Phélan Ségur 2019

The complexity and depth is fantastic in this beautifully crafted, refined red. Such poise, finesse and length. Yet dense and very compacted. Love the texture precision. Goes on and on. Best ever?

The 2019 Château Phelan Segur from Véronique Dausse is another brilliant Saint-Estèphe in the vintage, and this estate plays in the top handful of Saint-Estèphes out there. Offering lots of darker currants, spiced plums, Iron, tobacco, and damp earth on the nose, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a concentrated, tannic, yet balanced mouthfeel, and a great finish. It needs to be forgotten for a good 5-7 years and will be a brilliant wine over the following two decades.

The 2019 Phélan Ségur has a very impressive nose of ample blackberry and boysenberry fruit, plus touches of graphite, sous-bois and light minty aromas. The palate is medium-bodied, harmonious and poised, with substantial tannins and very good weight. There is a sense of completeness to this Saint-Estèphe that urges you back for another sip. The best Phélan-Ségur in a long time.

Is this the most over-performing estate in the Médoc? Director Véronique Dausse would surely riposte that it's simply performing at the level to which its well-situated vineyards and detail-oriented team entitle it; but in any case, the 2019 Phélan Ségur is a brilliant wine. Offering up aromas of cassis, sweet wild berries, rose petals, violets, licorice and spices, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, with tangy acids, powdery tannins and a long, penetrating finish. This is another 2019 that en primeur purchasers can feel very pleased with.

Serious and seductive on the nose, full of ripe black fruits and faint florality. A sophisticated style, clearly powerful and concentrated with a core of succulent blackcurrant and black cherry fruit but delivered with poise and refinement. Round, generous and juicy with lashings of slate, liquorice and menthol freshness with tannins that are both abundant and well integrated, cushioning the fruit and driving it through to a long finish. Excellent clarity and confidence here. A top buy.

A ton of complexity is immediately apparent from the first time you wave your nose over the glass, from layers of black fruits to freshly grated nutmeg. On the palate, we are almost in Christmas cake territory, with plump juicy fruits, spiced liquorice, black pepper and plenty of concentration. This is a brilliant wine, confident tannins, well delivered, will be ready to drink in four or five years, but will age for decades. Michel Rolland consultant. 56% new oak, 3.8ph, lives up to En Primeur expectations.

The 2019 Phélan Ségur is a rich, heady wine. A burst of super-ripe dark fruit, grilled herbs, menthol, licorice, smoke, incense and spice races across the palate. As good as the 2019 is, I liked it more en primeur. I find the bottled wine not quite as expressive, especially on the mid palate. Tasted two times.