| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
This 3.65 hectare vineyard is owned by Pavie and is situated on the same south-facing slope. The vines here are 50 years old. 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. Always black, concentrated and powerful, made from low yields and aged in 100% new oak. The yield in 2018 was 38 hl/ha and the wine weighs in at 14.52 degrees.
Aromas of reduced blackberry and blueberry with black licorice and dried flowers. It’s full-bodied with chewy yet polished tannins and a long finish. A little tight and reserved now, but shows intensity and focus. Powerful. Merlot with 10% cabernet franc. Try after 2026.
Composed of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc with a pH of 3.57 and 14.52% alcohol, the 2018 Pavie Decesse is deep garnet-purple in color, bounding out of the glass with exuberant notes of stewed black and red cherries, plum pudding and blackberry preserves, leading to an undercurrent of Indian spices, cardamom, camphor and star anise, plus a waft of woodsmoke. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is completely coated with black fruit preserves and exotic spices, supported by a firm, velvety texture and bags of freshness, finishing on a lingering menthol note. It is absolutely scrumptious right now, but give it 4-5 years or more in bottle for experiencing that next-level, and drink it over the following 25+ years. Drink: 2025 - 2050
Black core, almost no rim. Intense, pure cassis nose and a touch of spice – gingerbread? Extremely tannic and all tied up in the tannins. So extracted but surprisingly fresh, just too dry from those tannins; in fact, I think the acidity (pH is 3.57) may be hardening the tannins. I really am not sure about this, perhaps in 10 years?
Drink 2028-2035
Black in the glass with extract. The nose is hot and bitter, with notes of paint thinner, liquorice and tar. The palate is much the same, with heavily extracted tannins bringing a bitterness to the excessively sweet fruit. What remains is very disjointed, drying and hot in alcohol. This feels extremely forced, and remains a wine that does not suit our palate at Farr Vintners.
All from the upper plateau and incredible limestone soils, the 2018 Château Pavie Decesse is a crazy good wine that's going to flirt with perfection. Black raspberries, cassis, crushed stone, exotic flowers, and an incredible salinity all give way to a full-bodied, concentrated yet elegant wine that just glides over the palate. Made from 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, it’s going to require 4-6 years of bottle age, but it’s one of the great wines of the vintage.
Well-endowed, with creamed boysenberry, fig and loganberry flavors, this is a step ahead of the pack. As lush as the fruit is, this shows admirable grip and some flashy spice and toast notes filling in throughout. A head-turner in the making.
(90 Merlot, 10 Cabernet Franc) | 100% new oak | 14.52% alc | 32 hl/ha There are crazy levels of oak and tannin here, as always, and yet the fruit is also very odd and slightly mouldy and blunt. There is nothing to recommend in this wine.
Powerful young red with blackberry and blueberry aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, very strong and concentrated with great length and minerality at the end. Finesse with power.
Grapes for this wine come from the plateau and were harvested October 3 with yields of 32 hectoliters per hectare. Composed of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc with a pH of 3.57 and 14.52% alcohol, the 2018 Pavie Decesse is deep purple-black in color and strides confidently out of the glass with a very serious nose of crushed blackberries, warm black plums, mulberries and cassis plus touches of camphor, lavender, black olives and crushed rocks with a waft of woodsmoke. Full-bodied and laden with taut, muscular black fruit and loads of mineral accents, it has a firm structure of super ripe, finely grained tannins and amazing freshness, finishing very long and very layered.
