Château Rauzan-Ségla 2022

The wines of Château Rauzan-Ségla have captivated the minds and seduced the hearts of many for the greater part of three centuries. The American President and oenophile Thomas Jefferson was a fan of this beguiling Margaux estate and ordered several cases during his well-documented visit to Bordeaux in 1784.   Château Rauzan-Ségla was delineated as a 2nd Growth during the 1855 Classification, yet many will claim the wines from Rauzan-Ségla have a shot of standing up to the First Growth producers in terms of quality and sophistication during select vintages.  In the 1980s and early 90s, American wine critic Robert Parker Jr lamented that Rauzan-Ségla was not delivering on its potential.  That was bound to change.

Prior to the 1855 Classification, Château Rauzan-Ségla was a massive estate with sweeping grounds in both Margaux and Cantenac.  They were carved up into four smaller estates – Château Rauzan-Gassies, Château Desmirail, Château Marquis de Terme and the incomparable Château Rauzan-Ségla.  Ownership of the estate changed hands throughout the centuries until it was acquired by the Wertheimer family of the iconic women’s fashion brand, Chanel.  The family took the quality of Château Rauzan-Ségla to new heights and hired a winemaking team led by Château Latour’s David Orr and John Kolasa.  Since the Wertheimer family acquired the estate, the wines of Rauzan-Ségla have become more promising with each consecutive vintage.  The present winemaker Nicolas Audebert brings his skill from Möet Chandon and believes in producing wines that will last for decades.

Château Rauzan-Ségla is proof that great wine is a product of both exceptional terroir and winemaking technique.  With its gently sloping vineyards and mixture of soils, Château Rauzan-Ségla has arguably some of the best terroir in all of Margaux.  Nothing is left to chance at this estate, and the winemaking team carefully assesses the optimum terroirs to plant the vines.  Multiple clones of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot are planted in different parcels on the estate depending on the soil.  Merlot is planted on the vineyard sites with bluish clay and Cabernet Sauvignon is planted in the more graveled areas of the 79-hectare vineyard.   Berries are tasted individually for ripeness and then picked and vinified parcel by parcel.  The weather is fairly moderate due to the proximity of the Gironde.  Regardless, adaptability is key here, and the team of expert vignerons must pivot during extreme weather conditions in this ever-changing environment.  With the help of cutting-edge winemaking technology and expertise in the field, the Rauzan-Ségla team navigates the capricious weather and delivers consistently excellent wines.

There is an ethos of elegance at Château Rauzan-Ségla, and it permeates nearly every facet of the estate and its wines.  If one is fortunate enough to visit the Château, one will marvel at the richly furnished interior designed by the incomparable Karl Lagerfeld.  Just a sip of one of Rauzan-Ségla’s opulent wines is enough to envelop the drinker in a whirlwind of sophistication.  The grand vin, Rauzan-Ségla, promises a delightfully rich journey with the beautiful aroma of cigar box that is signature to the estate.  The sister wine, Ségla, is friendly, fresh and succulent.  It possesses some of the intensity of Rauzan-Ségla, but is a much more approachable wine that begs to be enjoyed immediately. 

"The flagship 2022 Château Rauzan-Ségla checks in as 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot, all aged 18 months in 50% new French oak. It's much more focused and precise compared to the second wine and has brilliant aromatics of crème de cassis, crushed violets, graphite, and smoky oak. Gorgeously concentrated and full-bodied, with riveting purity and precision, this stunning Margaux has ripe yet building tannins, a terrific mid-palate, and flawless overall balance. I love it today yet 7-8 years of cellar are warranted and it will cruise over the following 3-4 decades in cold cellars. It's another sensational wine from this estate." - Jeb Dunnuck, (02/27/2025), Ratings: 98, Drink: 2023-2073 

"The 2022 Rauzan-Ségla is a classy, elegant wine. Even so, the 2022 very clearly lacks the immediacy of some surrounding vintages. Readers should be prepared to cellar this for a number of years The mid-weight, gracious presence of Rauzan-Ségla is very much present, and yet the tannins are pretty imposing. Dark red/purplish fruit, rose petal, graphite and white pepper are all beautifully delineated in the glass. The 2022 is pure and total sophistication. This is a wine that may very well have more to say in the future. Tasted four times." - Antonio Galloni, Vinous, (01/28/2025), Ratings: 97

"An accomplished wine that has been steered skilfully through ageing, and delivers the exceptional quality that it showed En Primeur. Cocoa bean, espresso, tar, ink, campfire, finesse, powerful but understated tannic architecture, cassis fruits laced with black tea, incense, graphite and peony. 50% new barrels, Nicolas Audebert director" - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux, (03/07/2025), Ratings: 97

"Gorgeously fragranced on the nose with perfumed black fruits and pink flowers - smells very Margaux. Clean and crisp, a beautiful precision from the start with ripe and rich fruit but cool fresh acidity and sleek, fine tannins. A little shy, still compact and tightly knitted, but lovely detail, so well worked, almost delicate but there's still quite fleshy, plush fruit. Excellent concentration but delivered with an easy sleight of hand, expanding with time in the glass. Glamorous, scented, inviting, deep and seductive. A brilliant and totally moreish wine. Yield of 30hl/ha. 3.7pH. 17% press wine. Harvest 2-28 September. Ageing in French oak for 14-16 months, 15% new. In organic conversion. Tasted twice." - Georgina Hindle, Decanter, (05/25/2023), Ratings: 97

"The 2022 Rauzan-Ségla is showing well in bottle, unfurling in the glass with aromas of dark berries and cherries mingled with licorice, burning embers and pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, ample and velvety, it's suave and seamless, with its dense core of fruit framed by powdery structuring tannins that lend a more evident backbone than it exhibited en primeur. As readers may remember, the 2022 is a blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot; and in 2022, the east-facing sides of the vines, which see the afternoon sun, were picked separately, along with anything that showed signs of stress." - William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (03/07/2025), Ratings: 96