2012 | Château La Gaffelière | Saint-Emilion

This is a very dense wine, balancing ripe fruits with dark tannins and solid structure. A powerful and ripe wine, it's still a bit firm and dense, but certainly has great aging potential.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Very elegant kirsch liqueur-like notes mixed with licorice, spice and earth jump from the glass of this famous St.-Emilion, long-owned by the Malet Roquefort family. A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc (14% alcohol), this has slightly more acidity and structure than some St.-Emilions. The limestone-dominated terroir comes through in the wine’s striking and very powerful minerality.

• James Suckling: A friendly and delicious wine with berry and currant character. Medium body, firm tannins and a subtle finish.

Producer Information

Château La Gaffelière is a Bordeaux wine estate in the appellation of Saint-Émilion. It is ranked as a Premier Grand Cru Classé B, and is one of the oldest family-owned vineyards in the region. Like many of its neighbors, Château La Gaffelière's wine is Merlot-dominant, with a small proportion of Cabernet Franc. The estate is located just south of Saint-Émilion town, with the château buildings at the foot of the so-called St-Emilion plateau (Premier Grand Cru Classé A Château Ausone lies at the top of the slope while Château Pavie – promoted to "A" status in 2012 – sits to the east). La Gaffelière's vineyards lie on the lower slope, facing broadly southeast. In all, the property boasts 22 hectares (54 acres) of vineyard, of which roughly 70 percent is planted to Merlot and 30 percent to Cabernet Franc. In the winery, the grapes are fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, with malolactic fermentation taking place in barrel. The wine is aged in French oak barrels (of which, on average, about half are new oak) for up to 20 months. The estate also makes a second, Merlot-dominant wine from the lower, more clay-based slopes on the property. Called Clos Gaffelière (or Dame Gaffelière, depending on the market it is sold in), the wine was launched in the mid-1980s and is produced in its own cellar in the winery. In all, Château La Gaffelière produces approximately 80,000 bottles of wine annually. Château La Gaffelière should not be confused with the adjacent but separately-owned Château Canon La Gaffelière, though both were once part of a larger estate. This was founded on the site of a 17th-Century leper colony – gaffet translates to 'leper'. Until 1961, the estate was known as La Gaffelière-Naudes.

DISCLAIMER** This is a single item listing unless otherwise noted in the description. Retailer advises either in stock or in route to their location. Usually ships within one to four business days. Longer processing times may occur especially around holiday(s). Some items may become backordered or delayed without notice due to demand & will ship out upon arrival. Overseas 700ml products typically have longer processing/transit times. You can always verify product availability by calling 1-888-548-0333. Please refer to our cancellations & returns agreement or reach out to our support team at help@caskcartel.com for any additional questions.

Our dedicated team specializes in creating personalized shopping experiences. If you’re looking for a specific item or collection that isn’t appearing on our marketplace, please reach out to us at concierge@caskcartel.com or fill out the product inquiry form and one of our dedicated team members will be in touch.  Whether it’s a product you’ve experienced while traveling or a rare, hard to find item you’ve been searching for, we have an established global network of retailers with the ability to locate and source the rarest and hardest to find products.