Château Pavie - 1er Grand Cru Classé A 2012

Bettane & Desseauve

About wine:

A sculptural wine with great depth and intensity, featuring muscular, tight, and refined tannins. A grand style, very typical of Pavie.

About the estate:

The pharaonic cellars of Château Pavie live up to its status as a Premier Grand Cru Classé A, obtained in 2012. Both the vineyard and the cellars have been completely restructured in recent vintages by Gérard Perse, who has embodied the revival of the estate since its acquisition in 1998. His cultural and financial commitment is total: the plots combining the plateau and south-facing slopes now cover 37 hectares, between the Châteaux Pavie-Decesse, Larcis-Ducasse, and La Gaffelière. The style of the wine combines, in a balance that is unique on the right bank, the utmost fullness with a nobility of texture that is perfectly calibrated. The great terroirs speak with flamboyant majesty, provided you are willing to wait at least ten years, otherwise you risk missing out on the true complexity of the vintage. (The 2000 vintage tasted recently showed exceptional elegance and fullness). The 2016 and 2017 vintages have gained even more nuance and are reaching their peak. Those in a hurry can already invest in Esprit de Pavie: a sappy and very tasty Bordeaux for less than €20!

Guide Hachette des vins

About wine:

In Pavie, Merlot accounts for 65% of the blend, complemented by Cabernet Franc (20%) and Cabernet Sauvignon. The vines are nearly half a century old. After a long maceration in wooden vats, the wine completes its fermentation and then ages for 26 months in barrels (all or mostly new, depending on the year). The result is a dense, dark wine reminiscent of purple ink. Its bouquet, still reserved, opens with elegant, fresh notes of blueberry, crème de cassis, and sweet spices, followed by graphite and pencil lead. Despite the length of aging, the woodiness is well integrated and almost imperceptible. After a delicate attack, tight tannins build in power, coating the palate until the rich and warm finish. The fruit, so expressive on the nose, remains in the background for now, but despite the imposing tannic presence, which is the hallmark of a wine with great aging potential, the wine is not at all heavy and remains elegant from start to finish. Our readers will notice that Pavie has given itself a new label, black and refined, worthy of its status.

About the estate:

Truly established in the 19th century, Pavie extends its vast 37-hectare vineyard on the eponymous hillside, one of the cradles of local viticulture in the 4th century. Its unique terroir, divided into three parts: the limestone plateau, its dense and deep clay hillside, and its slightly gravelly sandy-clay foothills, justified its inclusion in 2012 among the elite of the Premier Grand Cru Classé A wines. This elevation was also due to the considerable investments made by its owner since 1998, Gérard Perse, a businessman who made his fortune in mass retail. Inaugurated in 2013, a new winery designed by Alberto Pinto, decorator of palaces and luxury hotels, confirms the rise of the vintage and allows for even more precise winemaking.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About wine:

The 2012 Pavie celebrates its reclassification and upgrade to Saint-Emilion Class A with a new black label featuring gold lettering. Fortunately, every Pavie has benefited since Perse began a complete overhaul of the estate in 1998. Made from 47-year-old vines, the 2012 has an inky purple color, a judicious toasted woody nose intertwined with copious blackberry and blackcurrant fruit, Christmas spices, as well as licorice and graphite. Full-bodied, rich, and moderately tannic, it will need 5 to 7 years of bottle aging but will drink well for 20 to 30 years. Congratulations to Chantal and Gérard Perse for their extraordinary commitment to quality, which is so evident in this vintage, which was more difficult than some of the great years such as 2009 and 2010. Very low yields of 28 hectoliters per hectare were obtained from this 92-acre estate.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About wine:

Pavie 2012, in its commemorative bottle, asserts itself throughout tastings with remarkable elegance and balance, a fresh power that does not overplay, and a delicacy rare in the contemporary period of the vintage.

About the estate:

Acquired in 1997 by Gérard Perse, the estate has gone from strength to strength, championing a resolutely modern style of high concentration. Extremely low yields, the pursuit of highly mature grapes, extensive extraction and luxurious aging: all the factors that theoretically improve the quality of the wines are present. And the investments never stop... The impressive and massive extension of the cellars, the winery and, above all, the creation of a bright, Versailles-style reception room covering 600 m², inaugurated in June 2013. The estate does not seek to produce easy, immediate wines, but to take a long-term approach. The terroir of the south coast, one of the very best in Saint-Émilion, promotes the longevity of the wines. Without losing any of their monumentality, the latest vintages nevertheless show a slight shift towards greater flexibility in the early years, with a more natural expression.

Wine Enthusiast

About wine:

Sample from barrel. This is a powerful wine that has evolved towards elegance in recent years. The palate reveals delicious Merlot fruitiness accompanied by blackcurrant acidity and a dense structure. Fine minerality on the finish with juicy acidity.

Jancis Robinson

James Suckling

About wine:

What a magnificent wine with notes of violet and sandalwood on the nose and palate. Medium to full-bodied. Fine tannins. Enjoy it now.

Jeb Dunnuck