WTN: Calon-Segur 2000

I stole this Bordeaux from dad's stash (we share a cellar.) Yes, I'm too old to do that sort of thing, but I still have a mischevious kid in me!

A good wine. A nice wine. Nose is a vanilla or something. A pleasant nose. Color is fairly dark but not opaque. The wine is medium bodied. In the mouth its nice, no hard edges.
This is what Parker said after giving it 94 points: "A dense, traditionally crafted wine for those with patience" and "A powerful, tannic, full-bodied and opulent wine, it possesses considerable structure that is reasonably well-concealed by considerable glycerin and intensity. Look for it to be at its best between 2012-2040. Patience, patience, patience!"

I wouldn't call this wine powerful or tannic. I would call it graceful and pleasant. There are no major tannins that I can detect.

I find it hard to believe there's no other area in the world that can make a cab-merlot blend like this. 160 bucks? For a flat land wine? I doubt this is made on hillsides, most of Bordeaux is flat from what I understand. I don't know how many bottles are made of this stuff but I'm pretty sure its around 300 thousand or so. How much care is being put in the vineyard work? Who's handling the vinification and do they really give a shit? Are they after Parker points, profit, etc.? Or do they make the wine with care, attention, with love?

I was just down in Abruzzo and tasted some Montepulcianos at this winebar in Teramo called La Centrale where this super-nice bartender called Marcello, seeing my interest, had me taste a whole slew of Montepulcianos I'd never even heard of and they were wonderful, very pleasant wines at a fraction of the cost of the Calon-Segur and probably made with much more care.

My passion for wine has led me to represent some tiny produccers I've been visiting for years. They are so small they are grateful for some commercial help because they are so busy working in the vines and stuff and they don't get to travel much. Unfortunately I can't post those tasting notes anymore because I respect this site and the conflict of interest thing.

What amazes me is how people will pay ridiculous prices for Bordeaux and then expect a Montepulciano D'Abruzzo to cost 10 bucks and be good. Now that I'm "in the business" I see that a wine that's 10 bucks is sold by the producer to the importer for around Euro 2.50. 2.50? You expect a wine for 2.50 to be good? How is the wine producer going to send his kids to college selling his wines at 2.50?

What's worse is, say, the producer decides to sell his wine at Euro 4.50. (A big step up.) If you're lucky, and the importer is also distributor, you'll find that wine on the shelves for 15 bucks!

So here you have these small producers working their ass off and then you go visit a California winery and not only do they charge you 15 bucks to taste a thimbleful of their wine, they charge you 50 bucks to buy their wine direct. Its crazy, and unfortunately its just the laws of supply and demand at work. There are literally thousands of small producers in Italy and there's simply a ton of world-wide and in-house competition. I just want people to keep in mind what's actually going on as they hunt for bargains at the wine store. The little guys get squeezed cause they don't have industrial production. And I'm not one of those "protect the little guys" people but when it comes to making wine I believe small is key. The small vigneron is caring for his vines and making wines with personality - protecting diversity in wines, which is what all of us winelovers look for.

I was inspired to open the Calon-Segur after drinking a bottle of '99 Cabernet from a small producer I'm working with. It's amazing how little difference there is between the two and yet I paid 8 Euros to this guy for an already-aged '99 bottle of wine!

By the way, I did enjoy both wines accompanied by a veal and sausage shish-kebab I bought at the local butcher. Wow! How tasty and tender. The Sala brothers kill a local pig and cow once a week in the back of the shop. Its awesome! I went back there last week (I've known them a long time) and looked at that innocent veal in the eyes and considered becoming vegetarian. The next day I saw its headless body hanging as Elio took off the skin with surgical precision. Too bad these guys' sons aren't interested in continuing their fathers' fine work. They all want to become sissy lawyers and doctors.
I also ate this gorgonzola-mascarpone-walnut "cake" spread on toasted bread. The most indulgent thing you can eat. Cholesterol heaven. Wow! So good. The blue-cheese gorgonzola power blends with the mascarpone creamy-neutral freshness and its awesome, the walnuts combine wonderfully.

Happy drinking,
Ago

Agostino,

Thanks for that interesting report. That Calon-Ségur is still young and will probably reveal a lot more subtlety in a few years time. The high price of Bordeaux GCC is partly based on their proven track record for gracious ageing.

That said, you are quite right in pointing out the incomparably better QPR available from quality conscious small guys, even if their wines rarely have the same proven ageing potential as Ch.C-S. As you say, they often have have a real problem in building up a sufficient reputation to allow them to make a decent income. Many of them may disappear if we don't buy their wines at a fair price.

You tantalise me with the no-show of those notes on your visit to Abruzzo which you feel conflicted against publishing. Would Robin object to your publishing if you were to declare your commercial interest where appropriate?

Tim,
You have a point on the proven ageability of Bordeaux. Its true, those people have a track record and large market presence so why shouldn't people buy them.

I haven't heard from Robin in a while. I'm tempted to think he's off in India meditating in some lost village. It was nice when he would chime in once in a while (not trying to give him a guilt trip or anything.)

I've got some real interesting wines I want to tell everyone about, in large part because I'm doing it out of passion and I probably won't make much money. Its exciting getting involved with these off-the-beaten path small producers. All of a sudden you're spending the night at their house, eating mom's home-cooked meals, tasting crazy grappas. When they let you into their world its a real privilege.

I'll send you a private message at some point and tell you all about it - I'd be happy to send you some samples and get your opinion on some of these wines.

I'm actually not working with anyone in Abruzzo. Its too far from Milan for now, and starting off I want to concentrate on a small group that by now I know quite well. I was in Abruzzo on vacation which by the way is a stunning place and this Marcello guy was super hospitable - but I could hardly take notes in such a crowded atmosphere, I just enjoyed the ride.