Château Phélan-Ségur 2006

Bettane & Desseauve

About the wine:

Deep color. A cedar-scented nose with depth. Creamy on the palate, with plenty of vitality. Long finish. Impressive tannic structure. A wine of great class.

About the estate:

Owned by the Gardinier brothers (who also run Les Crayères in Reims and the Taillevent restaurants in Paris), Phélan was sold in 2018 to a passionate collector of Bordeaux wines, Philippe Van de Vyvere. This wine, which is in a sense the first cousin of Calon-Ségur, is one of the most renowned in the region. Beautifully situated on the banks of the Garonne, it offers a very distinct character, marked by notes of cedar and a smooth mid-palate. 2015 was one of the appellation’s standout vintages, while 2016 and 2018 display refined tannins worthy of the finest classified growths.

Guide Hachette des vins

About the wine:

From Basterot to Ségur-Garamey, this wine has changed its name several times before becoming Phélan Ségur. The Ségur to whom it refers is not the “Prince of the Vineyards” but a namesake with no family connection. The terroir—a magnificent gravelly hilltop overlooking the Gironde—is beyond dispute. The 2006 growing season was difficult, but this wine remains well-crafted and embodies the spirit of the appellation with genuine power and good structure. Still a bit oaky, it will benefit from being cellared for five or six years, or even longer, as it has the potential to age well.

About the estate:

Located on the plateau next to the village of Saint-Estèphe, this estate combines an impressive complex of neoclassical buildings with a first-rate terroir: 70 hectares of clay-gravel soil. It has also had a succession of renowned owners. Bernard Phélan, who already owned Domaine de Garamey, purchased land in 1810 from Joseph-Marie de Ségur, Count of Cabanac (who was merely a namesake of the Ségurs of Lafite and Calon). Then, for a long time, the Delons, a leading name in the Médoc, Xavier Gardinier starting in 1985, and finally Philippe Van de Vyvere since 2018.

Guide des Vins Gault & Millau

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the estate:

This stunning, iconic estate in Saint-Estèphe, with its superb terroir on the banks of the Gironde, has had a new owner since January 2018. It is now up to Belgian industrialist Philippe Van de Vyvere to write the next chapter in the history of what is indisputably one of the best unclassified wines of the Médoc. He has everything he needs to succeed and is expected to continue along the path he has been following for several years now. Phélan Ségur produces a noble wine, not always showy, but distinguished and with excellent aging potential.

Wine Enthusiast

Jancis Robinson