Farr Vintners Logo

Chapelle d'Ausone 2005

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyMerlot/Cabernet Franc

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Ausone

Label

Tasting Notes

The second wine of Ausone, the Chapelle d’Ausone, usually represents about 50% of the production from this tiny historic vineyard. The 2005 has a dense minerality, sweet blueberry and blackberry fruit, and plenty of flowers and crushed rock in a full-bodied, stunningly concentrated style. Amazingly, this second wine is probably better than many of the great Ausones from the 1940s, 50s, 60s, 70s and early 80s! Drink it over the next 30+ years. Drink 2015 - 2030.

94
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (219), June 2015
94
James Suckling, WineSpectator.com, February 2008

Very deep crimson. Very fine and appetising and savoury. Fine and delicious for relatively early drinking. Intense but fine. Gouleyant. Like a cross between a good cigar and very ripe blackberries. Well put together. Great balance. A really lovely wine. Drink 2011-22

17.5
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2006

Good deep red. Musky redcurrant, coffee and game on the nose, complicated by smoky oak and minerals. Supple on entry, then a bit closed in the middle palate, offering hints of graphite and flowers. Finishes broad, sweet and aromatic, with uncanny persistence for a second wine. (Vauthier declined to show his 2006s, which were being fined.)

92
Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar

Came 88th out of 184 wines

15.64
-, Southwold Bordeaux Tasting, January 2009
Read more tasting notes...

There are approximately 500 cases of the second wine, the 2005 La Chapelle d’Ausone, which makes a mockery of many grand vins produced at this estate in the fifties, sixties, and seventies. Made in the style of its bigger sibling, it possesses a deep ruby/purple color as well as a sweet nose of crushed rocks, figs, blackberries, raspberries, smoke, and earth. Softer and more approachable, I would not be surprised if it were preferred over its more powerful, backward sibling in a blind tasting. It is a pure, sweet, undeniably great effort in this vintage. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2030

94
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (176), April 2008

From a terroir that most Bordelais (even the Medoc aristocrats) acknowledge as possibly unequaled anywhere else in this vast region, he has made a strict selection for the grand vin, resulting in a second wine that is to die for. The amazing 2005 La Chapelle d’Ausone (500-600 cases produced) is better than almost every Ausone made in the fifties, sixties, and seventies. It boasts a dense purple color along with a beautiful perfume of crushed rocks, figs, plums, and raspberries. Super-rich and thick in the mouth, with superb acidity, unbelievable ripeness, and an amazingly long finish, it will drink well in 7-8 years, and should keep for three decades or longer. Alain Vauthier has accomplished such extraordinary things at Ausone over the last few vintages, it is difficult to imagine the 2005s might be the pinnacle of his achievement. However, Vauthier never rests on the status quo ... so who knows?

92/94
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (170), April 2007

Once again, proprietor Alain Vauthier sets the bar remarkably high for this cherished/hallowed terroir on the southern hillside slopes of St.-Emilion. Amazingly, Vauthier has again produced a brilliant second wine from this tiny parcel. The inky/purple-tinged 2005 Chapelle d’Ausone reveals pure scents of black raspberries, crushed rocks, and spring flowers, full-bodied, intense flavors, sweet tannin, and a long, 45-second finish. As astonishing as it sounds, this second wine is better than many Ausones from the sixties and seventies! Anticipated maturity: 2010-2025.

92/94
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (164), April 2006

This is really beautiful with blackberry and spice aromas that follow through to a full-bodied palate, with silky tannins and a long finish. This is too good for a second wine.

95/100
James Suckling, WineSpectator.com, March 2006
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.