Château Ausone
Chapelle d'Ausone
2007
The second wine of Château Ausone, combining young-vine fruit from its exceptional limestone terroir with freshness, precision, fine structure and characteristic Saint-Émilion elegance.
Country
France
Region
Bordeaux - Saint-Emilion
More information
Producer
Château Ausone is one of only four Premier Grand Cru Classé A properties in the Saint-Émilion classification and among the most celebrated wine estates in Bordeaux. Situated on the steep limestone slopes of the côte, the estate has been linked to viticulture since the fourth century, when the Roman poet Ausonius is believed to have cultivated vines on this site. With approximately seven hectares of vineyards, meticulous farming and traditional winemaking, Château Ausone produces wines distinguished by their aromatic complexity, mineral precision and remarkable capacity to age gracefully for decades.
Quick Facts
- Location: Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux, France
- Founded: Roman cultivation believed from 4th century, modern estate established across subsequent centuries
- Classification: Premier Grand Cru Classé A (Saint-Émilion)
- Ownership: Chanel (acquired 2022), previously Vauthier family
- Principal grapes: Merlot, Cabernet Franc
- Estate size: Approximately 7 hectares
- Soils: Deep limestone bedrock with clay
- Exposition: South-facing slopes of the côte
- Grand Vin: Château Ausone
- Second wine: La Chapelle d'Ausone
- Style: Refined power, mineral freshness and extraordinary ageing potential
- Viticulture: Low yields and meticulous vineyard management
A Legacy Rooted in Antiquity
The name Ausone honours Decimius Magnus Ausonius, the fourth-century Roman poet and consul who owned vineyards near Burdigala—present-day Bordeaux. While documentation from this period remains fragmentary, the site's suitability for viticulture has endured across centuries. The modern estate developed gradually, becoming recognised as one of Saint-Émilion's finest properties well before the establishment of the classification system.
In 1955, Château Ausone was elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé A status, a designation it has maintained through successive reviews. Ownership passed to the Vauthier family in the mid-20th century, under whose stewardship the estate achieved global recognition for quality and consistency. In 2022, Chanel acquired Château Ausone, signalling continued commitment to the estate's heritage and reputation.
The Vineyards of the Côte
Château Ausone occupies a privileged position on the steep slopes of Saint-Émilion's limestone plateau, known locally as the côte. The approximately seven hectares of vineyards are planted on ancient calcareous bedrock overlaid with varying depths of clay, creating an environment naturally suited to low yields and concentrated fruit.
South-facing exposition provides optimal sunlight and warmth throughout the growing season, encouraging even ripening while the limestone subsoil ensures excellent drainage and adds characteristic minerality to the wines. The combination of elevation, aspect and geology creates conditions that allow both Merlot and Cabernet Franc to reach exceptional physiological maturity.
Vineyard management remains painstakingly detailed. Restricted yields, careful canopy work and selective harvesting ensure that only fully ripe, healthy fruit enters the cellar. These practices, refined across generations, allow the terroir to express itself with clarity and intensity.
Concentration, Elegance and Time
The Grand Vin of Château Ausone is typically a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, with proportions adjusted according to the character of each vintage. Extended maceration extracts colour, structure and aromatic depth, while barrel ageing in French oak—often lasting 18 to 24 months—integrates tannins and adds layers of complexity without obscuring the wine's underlying minerality.
The resulting style is one of restrained power rather than overt richness. Aromas of dark fruit, violets and graphite combine with finely woven tannins and a persistent mineral tension. These are wines that demand patience, often requiring a decade or more to begin revealing their full dimension, and capable of evolving gracefully for 30, 40 or even 50 years.
La Chapelle d'Ausone, introduced as the estate's second wine, reflects the same rigorous approach to terroir and winemaking. It offers earlier accessibility while maintaining the elegance and precision that define the property.
A Benchmark for Saint-Émilion
With its minuscule production, historic pedigree and uncompromising approach to quality, Château Ausone occupies a singular position within Bordeaux. Its wines are sought by collectors and connoisseurs worldwide, valued not only for their rarity but for their ability to express one of Saint-Émilion's most exceptional terroirs with refinement, depth and enduring character.
Country
Region
Bordeaux - Saint-Emilion
Saint-Émilion is one of the most respected wine appellations in Bordeaux and has long been recognised for producing refined, age-worthy wines of exceptional quality. Located on the Right Bank of the Dordogne River, this historic appellation combines centuries of winemaking tradition with distinctive terroir, creating elegant Merlot-dominant wines that are celebrated by collectors and enthusiasts worldwide. Established as an AOC in 1936, Saint-Émilion represents the finest expression of Right Bank winemaking.
The appellation benefits from diverse soils that define its wines. The plateau and côtes feature limestone and clay-limestone terroirs that produce structured, mineral-driven wines with remarkable ageing potential, while the lower slopes contain sandy and gravelly soils that yield softer, more approachable expressions. Merlot dominates the blend, typically complemented by Cabernet Franc and occasionally Cabernet Sauvignon, creating wines of elegance, depth and finesse.
Saint-Émilion is home to its own classification system, revised approximately every decade, which recognises Premiers Grands Crus Classés A estates such as Château Ausone and Château Cheval Blanc, alongside distinguished Premiers Grands Crus Classés B and Grands Crus Classés properties. Notable producers including Château Pavie, Château Figeac and Château Canon demonstrate the appellation's benchmark for quality and terroir expression.
Whether exploring classified estates, exceptional vintages or the appellation's rich medieval heritage, Saint-Émilion offers a distinguished introduction to Right Bank Bordeaux. Discover Saint-Émilion wines, compare prices from trusted merchants across Europe and find the best offers with Sipfind.
Grapes
Cabernet Franc is one of France’s most historic red wine grapes, valued for its aromatic intensity, vibrant acidity and ability to express both climate and soil with remarkable clarity. It produces elegant single-varietal wines and plays an essential role in some of Bordeaux’s most distinguished blends. Earlier ripening than Cabernet Sauvignon allows Cabernet Franc to perform particularly well in cooler wine regions.
In the Loire Valley, Cabernet Franc reaches its clearest expression as a varietal wine. Typical aromas include redcurrant, raspberry, red cherry and violet, often accompanied by graphite, dried herbs, tobacco and subtle peppery notes. Naturally fresh acidity and finely structured tannins can produce approachable, fruit-driven wines as well as complex examples capable of developing for many years.
The variety is especially important in Chinon, Bourgueil and Saumur-Champigny. Chinon can range from fragrant and supple to deeply structured and age-worthy, depending on vineyard site and soil. Bourgueil often combines dark red fruit with firm structure, while Saumur-Champigny is renowned for freshness, aromatic purity and refined texture. Limestone-rich tuffeau, gravel, sand and clay all contribute to the diversity of Cabernet Franc across these Loire appellations.
In Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc is principally associated with the Right Bank, particularly Saint-Émilion and Pomerol. Usually blended with Merlot and sometimes Cabernet Sauvignon, it contributes perfume, freshness, savoury complexity and structural precision. On suitable limestone and clay terroirs, Cabernet Franc can become a dominant component of exceptionally refined and long-lived wines.
Beyond France, Cabernet Franc is cultivated in regions including Tuscany, Bolgheri, Napa Valley, Washington State, Canada, Argentina and Chile, producing styles shaped by local climate and terroir. Traditionally known as Breton in the Loire and Bouchet in parts of Bordeaux, Cabernet Franc’s combination of aromatic elegance, freshness and ageing potential establishes it as one of the world’s great red wine varieties.
Merlot is one of the world’s most important red wine grapes, celebrated for its generous fruit, supple texture and ability to produce wines ranging from approachable and elegant to exceptionally complex and long-lived. Originating in Bordeaux, France, Merlot is particularly associated with the Right Bank, where it forms the foundation of many of the prestigious wines of Pomerol and Saint-Émilion.
Merlot typically expresses flavours and aromas of plum, black cherry, blackberry and red fruits, often developing notes of chocolate, tobacco, cedar, herbs and earthy complexity with maturation. Its naturally rounded texture and generally softer tannin profile distinguish it from Cabernet Sauvignon, although the finest examples can possess considerable structure, freshness and ageing potential.
In Pomerol, Merlot reaches some of its most celebrated expressions, particularly on the appellation’s clay-rich soils, producing wines of remarkable concentration, texture and complexity. In Saint-Émilion, it is commonly blended with Cabernet Franc and, to a lesser extent, Cabernet Sauvignon, creating wines that combine ripe fruit with structure, aromatic complexity and longevity.
Beyond Bordeaux, Merlot is widely cultivated in Italy, California, Washington State, Chile and other major wine regions. It can be produced as a varietal wine or used as a central component of blends, where its fruit and texture complement more structured grape varieties.
From the great Merlot-based wines of Bordeaux’s Right Bank to leading expressions around the world, Merlot’s combination of rich fruit, refined texture and capacity to express terroir has established it as one of the defining varieties of fine red wine.
History and Style
Chapelle d'Ausone
Chapelle d'Ausone is the second wine of Château Ausone, one of Saint-Émilion's historic estates. It is produced from younger vines that are destined, as they mature, to contribute to Château Ausone itself. The estate describes Chapelle as being made under the same conditions as its Grand Vin.
This relationship gives Chapelle d'Ausone an unusually close connection to the identity of the estate. Cabernet Franc remains central, while Merlot generally assumes a more prominent role than in the Grand Vin, complemented in some vintages by Cabernet Sauvignon.
Quick Facts
- Producer: Château Ausone
- Wine: Chapelle d'Ausone
- Category: Second wine
- Appellation: Saint-Émilion
- Region: Bordeaux, France
- Principal varieties: Cabernet Franc and Merlot, with Cabernet Sauvignon used in some vintages
History and Identity
Chapelle d'Ausone occupies a clearly defined position within the Château Ausone portfolio.
Rather than being based simply on lots rejected from the Grand Vin, its identity is closely connected to younger vines intended eventually to produce Château Ausone. This is a particularly important distinction for the Sipfind product entity.
The name also resonates naturally with the landscape of Ausone. A small Romanesque chapel stands among the estate's vineyard parcels above historic underground galleries carved into the limestone. These quarries have been converted into cellars, providing naturally stable conditions for maturation.
Chapelle d'Ausone should therefore be understood as its own wine while retaining a direct connection to the terroir, viticulture and winemaking philosophy of Château Ausone.
Vineyards and Terroir
Château Ausone occupies a remarkable position on the limestone hillside and plateau at the southern entrance to Saint-Émilion. Its roughly seven hectares of vines are arranged across small terraces with an east to south-east exposure.
Two principal geological environments shape the estate: the plateau contains asteria limestone, while vines on the hillside grow in clay over limestone. The limestone provides the defining geological foundation, while clay contributes useful moisture retention during dry periods.
Chapelle d'Ausone comes from the younger vines within this same estate environment rather than from a completely separate terroir.
This gives us an excellent SCI hierarchy:
Bordeaux → Saint-Émilion → Château Ausone → young vines → Chapelle d'Ausone → Vintage
Blend
There should be no permanent numerical blend on the master Chapelle d'Ausone page.
The producer identifies Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon within Chapelle's identity, but their proportions vary by vintage. The estate specifically notes that Merlot has a more pronounced presence alongside Cabernet Franc in Chapelle than in the Grand Vin.
For example, the officially documented 2022 vintage was:
60% Cabernet Franc
35% Merlot
5% Cabernet Sauvignon
Those figures belong exclusively to Chapelle d'Ausone 2022.
For SCI:
Master product: Cabernet Franc / Merlot-led Saint-Émilion blend
Vintage entity: exact verified blend
Production and Maturation
Chapelle d'Ausone benefits from the same rigorous approach that defines Château Ausone, with the estate stating that the wine is produced under the same conditions as its elder sibling.
Exact technical specifications nevertheless belong to individual vintages.
The official technical sheet for 2022, for example, records manual harvesting into crates followed by manual and density sorting. Parcels were vinified separately using indigenous yeasts in small wooden vats, with gentle extraction. The wine was subsequently matured for 20 months in new barrels in Ausone's underground quarries.
We should not automatically apply those precise figures to every Chapelle d'Ausone vintage.
The master entity should therefore retain:
Harvest: Manual
Vinification: Parcel-by-parcel
Fermentation: Indigenous yeasts
Maturation: French oak in Château Ausone's underground cellars
Exact maturation: Vintage-specific
New oak: Vintage-specific
Style and Tasting Profile
The defining character of Chapelle d'Ausone is elegance rather than simple power.
Château Ausone presents the wine as an expression in which Merlot provides additional fruit character alongside Cabernet Franc, with Cabernet Sauvignon providing another dimension in vintages where it is included. The estate explicitly maintains elegance as a central feature of Chapelle's identity.
The limestone terroir and strong Cabernet Franc component provide the foundations for freshness, precision and structure, while Merlot contributes roundness and fruit.
For SCI, I would lock the stylistic DNA as:
Limestone → Cabernet Franc → freshness → precision → fine structure → elegance → length.
Specific descriptors such as raspberry, blackcurrant, violet, mint and spice should not be permanently attached to the master product merely because they appear in the official tasting note for the 2022 vintage.
Position within the Château Ausone Portfolio
The hierarchy here is exceptionally clean.
Château Ausone is the estate's Grand Vin, centred on Cabernet Franc and Merlot from its mature vines and historic limestone terroir.
Chapelle d'Ausone is its second wine, produced from younger vines that are intended eventually to contribute to the Grand Vin.
This means Chapelle should remain a completely independent product entity in Sipfind:
Château Ausone → Chapelle d'Ausone → Vintage
Each vintage then receives its own:
Blend → Alcohol → Harvest Dates → Vinification → Maturation → New Oak → Tasting Profile → Critic Scores → Merchant Offers
Ageing and Serving
Chapelle d'Ausone has the structure and concentration required for bottle development, but precise drinking windows should be handled at vintage level.
The growing season, blend, Cabernet Franc proportion, extraction and maturation can all materially affect the development of an individual release.
Sipfind should therefore avoid assigning one universal drinking window to every Chapelle d'Ausone vintage.
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