Chateau Ausone 2011

Of immense finesse, sensual and elegant, silky yet firm, a perfectly balanced, great Burgundy-style Ausone.

Deep, dark nose with plenty of blackberry and chocolate. A rich and full-bodied wine for the vintage with a moderate tannin structure that you now barely feel directly. Good, but not great depth on the mid-palate. The best thing about it is the long, crisp finish that pulls you back for more. Drink or hold. Château Quintus vertical tasting. SP.

Sweet and gently dark-fruited with an unexpected note of orange. Really moreish freshness, with upright, pure dark fruit on the palate. Spicy, refined texture, bright acidity and lots of energy. (JH)

From a blend of 55% Cabernet Franc and 45% Merlot, the wine goes through fermentation and maceration in thermoregulated wood vats and is aged in 100% new oak for about 20 months. Inky, dark and opaque with blue and purple accents in the color, this wine shows intense mineral, blackberry liqueur, blueberry, smoke, truffle and ripe, sweet essence of black cherry. Rich, concentrated, lush and mouth filling, the wine is graceful, elegant and balanced. This is a definite candidate for wine of the vintage. 96-98 Pts

Dark ruby, purple reflections, delicate watery rim. Inviting nuances of heart cherry, fine tobacco savouriness, delicately underpinned with cranberry and red berries, floral nuances, a mineral touch, still somewhat restrained, yet the complexity of the bouquet is already apparent. Full-bodied, elegant, fine red-berry confit, very well-integrated tannins, fresh and mineral, lingers very well, salty finish, delicate lemon notes on the aftertaste, good future with certain ageing potential.

55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot. Yield: 29 hl/ha. Production: 18,000 bottles. Peppery bouquet, initially slender, red currants, lingonberries, a touch of cassis, tobacco and tobacco leaf; the Cabernet Franc shows a refreshing, floral character, with the first fine wood notes in the background. On the palate, strong youthful astringency, appearing completely raw and undeveloped. At this stage, very hard to assess, but it will be on par with the 2001 vintage—in a technically improved form. Here, in about 12 years, 19/20 points are likely.

55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot. 29 hl/ha. Production: 18,000 bottles. Peppery bouquet, initially slender, red currants, lingonberries, a touch of cassis, tobacco and tobacco leaf; the Cabernet Franc shows in a refreshing, floral way, with the first fine beech-like wood notes in the background. On the palate, demanding right from the start, as the acidity links up with the tannin muscles, conveying a strong youthful astringency; comes across completely raw and undeveloped. At this stage, very hard to assess. One naturally wishes for the usual herbal sweetness, which is (still) not there at the moment. The wine’s direction is clear, though, and one can expect a vintage that in no way falls short of 2001 — in a technically improved form. Here, 19/20 in 12 years is likely. (18/20). 12: Barrel sample in October. Fine grenadine note, wild raspberries, smoke, appropriate toast. On the palate, peppery, showing a racy acidity, feels compressed and upfront: summed up = strict. 13: One month before bottling. Becoming more refined. The nose is pleasantly sweet. The palate shows medium fullness on the outside, the tannins quite mealy on the tongue.

Fragrant, sweet, complex bouquet: strawberries, raspberry jelly, lemon balm, pralines. Delicate, fresh, aromatic palate with fine fruit, elegant structure, fragrant, sweet aromatics, refined finish. 18/20 drink - 2036

Vibrant ruby colour, liquorice on the attack, cloves, smoke, blackberry purée, plenty of depth and nuance here, with a saline limestone character that gives punch and grip across the palate. There’s a creaminess as it opens, and this is less austere than some Saint‑Émilion limestone‑dominant wines right now, with the Ausone magic beginning to assert itself. 100% new oak.

Lots of elegance and freshness, long, with a beautiful finish.

Mature colour. Intense nose with ripe fruit. Subtle, deep nuances. A note of coffee. Creamy on the attack, savoury through the mid-palate, with a melting body and a slender, elegant profile, the wine lingers on. However, behind the slightly tannic finish characteristic of this vintage, the aromas return beyond the astringency. It’s superb. Wait another two years.

The 2011 Ausone is ripe and perfumed, quite floral in style, with touches of cassis and violet emerging over time. It’s just missing a little charm compared to its peers. The palate is plush and rounded, quite a sensual wine with piquant red fruit, white pepper and clove, although the finish is currently missing a little complexity and personality. A fine Ausone, though I’d be inclined to drink this over the next decade. Tasted blind at the annual 10-Year-On tasting.

Combining power with great elegance, this wine displays superripe, rich fruits that are restrained by velvet tannins and the delicious perfumed character from Cabernet Franc in the blend. Juicy, rich, structured, it's a beautiful wine with a great future. Drink from 2020.