Château Pavie: 2011, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2003, 2000, 1999 & 1998

The Jürade de Saint-Émilion du Singapour gathered only for the second time this year at Shang Palace on 02 July 2024 to peruse through a Château Pavie vertical, bringing back memories of our visit to this Premier Grand Cru Classé “A” in June 2019. Thrust into the spotlight largely after being bought over by Gerard Perse in 1998, the evening’s line-up, most appropriately, began from that seminal vintage. From the tasting, it is clear that the current identity of Pavie only really took off from 2000 onward, coinciding with a change in bottle shape that same year. The modern style of Pavie tends to polarise opinions but every bottle will have its eventual day. Patience, as always, is key. A big merci beaucoup to all, and to Kieron for organising.

Nyetimber Classic Cuvée, from the restaurant list. Pale. Fig, green melons and longans dominate with biscuity overtones, revealing some inner detail of tropical fruits underscored by a minerally prominence that conferred a certain austerity. Brightened up after some time with a powerful controlled intensity of lime and clear citrus, attaining a crystalline quality within a sheen of soft bubbles.

2011 Château Pavie, courtesy of Marc. Deep purple. Somewhat upfront with a bold presence of sweet vanillin and dark currants though the fleshy palate is only medium-full, softly contoured with a fair bit of velvety detail. Surprisingly mellow and elegant, firming up with a tinge of mocha and mint after some time. Well proportioned. Yet to develop secondary characters but this is quite promising.

2008 Château Pavie, courtesy of Dolly. Bright purple with a crimson core of bright plummy fruit laced with vanillin, opening with a tinge of spice on the fleshy palate before settling down with a quiet tensile presence. Very evenly proportioned, gaining further structure and power as it firmed up with exciting tannins. Good length. Very promising; may turn out to be a classic.

2006 Château Pavie, poured from a pair courtesy of Mel and Sok Cheng. Opaque purple. Lovely glow of ripe raspberries and dark currants, displaying faint secondary characters of earth, cedar and cinnamon. Medium weight, where its soft fleshy contour belies a wine still quite tightly structured across its robust tannins, refined acidity and depth of fruit.

2005 Château Pavie, courtesy of Kim Leng. Displaying a bright crimson, this wine is noticeably more developed than expected, exuding a deep funky pungency though the medium-weight palate is imbued with a controlled intensity of predominant red fruits, suitably ripe with a rounded warmth. I would say its character is consistent with my observations of the 2005 vintage on both Banks, sleeker and more developed than the 2000, as evidenced below.

2003 Château Pavie, courtesy of Kieron. Very deep garnet. This wine opens with a quiet restraint, almost brooding, though it is highly supple and mellow at the right level of ripeness. Very well proportioned and balanced, structured with very refined tannins without any hint of the intense heat stress of that vintage. Highly successful.

2000 Château Pavie, poured from a pair courtesy of Bowei (aired since 0800h!) and Russ. Opaque crimson, proffering a lifted glow of mature plummy fruit. Open and irresistibly delicious, imbued with transparent velvety textures that exude subtle fragrance from the glorious depth of fruit. Very correctly nuanced, almost to the point of being ethereal. However, it grew tighter over time, developing further layers of fruit. Compared with the 2005, the millennial vintage seems almost unevolved. Truly one for the ages.

1999 Château Pavie, courtesy of Jess. Opaque crimson. Alluring lift of haw, red fruits and rosy hues. Surprisingly taut and tensile on the palate, caressed by lovely fruit that impart disarming elegance and charm, underscored by a dash of menthol. Highly successful.

1998 Château Pavie. Opaque brownish red. Already into early tertiary development where complex dark fruits and currants are interlaced with characters of capsicum and sandalwood and overtones of Chinese medicinal elements. Medium-full. Evenly proportioned with lovely tension, exuding an exquisite controlled intensity. Aristocratic.