Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Formidable aromas of blueberries and raspberries as well as blackberries. Chalk undertones. Full-bodied, very intense and focused with salt, chalk and berry character and a savory undertone. Wonderful potential. Better in 2022.
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Wine Spectator
Ripe, displaying a piercing quality, with the raspberry, plum and boysenberry notes carried by particularly racy acidity and a very fine minerality. A chalky thread adds tension on the finish. This still has some unwinding to do. Barrel Sample: 92-95
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Wine Enthusiast
From the vineyard on the slope above Château Pavie, this is a beautiful, juicy and ripe wine. It has a mineral character with great swathes of black-currant fruit. This is a very fine wine, well delineated, ripe and with a delicious red-currant aftertaste. Drink from 2026.
Cellar Selection -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Pavie-Decesse has an attractive bouquet that has improved since I tasted it from barrel: notes of black cherries, cassis, a touch of kirsch and crushed violets, the new oak neatly integrated. The palate is smooth on the entry and is clearly much more approachable than the Pavie. There are still quite firm tannins beneath those layers of pure black fruit, yet it is undeniably much more harmonious than say the 2014 Monbousquet, with a lovely velvety finish that lingers in the mouth.
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Decanter
A little less extreme than some years. Dense on the nose. Stays on the fruit. Suave texture and tannins. Mid-palate sweetness. Persistent. Will age. Range: 90+
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.