95-98 Points | International Wine Cellar , May/June 2011

(a 55/45 blend of cabernet franc and merlot; 3.53 pH; 14.5% alcohol; reportedly from a crop level of just 26 hectoliters per hectare; a 67% selection for the grand vin Inky, glass-staining purple. The captivating nose offers very intense, pure aromas of dark plum, blackcurrant, balsamic coffee, bay leaf and violet. Supple and soft on entry, but boasts a huge structure underlying the ripe, glossy black fruit, graphite and ink flavors. Finishes smooth, creamy and very long. Destined to be a very long-lived Ausone, this is one of the top wines of the vintage and probably even better than the blockbuster 2009 made here. Ausone is one of the few properties that seems to have had great success harvesting its merlot late (October 9 through 15), more or less at the same time as its cabernet franc (October 13-16). But as Pauline Vauthier pointed out, they were the first to harvest in their immediate neighborhood.

98+ Points | Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate