Very intense and aromatic Ausone with rose petals, fresh herbs, dark berries and raspberries. Full body and great intensity and brightness. Purity and focus reminiscent of crushed grapes. Such beauty, greatness and elegance to this wine. Goes on for minutes. Needs four or five years to come completely together but so long and beautiful. Try drinking in 2021.

Wet stone aromas leap from the glass, reflecting the asteriated limestone of the plateau where some of the estate's 7ha of vines grow. Bright ripe plum (Merlot) and mint freshness (Cabernet Franc), with an underlying power, depth, refinement and nuance. A long, fresh, white flower finish echoes the beguiling wet stone. But beware: even 10 years on, the wine is somewhat closed and deserves another decade of cellaring for a proper drinking window.

Vibrant medium intensity cherry red, the limestone fingerprint clear even visually in that it is more jewel-like than most in the vintage. A masterclass in what slate scrape and pumice stone means when talking about texture in a wine, set against a caress of black cherry, raspberry, white tea, pomegranate, gunsmoke, leather, exceptional with a juicy finish, truly outstanding - and this is a higher score than I gave it back in 2022 in a vertical at the estate. 85% new oak for ageing.

Composed of 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot aged in French oak barrels, 85% new, for 20 months, the 2015 Ausone features a deep garnet-purple color and comes bounding out of the glass with expressive plum preserves, wild blueberries and cherry pie aromas plus fragrant nuances of roses, licorice, Indian spices, baker’s chocolate, new leather and cedar chest plus a touch of underbrush. Big, rich, opulent and full-bodied in the mouth, it is laden with bold blue and black fruits, superbly supported by very firm, very finely grained tannins and wonderfully seamless freshness, finishing with long-lingering exotic spice hints.

The 2015 Ausone has a detailed, precise bouquet whose intense, graphite-infused black fruit gains intensity with each swirl. This is very sophisticated and compelling. The poised, medium-bodied palate delivers filigreed tannin, perfect acidity and an extraordinarily persistent finish that outclasses almost everything around it. This is outstanding and surely represents one of the wines of the vintage. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting.

In Château Ausone, Alain Vauthier and his family create one of the finest and most elegant clarets, almost Burgundian in its style and production volume. Exotic, sweetly fruited, rose petal, white flower and sweet spice – layers and layers. Dense, but nimble, layered, concentrated palate rich with sweet black and red fruit, hugely fleshy and dense, juicy mid-palate. Long finish. Wonderful. (50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc.).
– April 2016

The 2015 Ausone is the embodiment of class. A seamless, mind-blowing wine, the Ausone boasts extraordinary purity and finesse. The flavors are deep and unctuous throughout, and yet the wine is remarkably vivid. A host of sweet floral notes and exotic spices are fused into the eternal finish. In 2015, Ausone is as good as it gets. Readers who can find the 2015 should not hesitate, as it is truly magnificent. All I can tell readers is that it took the most extraordinary discipline to spit this wine during my tasting. It is every bit that profound. The 2015 is 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot that will spend 20 months in French oak, 85% new. The Merlot was brought in between September 29 and October 2, while the Franc came in between October 8 and 10.
– Antonio Galloni (vinous.com, April 2016)

50% each Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Suave texture but so much power behind. Fine, fragrant nose of pure berry fruit then real density and depth on the palate. Layered fruit and tannins but finely etched. Clean, long and persistent. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2045

Dark crimson with some purple. Real class and concentration on the nose - all vineyard, surely. Brisk yet very opulent. Lots of drive and no oak in evidence. Very fine. Very long. Drink 2025-2042.
18.5/20 – JancisRobinson.com, April 2016

Is there a more consistent wine in Saint Emilion? Perhaps, but it is hard for me to think of any wine that produces wine at this high level of quality, vintage after vintage. 2015 continues that streak. This is what intensity is all about, on the nose and palate. Picture a bucket of insanely ripe black cherries, black plums and licorice squeezed over rocks and stones before it's placed into your glass, and well you get the idea. The purity of fruit, incredible level of concentration, silky tannins and a finish that stays on target for at least 60 seconds or longer is what you'll find here. The only issue is, you need to buy this for your kids, as it's going to take 20years or more to start showing its stuff. But, if you have the money and the time... Tasted Sept 2018

An utterly perfect wine from Alain Vauthier, the 2015 Château Ausone offers off the hook notes of crème de cassis, black raspberries, toasted spice and dried flowers, with more floral and mineral characteristics developing with time in the glass. Amazingly deep, full-bodied, pure and ethereally textured, with building density and tannin, it’s one of those wines that need to be tasted to be believed. Unfortunately, the production is minuscule (and expensive). A wine that will make your heart rate jump, give it 4-5 years of cellaring and I suspect it will keep for as long as you’d like to hang on to bottles. It’s a tour de force in wine and the wine of the vintage in 2015.