Chapelle d'Ausone 2010

Finely drawn, firm, long and fruity on the finish: an excellent second wine.

There is an amazing depth of berries, orange blossom and minerals. Wet earth too. Full-bodied, with an ultra-velvety palate of super polished tannins. It’s deep and soulful. It goes on for minutes on the palate. This is very structured and muscular. Nearly always one of my favorite second wines. Try after 2018.

Chapelle d’Ausone 65% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon make up the blend. Like its big brother, the wine will be aged for about 20 months in 100% new oak. This is the debut vintage for Chapelle d’Ausone to feature a large percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the assemblage. Smoke, cassis, stone and fresh blackberry aromas combine with a medium to full-bodied, sweet, round, tannic palate and a blackberry-and-chocolate finish. 92–93 pts

Deep purple with violet highlights. Spicy bouquet, tobacco leaf, a rather cool first impression, cherry notes, concealed sweetness. On the palate, more promising than on the nose, it starts with a zesty acidity that dominates the fairly soft body, still comes across as upfront today and is hard to assess. For now, far from the allure of the 2009 vintage!

Deep purple with violet highlights. Spicy bouquet, tobacco leaf, a rather cool impression on the attack, cherry notes suggesting an understated sweetness. On the palate, more promising than on the nose, but it starts with a piquant acidity that dominates a possibly fairly soft body; it feels upfront and is currently very hard to assess. For now, far from the allure of the 2009 vintage!

Sweet, silky, fresh, elegant bouquet, vanilla powder, raspberries, redcurrants. Balanced, elegant, fresh, silky, Burgundian-style palate with delicate fruit, good tannins, dense, sweet aromatics, vibrant acidity, very long, fresh, fine finish. Can improve further. 16/20 2016 - 2028

More serious, with the impact of Cabernet Sauvignon striking in the blend, partly because the vintage has the kind of structure that favours dark-fruit character. It gives a pause to the fruit, a blast of fresh air between the opening beats and the close of play, has tension and grip, and is serious. Decades ahead. Winemaker/cellar master Philippe Baillarguet, overseen by Pauline Vauthier and father Alain, 100% new oak for ageing. Cabernet Sauvignon here, planted in 2006, on the slopes. 11th generation of the Vauthiers.

Dense attack, very elegant mid-palate, a touch of firmness, long and slender, splendid finish.

Logo on the cork: No logo Dark, intense color, slightly evolved. Intense nose with ripe, creamy fruit. A caressing entry on the palate, a little less dense than in previous vintages. The wine develops as juicy, flavorful, and even spicy, on a lighter-bodied frame. Normal length.

Dark ruby, purple reflections, slightly watery rim. Fine red berry confit, a touch of cherry, discreet hints of spice, a mineral touch, a multi-faceted bouquet. Juicy, complex, taut texture, fruity, very elegant, well-integrated tannins, showing great length, it has very good, certain ageing potential.

This second wine of Château Ausone is powerful, dominated by firmly tannic wood-aged Merlot. The wine also has an intense, juicy fruitiness and hints of spiced wood cake.