Description
Château La Gaffelière is an exciting St-Emilion estate. It boasts fine terroir, illustrious neighbours including Châteaux Ausone and Pavie, and a winemaking team committed to making top Bordeaux. The vines lie on an ancient historical site, thought to have once been part of a sprawling Roman estate, and later a leper colony – its name comes from the french word ‘Gaffet,’ meaning leper. The château was built in the 15th century and the winery has been in the Malet-Roquefort family since 1705. Although it came close to losing its Grand Cru status in the 1990s, investment in its cellars, a replanting program in the vineyards and a renewed focus on quality has paid dividends. La Gaffelière’s 32 hectares of Merlot and Cabernet Franc grow across the limestone plateau, with vines at the top, middle and base of the slope, where the soil takes on more clay and marl, creating a wine which truly showcases top St-Emilion. Since 2017, only the best plots make it into the Grand Vin, with the remainder used in the second wine, Clos La Gaffelière.
Tasting Notes
“The 2016 La Gaffelière is superb. Vivid and precise, with layers of nuance, the 2016 is a wine of real clarity. Blood orange, lavender, rose petal and mint add brightness to this stunningly beautiful Saint-Émilion. La Gaffelière is a blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc, and it is the Franc that gives the wine so much character and complexity. This is just an irresistibly captivating Saint-Émilion. Stéphane Derenoncourt and Simon Blanchard consult. “
[96/100 Points- Antonio Galloni – December 2018 – vinous.com]
