Chateau Saint-Georges Cote Pavie 2018
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Jeb
Dunnuck - Decanter
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Pretty aromas of blackcurrant, cherry, licorice, clove and hibiscus. It’s full-bodied with firm, tight-grained tannins. Opens up on the palate. Sleek and refined with lifting floral notes at the finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This comes from the limestone slope between La Gaffelière and Pavie. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Côte Pavie needs a lot of swirling before it slowly unfurls to reveal notions of ripe black plums, Black Forest cake and licorice, leading to suggestions of tar, unsmoked cigars and black truffles. The medium to full-bodied palate has fantastic energy, featuring layers of earth-infused black fruits and a velvety texture, finishing long with remarkable vivacity. Rating: 93+
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 Château Saint Georges Côtes Pavie is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc brought up 30% new oak. Coming from an incredible terroir on the Côte Pavie (it's just beside Château Pavie), it reveals a deep ruby/plum hue to go with pretty cassis, camphor, spice, and spring flower-like aromas and flavors. Playing in the medium to full-bodied end of the spectrum, it's not a blockbuster, but it has this wonderful, delicate, finesse-driven style that still brings notable concentration, obvious minerality, and an impressive finish. I think the quality is on the uptick, and readers should have this estate on their radar.
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Decanter
St-Georges Côte Pavie is one of those estates that should be better known - it has brilliant terroir and is now starting to realise that if it dials things back, it can finally be seen for what it is. Sweet fruit with touches of austerity are joined by a clear limestone lick, salted caramel and some tarry oak that's well integrated. It's intense and concentrated but balanced and pretty exciting overall. This is a very good wine that needs to be savoured, and remains big, structured, powerful and tannic, but with light showing through.
Other Vintages
2022-
James
Suckling -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker - Decanter
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker - Decanter
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker - Vinous
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James
Suckling - Decanter
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Robert
Parker -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
James
Suckling -
Wine
Spectator
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator -
Jeb
Dunnuck
The modern estate was assembled by Ferdinand Bouffard in the late 19th century by buying plots from several families. The plots were still managed separately, and the 9 hectares bought from the Pigasse family retained a separate identity as Chateau Pavie-Decesse. However, Bouffard struggled with phylloxera, and at the end of World War I he sold it to Albert Porte, who sold it to Alexandre Valette in 1943.
His grandson Jean-Paul Valette sold it to Gérard Perse in 1998. In 2012, Pavie was elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé (A) status, which made it one of four such Saint-Émilion producers.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.