I don't think I have tasted an Ausone like this. The purity of fruit and fluidity is so primary, like perfectly picked grapes with their juice. Then there is citrus freshness. It's muscular, with toned tannins that caress the palate and give a seamless finish. This really could push the boundaries for the character of Ausone, in the way of finesse with structure. Watch it. 60% cabernet franc and 40% merlot.

Deeply colored, the wine is intensely floral, showcasing lilacs, roses, and violets. You also notice notes of espresso, licorice, black cherries, and raspberries, with a pronounced mineral essence. While the nose is impressive, the palate is even better. It is intense, rich, plush, and elegant, offering lift, purity, and refinement, all of which is enhanced by a strong oceanic influence felt through its layers of dark red, black, and blue fruits, espresso, and spice. The seamless finish lingers long after the wine leaves the glass. The wine blends 60% Cabernet Franc with 40% Merlot. Drink from 2030-2065.

The 2023 Ausone is a somber, mysterious wine. Black cherry, pomegranate, lavender, menthol, licorice, sage and pipe tobacco open gradually. The 2023 is a wine of reserve today, as it so often is at this stage a few months after bottling. That should not be an issue in a few years. Readers should not be contemplating opening a bottle anytime soon. Deeply pitched floral, savory and mineral notes appear with a bit of time in the glass, but the 2023 is a wine that requires time. The only question is how much.

Density and well-cushioned fruit, another stunning vintage of a wine that somehow manages to make an effortless impression, edges of cloves and grilled sandalwood, full of nuance and capturing the aromatics depths and heights of the vintage, gorgeous. 100% new oak. Philippe Baillarguet cellar master, Vauthier family owners, organic certified in the vineyard.

The 2023 Ausone reveals an incipient bouquet of violet, smoke, dark wild berries, spices and cherries, all beautifully interwoven with creamy new oak. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, with a rich chassis of tannin, it has a vibrant core of fruit and a long, mineral, vanillin-inflected finish. At 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot, this ranks alongside the 2014 vintage as one of the most Cabernet-dominant Ausone vintages of recent years, and it will mature for 20 months in new oak barrels.

The 2023 Ausone was picked September 14 to 30 and matured for a planned 20 months. It has a wonderful bouquet that is very floral in style and perfectly controlled perhaps more refined than the 2022 (which incidentally had a degree more in alcohol). The palate is medium-bodied with a silky smooth entry finely tuned with impressive mineralité. It just gently "rolls out" on the languorous finish. This is a more understated Ausone compared to recent vintages but it exudes sophistication and could easily surpass the Vauthiers' 2022.

Really ripe and fragrant black fruit, but fresh too, an element of graphite and liquorice and lots of florality. Really expressive and open. Clean, clear and juicy with a clean, direct, mineral backbone that sustains to a long finish. Missing some star power and a bit more heft, but it’s well defined, finessed and pure. Somewhat subdued, not over trying, very elegant with lovely wet stone elements around the sides and lots of menthol, liquorice, clove and blueberry freshness. Already approachable - this will be delicate and easy to drink. A little tense still but it has a long length. 3.63pH. 39hl/ha yield. Vineyard is organic certified.

60% Cabernet Franc, 40% Merlot. Cask sample. Cool and refined but very embryonic. Floral notes with a vanilla edge, the oak not yet fully integrated. Pitch-perfect ripeness, the fruit succulent, the tannins all but hidden. Plenty of freshness, length and drive. (JL)