2014 Château La Gaffelière
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Tasting notes
65% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Meaty, smoky nose with attractive and instant complexity, while retaining plummy primary fruit. Long, savoury palate with firm yet soluble tannins that have bright acid to hurry them along. Great tension, drinking well now, and there's plenty of maturity showing in the savoury/meaty spectrum. (RH)
Critic scores
Wine Spectator
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
The 2014 La Gaffelière has a nicely composed, if undemanding, bouquet: a mixture of red and black fruit, forest floor and pencil box. There's evidence of some fine Cabernet Franc in the blend. The palate is medium-bodied with plush tannins, grainy textures and a fine backbone with tarry black fruit towards the rather austere finish. It's not bad, though. Like others, it lacks a bit of brightness and verve. This appears to reaffirm my rather tepid reception at the previous blind tasting six years ago. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.
Tasted blind. Garnet core. Evolved and sweetly seductive aroma with a touch of mint/leafiness. Leaner than I expected on the palate, a little bit dry on the finish but better balanced than Ch Quintus. Slightly medicinal. (JH)
70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc. Garnet with a touch of brick at the rim. Plum and leather on the nose. Broad and sweet across the palate with leather notes again. Tannins firm behind but slightly drying on the finish. Some chew as well. Extraction just a little forced. (JL)
About the producer
Bordering both Ausone and Pavie, this property has been owned by the De Malet Roquefort line for over 300 years – making them the oldest winegrowing family in Saint-Emilion.