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Description
Tasting notes

Reviewed by: William Kelley
A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2023 Phélan Ségur offers up aromas of cassis, dark berries, licorice and toasty new oak, followed by a medium to full-bodied, deep and nicely concentrated palate with plenty of powdery structuring tannin and good length on the finish. It's a strong effort.

Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2023 Phélan Ségur was picked September 18 to October 11 at 52hL/ha and matured in 55% new oak. This has a very pure bouquet. You can actually tell that there is less SO2 being employed here since it displays that strong crushed strawberry fruit, almost confit-like character, turning more floral with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins. This is very well balanced, though not a Phélan Ségur laden with huge concentration (the analytical alcohol is a more restrained 13.54%). There is just a touch of balsamic that perks up the finish, while graphite notes join the chorus line toward the close. Quite an "involving" wine in the cards, this will be fascinating to revisit once in bottle.

Reviewed by: James Suckling
The polish and intensity of this wine is beautiful for the vintage, with blackcurrant, lead pencil and light chocolate character. It’s medium- to full-bodied with well-integrated fruit and tannins, and a long finish. Velvet texture. Excellent potential. Fermented from selected yeast from the various parcels. 58% cabernet sauvignon, 39% merlot, 1.5% petit verdot, and 1.5% cabernet franc. Let’s see which is better in the end, 2022 or 2023.
About the Producer
Chateau Phelan Segur is one of the wineries in the Saint-Estephe region of Bordeaux, France, and a member of the Union Des Grands Crus De Bordeaux. Since the beginning of the 19th century, Château Fragrance, located in the heart of the Saint-Estèphe appellation, has commanded majestic views over the Gironde. Irishman Bernard Phelan created this winery by merging two vineyards, Clos de Garramey and Domaine Segur. Later, Bernard's son Frank expanded the industry and changed the name of the winery to "Flying Dragon Family Winery" in the early 20th century. Under the careful care of the owner, the Fragrance Family Winery is famous for its elegant, delicate and mild style wines. In 1985, the Gardinier family bought the winery and it has been in operation ever since. The current vineyard area of Fragrance Saga Winery is 70 hectares, of which 55% of the land is used for Cabernet Sauvignon (Cabernet Sauvignon) grapes, 43% of the land is used to cultivate Merlot (Merlot) grapes, 1% of the land It is used to cultivate Petit Verdot, and 1% of the land is used to cultivate Cabernet Franc grapes. When the grapes reach the ideal ripeness, the winery will pick them manually. After picking, the grapes are screened, peeled, and then fermented in the traditional way. The fermented wine is then aged for 16-18 months in 60% new French oak barrels before being bottled in the winery. The Fragrance family winery produces three dry red wines, namely the Frank Phelan brand and the Fragrance family Bernie dry red wine (La Croix), which is mainly made from Cabernet Sauvignon from better vineyards. Bonis, Saint-Estephe, France), the current average annual production is 200,000 bottles.