One can’t say enough about the amazing job that Alain Vauthier and his daughter have done at this historic property on the decomposed limestone slopes of St.-Emilion. About half of their production goes into the second wine, Chapelle D’Ausone, which gives you an indication of the compulsive perfectionist attitude of the Vauthiers. The 2012 Chapelle D’Ausone has a dense ruby/purple color and is rich, broad and expansive, with notes of plum, blueberry and black raspberry fruit, powdered chalk and flowers. The wine is medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure and long and rich. This is better than many of the vintages of Ausone in the 1940s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, which says a lot about what Vauthier has achieved. Drink it over the next 20-25 years.

The second wine of Château Ausone is impressive in its own right. It reflects the fruitier, Merlot side of the vineyard, with ripe black fruits coming through the tannins. The wood aging does show in a vanilla character that will disappear as it matures. It's ripe, full of juicy fruit and ready to age over the medium term. Drink from 2019.

The 2012 Chapelle d'Ausone is medium to deep garnet colored. Notions of coffee grounds, tilled soil, and tapenade waft over a core of baked black cherries and Christmas pudding plus a touch of cardamom. Medium-bodied, the palate has lovely freshness and firm, grippy tannins with delicate, maturing flavors, finishing with a mineral lift.