Critics reviews
Best red wines, The Times, 28 July 2012
About this WINE
Cabernet Sauvignon Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.
In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and Australia.
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Description
Here’s a wine with a serious pedigree. A 16th century estate, host to Henri IV before the battle of Coutras and even then owned by the Vauthier family, whose reach extends to the majestic Château Ausone, the apogee of St Emilion.
This is a Lussac-St-Emilion, one of the satellite appellations of St Emilion itself, which lies to the north-east of the main event. .Like its more vaunted cousin, Ch Ausone, this is a 50/50 Merlot and Cabernet Franc blend, It is unusual to find a Bordeaux at this level with such a significant amount of Cabernet Franc; it makes the wine quite linear but adds a very interesting dimension to the aromatics. The Cabernet Franc is successful here because the property is situated on a sandy, gravelly plateau which differs geologically from the rest of the appellation, an unusual similarity to Ch. Cheval Blanc, a château also renowned for its use of Cabernet Franc. Ch. Rouzaud is more frequently offered under the Ch. Lucas label; confusing, but the wine is exactly the same.
Mark Pardoe MW, BBR Wine Director
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