CHÂTEAU FONBEL

2016 Grand Cru Saint Emilion

EN PRIMEUR

70% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 7% Carmenère. We wrote when we tasted this in 2017 'should make a good bottle in four or five years' and indeed it has - lovely involving nose of soft ripe dark plum and cherry fruit, it has good volume and a fullish texture while remaining classical in its Saint Emilion feel. Drinking range: 2021 - 2025L&S (Apr 2017)

* 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.

The 2016 Château de Fonbel from the team at Ausone is a brilliant Saint-Emilion in 2016. Tons of black raspberry and cassis fruits, notes of spice, and dried flowers, medium body, and a balanced, elegant texture all make for beautiful wine. It has the purity of elegance of the vintage front and center, and while it’s already hard to resist, it’s got 15 years of prime drinking ahead of it. Drinking range: 2019 - 2034 Rating: 92 Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com (Feb 2019)

The 2016 de Fonbel, ostensibly the entry label to the Vauthier portfolio, has an attractive bouquet of blackberry and briar aromas that develop a light estuarine scent with time. The palate is medium-bodied with light tannin, black fruit and a saline note toward the finish. Enjoy over the next six to eight years. Drinking range: 2020 - 2026 Rating: 88 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Jan 2019)

The 2016 de Fonbel is a soft, fruity wine to drink now and over the next few years. Sweet red cherry and plum fruit is nicely pushed forward in this succulent, easygoing Saint-Émilion from the Vauthier family. Drinking range: 2018 - 2024 Rating: 89 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Jan 2019)

The 2016 Fonbel is a blend of 70% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot and 7% Carmenere picked from 29 September until 18 October at 50 hectoliters per hectare. It has a pretty cranberry and blackcurrant-scented bouquet, quite transparent and terroir-driven with nicely integrated oak (30% aged in new oak). The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannin, a lively and breezy Saint Emilion, not the most complex you will find but full of personality. The freshness suggests that this will drink early, and that Carmenere just gives it something different (although Pauline Vauthier mentioned that she will regraft some of those vines). Drinking range: 2019 - 2028 Rating: 88-90 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)

Rich and crimson-tasting with just a hint of pencil shavings. Very sweet. Just a bit too sweet. Drying end. Drinking range: 2023 - 2030 Rating: 16 Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2017)

A balanced and fruity wine with an almost Burgundian mouthfeel and balance. Medium body and a juicy finish. Rating: 90-91 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Apr 2017)

Rich autumnal hedgerow packed with ripe blackberry fruits and overlaid with a fresh, herbal, spicy edge that pulls the mid-palate inwards and allows it to expand on the finish. Expertly done and very enjoyable. 70% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot and 7% Carmenere. From the Vauthier stable. Drinking range: 2025 - 2040 Rating: 91 Jane Anson, Decanter (Apr 2017)

The 2016 de Fonbel is soft, supple and quite pretty. Sweet, floral aromatics and gently lilting small red fruits give the 2016 its delicate, gracious personality. A model of understatement and class, the 2016 should drink well pretty much right out of the gate. Today, the 2016 is a touch compact. It will be interesting to see if it fleshes out a bit more during its aging. Rating: 88-91 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2017)

Rating: 89 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2017)

Amongst the best value wines in St Emilion is Château Fonbel. It is owned by Alain Vautier, owner of near-by Château Moulin Saint Georges and Château Ausone. The 16ha of vineyard are planted with a slightly atypical mix – there is 70% Merlot, nothing unusual for St Emilion; 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, very high for St Emilion; 7% Petit Verdot, possibly the highest percentage in St Emilion; and 3% Carmenère, possibly the highest percentage in Bordeaux.

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.