Descripción

Datado en el siglo XIV,  el de Château Ausone es uno de los viñedos más legendarios de Saint Émilion. La familia Vauthier, su propietaria desde 1690, sigue preservando la identidad de una finca cuna de un grand vin distinguido por una sutil elegancia. La Cabernet franc domina su coupage, completado por Merlot, dotándolo de potencia y mineralidad. 

Ficha técnica

La bodega
Château Ausone
Tipo
Tinto
Añada
2018
Grado
14.5% vol.
Variedad
60% Cabernet franc, 40% Merlot
Origen
Saint-Emilion

Cata

Temperatura de servicio
16 °C.
Consumo
De 2028 hasta 2068, aproximadamente, si se conserva en óptimas condiciones.

Viñedo y elaboración

Descripción
El viñedo se distribuye en pequeñas terrazas rodeadas de piedra para protegerlos del viento. Perfecta exposición este-sureste. También se cultivan setos, árboles frutales y plantas aromáticas como acompañantes de las vides. En conversión a agricultura ecológica.
Superficie
7,25 hectáreas
Edad
Cepas de una media de 52 años
Suelo
Piedra caliza arcillosa con asteria.
Rendimiento
38 hectolitros por hectárea.
Cosecha
Vendimia manual en pequeñas cajas
Vinificación
Parcela a parcela en pequeñas tinas de madera. Extracción suave controlada por cremallera y retorno alimentados por gravedad.
Envejecimiento
Crianza de 20 meses en barricas nuevas de roble francés.

Opinión de los críticos

The Wine Advocate :

The 2018 Ausone is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot. Deep garnet-purple in color, rather predictably, the nose is almost completely shut-down on first sniff, taking considerable aeration to begin to reveal its jaw-dropping perfume of ripe black cherries, wild blueberries and plum preserves, leading to suggestions of candied violets, molten chocolate, licorice and crushed rocks with subtle cedar and pencil lead hints. The medium to full-bodied palate (14.5% alcohol) is so tightly wound and nuanced at this stage, it requires a lot of focus unravel all that is going on here. In short: a lot. The ripe, rich, black and blue fruit layers eventually give way to the beautifully cerebral earthy/minerally subtext, carried by fantastically well-knit tension, delivering an incredibly long, foundation-shaking finish. If the earth doesn't move when you drink this, you're probably not doing it right. (Lisa Perrotti-Brown)

Decanter:

This is deep and ripped, coming out you like a powerhouse, then it stops, tiptoes away, then rises up to slowly stretch out through the palate, displaying incredible tension and length. Graphite, flint, earth, crushed stone, blackberry, cassis and a juicy salinity from the scrape of limestone. Pretty clear this is going to power through the next 30-40 years effortlessly. And it just keeps going. Clearly survived the drought of the summer without so much as breaking a sweat. 3.6pH. Average age of the vines is 52 years old. A yield of 38hl/ha. (Jane Anson)

James Suckling:

Aromas of blackberry, black cherry, licorice, iodine and dried shitake mushroom. Opens and changes to violets and lavender. Full-bodied and tight with creamy and refined tannins that run the length of the wine and takes you down into the depth of the wine. Needs years to open yet it’s already so gorgeous to taste. Try after 2027.

Wine Enthusiast:

The perfumes of this wine just pour from the glass. They measure up to the promise of the black tannins and dark, dense fruits, the monumental structure and juicy black-plum flavors. The whole ethos of this wine is towards long-term aging to great power and intensity for the future. Drink from 2028. (Roger Voss)