Château Phélan Ségur : La Cave Gift Set 2018

Characteristics and Tasting Tips for the La Cave 2018 Gift Set Château Phélan Ségur

Tasting

Appearance
An intense ruby colour with purple highlights.

Nose
The nose is highly complex, dominated by very ripe black fruit and spices.

Palate
The attack is unctuous, velvety and sun-drenched. The tannic structure is rich, and the finish is persistent and full-bodied. The vintage is defined by its balance, succulence and harmony.

Food and Wine Pairing

This is one of those rare vintages that can be enjoyed right through to a chocolate dessert. With its structure and full-bodied texture, it also pairs well with roasted or braised red meats, game and dishes in sauce.

A Sun-Drenched, Harmonious Saint-Estèphe: Château Phélan Ségur 2018 in the La Cave Gift Set

Gift set contents

In addition to a bottle of Château Phélan Ségur 2018, this gift set contains the following three items:

• Two-Blade Corkscrew & Leather Case

• Crate Opener & Leather Case

• Leather "La Cave" Key Ring

The estate

Château Phélan Ségur, an emblematic estate of Saint-Estèphe in the Médoc, traces its origins to the acquisitions made by the Irish merchant Bernard O'Phelan, who was based in Bordeaux: the Clos de Garramey in 1805, followed by the Ségur de Cabanac estate in 1810. Today, the 70-hectare vineyard forms part of a property of approximately 114 hectares facing the Gironde estuary, centred on a neoclassical ensemble comprising the château and the cellars. Since January 2018, it has been owned by the Belgian industrialist Philippe Van de Vyvere, with Véronique Dausse as managing director. The 2018 vintage is the first produced under its new owner.

The vineyard

The vineyard extends over 70 hectares on the slopes and plateaus of Saint-Estèphe, facing the Gironde estuary. Its vines border those of Montrose and Calon Ségur. The terroir consists of clay-rich gravel, sometimes topped with clayey sand, over a limestone subsoil. Planting density is high, at around 10,000 vines per hectare, and the average age of the vines is approximately 35 years. The estate also includes 44 hectares of parkland, forests, meadows, streams and ponds, a veritable haven of biodiversity surrounding the vines. It practises sustainable viticulture: ploughing to almost entirely eliminate chemical weedkillers, deliberately grassed plots, mostly organic fertilisation and the use of mating disruption against certain pests.

The vintage

The 2018 growing season saw a mild April, a May marked by fairly long spells of rain and a hot June. May and June received 105 mm more rain than the average of the past 23 years at the estate, resulting in very strong downy mildew pressure, which the team managed to keep under control. From July to September, the weather turned dry and hot, but the clay-gravel soils, which had built up water reserves in spring, spared the vines from excessive stress. The storm of 6 September brought around 80% of the month's rainfall and created ideal conditions for ripening the grapes. The harvest took place from 24 September to 11 October, with a yield of 49 hectolitres per hectare.

Winemaking and ageing

For the Château Phélan Ségur 2018 in the La Cave 2018 gift set, the grapes are hand-picked and transported in small crates to manual, vibrating sorting tables. Since 2011, a final selection has been carried out by optical sorting. The crushing is gentle. Fermentation lasts about ten days, followed by a maceration of around twenty days. The cellar has 39 vats, allowing for very precise plot-by-plot vinification. In 2018, the particularly rich Merlots were vinified with cooler macerations and shorter vatting times, while the Cabernet Sauvignons were fermented under more traditional conditions. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels. Ageing lasts approximately 18 months in barrels, with around 50% new oak. Cellar master Fabrice Bacquey and consultants Michel Rolland and Julien Viaud help to define the blend.

Grape varieties

57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot