- CRITICAL REVIEWS
- WINEMAKER NOTES
JD
94
Jeb Dunnuck
The second wine of Château Ausone, the 2020 Chapelle D'Ausone is based on 60% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon aged 20 months in barrel. It's saturated purple hue is followed by a rockstar nose of ripe darker cherries, blackcurrants, smoked tobacco, graphite, and toasted spices, with high class oak nicely integrated. Round, supple, and incredibly sexy, it has silky tannins and is unquestionably a brilliant wine with more than a touch of Ausone character. It's going to keep for two decades, offering tons of pleasure for the majority of its life.Reviewed by Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Issue date: March 2023. Drinking window: 2023 - 2043.
RP
92
Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The 2020 Chapelle d'Ausone contains more Cabernet Franc (60%) than the grand vin this year and 5% of Cabernet Sauvignon too. Revealing aromas of cherries, red berries, incense and cloves, it's medium to full-bodied, perfumed and precise, with a satiny attack and a saline finish.
Reviewed by William Kelley, Issue date: April 2023. Drinking window: 2025 - 2045.
V
95
Vinous
The 2020 Chapelle d'Ausone has a well defined, focused bouquet. Tightly-wound at first, the 2020 opens with lavender and incense aromas infusing the red berry fruit. Touches of rose petal emerge with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with smooth tannins and moderate depth. A discrete white pepper note builds towards the finish that is vivacious and vibrant. I suspect that this might close down a little after bottling, but there is great potential.
Reviewed by Neal Martin, Issue date: June 2021. Drinking window: 2027 - 2040.
2020 La Chapelle d'Ausone, Saint-Emilion, France
Château Ausone is the jewel of the estate, a masterpiece of subtle elegance. Like a cathedral, it initially presents a big, powerful, mineral profile of Cabernet Franc.
The estate also offers a lovely overture, Chapelle d’Ausone. Crafted in the same conditions as its elder sibling, its slightest concern is that it is made with grapes from young vines that will later produce the First Wine. Beside the Cabernet Franc, the Merlot stands out more distinctly, enhancing the crisp fruit and mingling with the subtlest hints of Cabernet Sauvignon. As always, Ausone’s hallmark of taste, its omnipresent elegance, is passionately displayed.