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  • Time

    17:02 PM
  • Wine average?

    96 Tb
  • Country Ranking?

    71
  • Region Ranking?

    38
  • Popularity ranking?

    54

History

Château Ausone is a Bordeaux wine from Saint-Émilion appellation, one of only four wines, along with Château Cheval Blanc, Château Angelus, to be ranked Premier Grand Cru Classé A.

Ausone takes its name from Decimus Magnus Ausonius (310-395 CE), a statesman and poet from Bordeaux who owned about 100 acres of vineyard, and it is believed by some that Château Ausone stands upon the foundations of his villa. Placed on the western edge of 11th century village Saint-Émilion, with elevated vineyards facing south on steep terraces in ideal situation, Ausone was one of a few wineries who escaped the terrible frost of 1956, unlike neighbours like Cheval Blanc who lost several years' vintages and in some cases suffered destruction of vines.

History Château Ausone is a very old property with medieval historical significance. In it's more recent history, the wines from the château suffered from lower quality and a lessened reputation in the middle of the 20th century. Ausone began to return to it's historical positon of greatness with the hiring of Pascal Delbeck in the 1970's. Delbeck was in charge of Ausone beginning with the 1976 vintage. As of 1995, he no longer played a role in the winemaking but remained in charge of the vineyards. The property had been owned for generations by a partnership of the Dubois-Challon family and the Vauthier family. In the mid 1990's, the Vauthier family gained sole ownership of Château Ausone. Alain Vauthier controls all aspects of the winemaking. He began using Michel Rolland as the consulting wine-maker beginning with the 1995 vintage.  Since 2005 Alain's daughter Pauline, a qualified oenologist, has been working with him.

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Vineyards

The vineyard is 7,3 hectares (17 acres), arranged with the grape varieties of 55% Cabernet Franc and 45% Merlot, planted with a density of 6,500 plants per hectare.Due to the small scale of the vineyards, picking may be done at an optimal moment, usually in two afternoons. 

Named after the 4th Century poet Decimius Magnus Ausonius (310–395 CE), a statesman and poet from Bordeaux who owned about 100 acres (0.40 km2) of vineyard. It is believed by some that Château Ausone is on the foundations of his villa, this is a property with medieval historical significance and a glowing reputation for wines with outstanding longevity and poise. 

 

Ausone limestone was sometimes a refuge, sometimes a resource. Being both easy to shape and resilient, it soon became sought after and was used to build a substantial part of Bordeaux’s architectural heritage. For seven centuries, quarrying hollowed out enormous galleries under the chateau, which remain with a maze of tunnels as a reminder of the quarryman’s labour. Most symbolically, the rock became homes for whole families, who took up residence inside the abandoned quarries.

The Ausone rock also constitutes a vast religious chronicle. It was not just a place to live but also a place to pray. In the Middle Ages, the thick limestone bank that lies above the property hosted burials and then a small Romanesque chapel. It is still there today, standing in the middle of one of the parcels, a place of worship surrounded by vines. And beneath it lies another treasure of Christian art, an underground rotunda with a fresco of the Last Judgement.

The rock is however a lot more than just a backdrop for the vines; it provides an essential limestone medium in which they bury their roots. And further below, the barrels of wine patiently wait in the underground quarries that were converted into cellars in the eighteenth century. In the peace and silence, the humidity and stable temperatures combine to create ideal conditions for ageing.

Time, as if slowed by the weight of the stone, lovingly crafts each vintage.

On its rocky perch,

the chateau distributes its seven hectares (17 acres) of vines across small terraces. Surrounded by stone, these parcels are sheltered from the wind, while enjoying a perfect east south-east exposure. The very generous sunshine, together with the Dordogne and Isle rivers that meet nearby, concoct an ideal microclimate for the vines. Nature sees to it season after season that everything works together to ensure the growth of the finest fruit.

The estate’s soils and weather couldn’t provide a more promising terroir. Even episodes of extreme weather hardly disturb the harmony that has become established here. The devastating winter frosts of 1892 or 1956 were no exception. While many estates were hard-hit by the freezing cold, Ausone’s vines enjoyed astonishing immunity.

However, this is nothing to brag about, because the lesson is clear: what nature offers here is good fortune, not entitlement.

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Winemaking

Roughly 1,500-2,000 cases of Ausone are produced each year. Barrels and bottles are stored in large, cool, humid galleries of unvarying temperature, which were cut out of the hill at the end of the 16th century to provide stone for the restoration of the Saint-Emilion town walls. Vinification is carried out in temperature-controlled oak vats. The wine is then aged in barrel for about 20 months

The majority of Ausone’s vines are Cabernet Franc with a smaller proportion of Merlot. They all reach an age of fifty years on average, while in some places they are a century old. The seasoned terroir has always benefitted from the attentive care of winegrowers. The estate can be quickly covered on foot, which makes it easier to look after. No detail escapes the vineyard crew, who keep a steady eye on the rows, while tasting the grapes. No pre-set calendar is applied, the fruit itself sets the pace and regulates everyone’s patience.

 

Beyond the vines themselves, the wider ecosystem is also taken into account. Hedges, fruit trees and aromatic plants are also grown as companions for the vines, stimulating a fertile exchange between species, backed up with natural applications of nettle, willow and valerian. A variety of wildlife is also preserved, including insects, birds and even bats, which all contribute in their own way to releasing the vital energy in the soil.

Château Ausone rarely sticks to any one strict regimen. Methods inspired by both organic and biodynamic procedures are implemented, which are above all the gentlest ways to craft wines. In fact, in this legendary vineyard, the best tactic that Man can adopt is discretion. From the vineyard through to the cellars, all the deliberate, measured practices employed pursue a single ambition, that of enabling the terroir to express itself as genuinely as possible.

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.

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Inside information

Records mention the existence of the vineyard at least as early as 1592. The estate was founded by two families, the Chatonnets and the Cantenants. In more recent times, for two centuries, Château Ausone was the property of the Vauthier and the Dubois-Challon families.
Today it belongs to Alain Vauthier and his sister Catherine, who bought their aunt Hélyette Dubois-Challon’s share in 1997. Alain Vauthier runs the estate and makes the wine. Since 2005 his daughter Pauline, a qualified oenologist, has been working with him.

The site is exceptional: divided between the limestone plateau and Saint-Emilion’s calcareous clay slope, facing east-south-east and sheltered on its north and west sides, Ausone was one of very few Saint-Emilions to come unscathed through the terrible frosts of February 1956. The 7 hectares of vineyard, lying in a single plot around the château, are planted with 55% of Cabernet Franc and 45% of Merlot. The vines are very old, with an average age of 50 years. Their low yield (33 hectolitres per hectare) in part explains the wine’s concentration and its potential for improving over time.

Roughly 1,500 cases of Ausone are produced each year. Barrels and bottles are stored in large, cool, humid galleries of unvarying temperature, which were cut out of the hill at the end of the 16th century to provide stone for the restoration of the Saint-Emilion town walls. Vinification is carried out in temperature-controlled oak vats. The wine is then aged in barrel for about 20 months.

Château Ausone is a wine of marvellous balance, which nonchalantly defies the passage of time. Great vintages may expect a half-century's lifespan. The wine is a combination of finesse and admirable fullness, with elegant fruit and smooth fleshy texture, which is never too massive.

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2 different wines with 106 vintages

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