Grown in one of Bordeaux’s greatest vintages ever, this second wine of Second Growth Rauzan-Ségla showcases the estate’s prime Margaux terroir without the burly tannins—or the price tag—of its big, expensive brother. And it’s drinking at its peak right now.
Rauzan-Ségla has been famous for its bold red wines nearly as long as the modern Bordeaux wine industry has existed. Founded in 1661, the estate was originally owned by the same man who managed Château Margaux and Latour, and by the late 1700s it had attained international renown: Thomas Jefferson even ordered 10 cases after a trip to Bordeaux. In the 1855 classification, Rauzan-Ségla placed right behind Mouton Rothschild.
Control passed through a number of families over the decades, and for many years the estate turned out wines unworthy of its pedigree. But that changed in 1994, when the Wertheimer brothers, who also own the iconic fashion house Chanel, took over and sparked a revolution in quality. They recruited John Kolasa from Château Latour to lead the estate. They thoroughly modernized the winemaking process from vineyard to bottling, planting new vines and investing in improved equipment in the cellar.
Nicolas Audebert took the reins in 2015, and his touch has been impressive: Remarking on a three-decade vertical tasting, former Wine Advocate boss Lisa Perrotti-Brown noted “from 2015, a whole new haute couture level of sophistication and layered complexity became apparent.”
The 2015 vintage in Margaux stands as a watershed moment for the appellation, delivering wines of extraordinary character that epitomize the commune's elegance and structural depth. Under perfect climatic conditions—a warm summer balanced by providential rainfall in August—the Cabernet Sauvignon achieved a rare harmony of phenolic ripeness and vibrant acidity.