Château Capbern, St Estèphe, 2021

Name: Château Capbern, St Estèphe
Brand: Château Capbern
Price: 128.74 GBP

Available Vintages

all 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

justerini & brooks tasting note

This excellent estate situated between Calon Segur and Montrose benefits from the same wine making team as Calon Segur: Vincent Millet and Eric Boissenot. The fruit from this vineyard formed part of Calon Segur until the 2006 vintage, when the late Denise Gasqueton decided to create a separate label. It has now dropped the Gasqueton from its name and will just be called 'Capbern'. It has its own very smart winery and there is a very handsome Chateau tucked away behind the church in St Estephe. The 2021 is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot at 12.8% alcohol. Offering cool Cabernet aromas of flowers, crunchy hedgerow fruit and gravel, this is fragrant, poised and with an easy sense of balance. Lots of red fruits, plums and fine stones on the palate, culminating in a precise focussed finish with well-mannered tannins. Juicy and bright.

critic reviews

88/100Lisa Perrotti-Brown,The Wine Independent

The 2021 Capbern is medium to deep garnet-purple in color. Notes of redcurrant jelly and kirsch lead to a core of cassis and lavender, with a touch of tapenade. The medium-bodied palate is soft and fruity, with just enough freshness and a spicy lift on the finish.

DRINKING WINDOW 2025 - 2036

date of review 04/2024

86/100Jane Anson,Inside Bordeaux

Redcurrant and cranberry, touches of capsicum and raspberry leaf, with extra layers of cloves and white pepper spice. This dips a little through the mid palate, but is carefully constructed. No frost on the vineyard, 36hl/h yield. Eric Boisenot consultant, Suravenir owner.

DRINKING WINDOW 2025 - 2036

date of review 04/2024

89/100Neal Martin,Vinous

The 2021 Capbern, bottled in May 2023, has a clean and precise nose that unfolds with slightly more red fruit than I observed en primeur. The oak here is nicely integrated with a background scent of black olive. The palate is well-balanced with a soft entry. This is clearly going to be one of the more approachable recent vintages from this Saint-Estèphe estate. Today it possesses fine, light tannins and modest weight, revealing more black fruit mixed with cedar and black pepper toward the finish. Quite understated, drink this over the next 15 to 20 years.

DRINKING WINDOW 2024 - 2038

date of review 02/2024

90/100William Kelley,Robert Parker Wine Advocate

Bottled in May 2023, two months before its big brother Calon-Segur, the 2021 Capbern has turned out very nicely, offering up aromas of dark berries, plums and licorice mingled with subtle hints of lilac, mint and spices. Medium to full-bodied, plush and polished, it's seamless and fleshy, with sweet tannins and good length on the finish.

DRINKING WINDOW 2025 - 2035

date of review 02/2024