LA CHAPELLE D'AUSONE
2013 Grand Cru Saint Emilion
Serious depth to the nose on this. Palate rich with dense dry black fruit and a saline rush. Savoury. Attractively 'real', it has a very fine fur of tannins which carry the fruit on and on. Rating: 90 L&S (Apr 2014)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Even Ausone’s second wine is special in this mediocre Bordeaux vintage. The ripe 2013 La Chapelle d’Ausone offers hints of violets and crushed rocks as well as a soft, silky richness, medium body and loads of fruit. This successful St.-Emilion may turn out to be outstanding. It should drink well for 10-15 years. 2014-2029 Rating: 88-91 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate, www.RobertParker.com (Aug 2014)
(60% cabernet franc, 25% merlot and 15% cabernet sauvignon): Dark ruby-red. Wonderfully pure strawberry and floral aromas are complicated by hints of white pepper, coffee bean and gunflint. Very clean, vibrant flavors of steely red berries linger nicely on the bright, suave finish. As usual, Chapelle d'Ausone is one of the best second wines of the vintage; in fact, this is better than many grands vins in 2013. Rating: 87-90 Ian d'Agata - Stephen Tanzer website (May 2014)
Ausone’s second wine includes 15% Cabernet Sauvignon (unlike the grand vin, which has none) as well as 60% Cabernet Franc and 25% Merlot. It’s a supple, sweet, lavishly oaked wine with smooth tannins and flavours of plum and black cherry. 2018-24 Rating: 93 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (May 2014)
(60 Cabernet Franc, 25 Merlot, 15 Cabernet Sauvignon) 85% new oak, 4500 bottles, 22hl/ha. Very silky and lush by comparison to the other wines in the portfolio - but this is in the context of the vintage. Lovely colour and a beautiful, old-fashioned nose with floral notes and taut plum and graphite nuance. Lovely, sleek and slender. It will age well but also drink fairly early, too. Rating: 17 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Apr 2014)
Mainly young-vine Cabernet Franc (60%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (15%). Long, fresh and appetising but less depth than usual. Drink: 2018-2028. Rating: 16.75 James Lawther MW, decanter.com (Apr 2014)
A blend of 60% Cabernet Franc, 25% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, raised in 85% new oak, this has a light, floral bouquet with touches of rose petals infusing the dusty red fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with light tannins, pointed acidity and a simple, almost Left Bank style finish. Fine. Rating: 87-89 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2014)
A pretty red with dried-cherry and flower character, plus hints of lemons. Medium body with a solid core of fruit and bright acidity. Rating: 89-90 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2014)
Château Ausone
Unquestionably one of the biggest names of the Right Bank, this is also one of the oldest chateaux in the whole of Bordeaux. Situated at the edge of the limestone plateau on the approach to the village of Saint Emilion, at an altitude of 75 metres, Ausone dominates your view as you drive in to the village, with its beautiful stone gateposts, steeply sloping vineyards, and dry stone walls. Underneath the chateau are kilometre upon kilometre of stone quarries, the smallest of which (at 1,800m2) is the wine cellar. This was excavated back in the 16th century (most of the stone in Saint Emilion ended up building either the village itself, or the handsome limestone buildings in central Bordeaux). Further underground are stone vaults dating back 500 years! The humidity in the cellars is at well over 90%, meaning that they rarely have to perfrom ouillage (topping up), and the angel's rarely get their share! Above ground there is also the Magdeleine chapel (hence the name of the second wine of the estate, Chapelle d'Ausone), which again adds to the sense of mystique on visiting Ausone. They are currently renovating the chapel, and also creating a small room for receiving visitors (although don't hold your breath that this will ever be a centre for wine tourism - the Vaultier family are very discreet, and it is tough to get an appointment here). One of the smallest of all the top estates in Bordeaux, at just over seven hectares (smaller than its Saint Emilion rival Cheval Blanc, smaller even than Petrus in neighbouring Pomerol, but twice the size of le Pin), vines have been cultivated here since the time of Roman poet Ausonius. I'm not sure anyone is suggesting that Ausonius actually owned this vineyard, but it is likely to have been named in his honour.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.