over the following two decades. Best After 2027.” 

“This is pretty and aromatic with ripe black cherries and blackberries as well as hints of chocolate, sweet spices and nut shell. Full-bodied with a deep character of mellow black fruit. Firm and structured with ripe, fine-grained tannins and a velvety finish.” 

“This ripe wine has rich tannins and an open, juicy character. Blackberry flavors are warm from the wine’s richness. With its density, the wine needs some time.” 

“Fragrant with fresh lilac and peonies on the aromatics, fairly high acidities overall with sculpted blackcurrant fruits. A higher level of Cabernet Sauvignon than in recent years after the replanting in the vineyard. 1% Cabernet Franc completes the blend, 3.85pH, 60% new oak. A yield of 33hl/ha.” 

“The 2020 Capbern offers up aromas of sweet cassis, plums, pencil shavings, loamy soil and licorice, followed by a medium to full-bodied, rich and seamless palate that’s polished, penetrating and dynamic. It’s a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Petit Verdot and the balance Merlot, produced by Vincent Millet and his team from Calon Ségur.” 

“The 2020 Capbern has a really quite lovely, sensual bouquet that could charm at a thousand paces: raspberry confit and wild strawberries. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a fine bead of acidity, touches of pencil lead and towards the finely proportioned, almost easygoing finish.”