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Tasting notes
Intense aromas of blueberries and raspberries, with hints of citrus. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and a fruity finish. Refined and firm. Best in 2018. James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
Critic scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Tasted at Chateau Ausone. This has a lifted bouquet of red-berried fruit, with notes of redcurrant and cranberry, a touch of tobacco, perhaps just a little pinched compared with recent samples at this nascent stage. The palate is medium-bodied, soft on the entry, dried herbs inflecting the brambly red-berried fruit, leading to a dry, quite foursquare finish. To be honest, I was expecting just a little more. Tasted March 2010.
Mid crimson. Very sweet and scented and polished. But not that much savoury density. A bit tough and dry on the end.
Made by Ausone’s perfectionist owner, Alain Vauthier, Fonbel is a sleeper of the vintage in 2009. Raspberry and black currant notes intermixed with incense, camphor and a note of crushed wet/rock steeliness offer up a complex set of aromatics. That is followed by a dense ruby/purple wine with excellent texture, fruit extract and an overall harmony among its various elements. Drink it over the next decade or more. Feb 2012, www.robertparker.com
About the producer
Owned by the same family as Ch. Ausone, Ch. de Fonbel is one of the best-value Saint-Emilion estates. It has a long history stretching back to the Roman era, however its story really begins when Alain Vauthier purchased the property in 1971.