Bordeaux 2011 – St-Estèphe

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16 Apr pm – Lafite slash their opening price by 50% on 2010. Well done on getting things moving!

See our guide to all things Bordeaux 2011.

The big Bordeaux news came from Ch Latour on Friday. One of the other big Pauillacs is expected to release its (slashed) price today.

Ch Calon Ségur, Marquis de Calon 2011 St-Estèphe

Second wine – and one which Mme Capbern-Gasqueton never showed on primeur – tasted after the grand vin because it was so different in style with majority Merlot: 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. (St-Estèphe clay allowed the Merlot to ripen fully, without the interruptions due to hydric stress suffered by vines on gravel, giving powerful wines. Cabernets have finesse and silky tannins on the clay whereas the Merlot has power.) 30% of production.
Sweeter more plummy nose than the grand vin but still very fresh with just a hint of cedar. Denser and firmer and less elegant. More chocolate and less fluid freshness on the palate, though it is still fresh. A more gourmand wine for the second wine. Powerful but velvety. Less elegant, more rounded, less tension. More monolithic. (JH) 13.5%
Drink
2017
2026
16.5

Ch Calon Ségur 2011 St-Estèphe

It was sad to be tasting at Calon-Ségur without Mme Capbern-Gasqueton, who died during the night of 2/3 September 2011 just after technical director Vincent Millet (ex Ch Margaux but already in his sixth vintage at Calon-Ségur) phoned her on Friday the 2nd to say he was coming over to start harvesting in the morning. We tasted this before the second wine, the Marquis de Calon. 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot. Harvest ended on 21 September, which is usually when they start, but he wanted to retain the freshness of the fruit. Very careful and laborious selection from among the 200 different lots of press wine, 80-90% of which was Cabernet. 50% went into the grand vin.
Rich, deep glowing cherry crimson. Lightly dusty but sweet and fragrant cassis. Just a touch of cedary freshness. Deep and smoothly textured and with an elegant overlay of freshness. No dry tannins here. Scented on the mid palate. Delicate, not typically St-Estèphe. Lively and full of fresh energy. Cool August brought delicacy and aromatic power to the Cabernet Sauvignon. Tender and fresh on the finish. So drinkable. Finesse and freshness all round. (JH) 13.3%
Drink
2018
2035
17.5

Ch Capbern Gasqueton 2011 St-Estèphe

74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot. pH 3.75. Merlot did not have the finesse Millet wanted, hence lower proportion. They were a bit powerful for the finesse of the Cabernet Sauvignon. No hail at Capbern. Deep cherry crimson. Intense ripe cassis, and sweet red cherry on the palate. Touch of eucalyptus. Juicy and bright and fresh. Delicious. No hard edges. Juicy and full of bright fruit. Uncomplicated and charming. (JH) 13.2%
Drink
2016
2023
16.5

Ch Clauzet 2011 St-Estèphe

Deep red cherry colour. Red and black fruited and a touch toasty on the nose. Soft, pliable tannins. Darker fruit on the palate. Respectable, firm, dry. (JH)
Drink
2017
2026
15.5

Ch Cos d'Estournel 2011 St-Estèphe

65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc. Just 30% of the crop went into the grand vin. Inky with black core and bright dark purple rim. Stunning colour. A touch of raisiny fruit. Dry, powdery tannins but quite dense and very firm. Powerful but cool. Long – the length is more structure than flavour or aroma. Needs to take on flesh. A bit hard on the finish. (JH) 13.5%
Drink
2022
2035
17 +

Ch Cos Labory 2011 St-Estèphe

Black-hearted and inky. Unusual, rather floral nose with Asian spice. Fresh and supple and just a little malty on the palate but so much more lithe than most of the Pauillacs just tasted. Dry, powdery tannins but not drying. Actually relatively silky. (JH)
Drink
2019
2030
17

Ch Haut-Beauséjour 2011 St-Estèphe

40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 60% Merlot. Rich crimson. Intense blackcurrant fruit on the nose. Then much lighter on the palate. Not too dry but lacks depth. (JH) 13%
Drink
2015
2021
15.5

Ch Lafon-Rochet 2011 St-Estèphe

Clean, cedary cassis on both the nose and the palate. It is balanced but not particularly endearing. Dry and firm. (JH)
Drink
2019
2030
16

Ch Meyney 2011 St-Estèphe

Inky black core. Rich, even a touch figgy on the nose. Oak dominates the palate, dense, grippy, rather hard work though not lacking any particular component. (JH)
Drink
2016
2024
15.5

Ch Montrose, La Dame de Montrose 2011 St-Estèphe

28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 72% Merlot.
Creamy dark fruit. Lovely pure Cabernet fruit, fine and dark and very fresh. Fine and so smooth even with a big charge of tannin. Dense, fresh and creamy in the mouth. Powerful framework but not tough. (JH)

12.9%
Drink
2018
2030
16.5 +

Ch Montrose 2011 St-Estèphe

63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot. Very dark, black core. Not very aromatic, touch of coffee and graphite. Powder fine and elegant tannins. Fresh, dry but finely layered, lots of very fine layers. Dry finesse and long too but needs lots of time. (JH) 12.9%
Drink
2022
2035
17.5

Ch Les Ormes de Pez 2011 St-Estèphe

Meaty cassis. Firm, chewy, all structure at the moment. Dark and dense but not tough but making no effort to please. Though at the very end the fruit reappears as a reminder. (JH)
Drink
2020
2035
16.5

Ch Petit Bocq 2011 St-Estèphe

Sweet oak on the nose and then medium body and a reasonable core of fruit but then tart and austere on the finish. I'm afraid this makes me yearn for a 2009... No lack of freshness anyway.
Drink
2016
2018
15

Ch de Pez 2011 St-Estèphe

50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot. Meaty (Bovril?) dark fruit, a little herbaceous too. Juicy, fresh and lively. Lots of bright fruit in the middle and the tannins just a bit tough on the finish. A bit bolshy. (JH) 13%
Drink
2018
2026
16

Ch Phélan Ségur 2011 St-Estèphe

Ripe, dark and savoury. Lots of oak char on the palate. Dense, firm but there's fruit under there somewhere, just well hidden. Chewy finish with some finishing sweetness. (JH)
Drink
2021
2035
16.5

Ch Tronquoy-Lalande, Tronquoy de Ste-Anne 2011 St-Estèphe

61% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon. 44% of production. Inky dark crimson. A little dusty, dark fruited, cedary, stemmy. A big contrast between the juicy fruit and the tight grip of the tannins. Acidity is pretty eye-watering and seems to sharpen the experience of the tannin. I am not convinced, as was often the case in this vintage, that time will help enough. (JH)
Drink
2015
2024
15.5

Ch Tronquoy-Lalande 2011 St-Estèphe

56% of production. 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 11% Petit Verdot. Black almost to the rim. Again a touch dusty but darker, with liquorice mixed in to the black, almost savoury fruit. But stemmy too. Acid and tannin make this really aggressive. Eye-watering. Painful. Hope it calms down. (JH)
Drink
2018
2026
15