Chateau La Gaffeliere Premier Grand Cru Classe B, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2024

Fragrant blackcurrants and plum notes on the nose Clean, juicy and so lifted, this has great purity and focus from the start but also a sense of brightness and tang which gives him a happy, joyous aspect before salty tannins and saline notes come through. Finessed and sophisticated with uber charm. A totally delicious and easy drinking wine. Great energy, sapidity and freshness. Delicate but just so drinkable.

The 2024 La Gaffelière confirms its place as one of the top properties in Saint-Émilion in this challenging vintage. Bright and dynamic in the glass, with terrific persistence, the 2024 sizzles with tension. Crushed flowers, mint, lavender and crushed rocks open in the glass. The finesse of the tannins is impossible to miss. The 2024 is not a huge wine, but its finesse is evident. Blue/purplish fruit, slate and clean mineral overtones extend the long, sculpted finish. Tasted three times.

Deep garnet-purple colored. Needs some patient swirling to wake up scents of fresh black cherries, black plums, and boysenberries, followed by hints of underbrush, anise, and fragrant soil. The medium-bodied palate has plush tannins and refreshing acidity framing the juicy black fruit flavors, finishing long and perfumed.

Based on 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, and aging in 50% new oak, the 2024 Château La Gaffelière sports a deep purple hue and reveals darker cherries, blue fruits, graphite, and floral nuances. Medium-bodied and nicely concentrated, it has a focused, elegant mouthfeel, ripe, polished tannins, and a great finish.

Smoky oak impact on the opening, dense fruit to accompany, with lilac and iris, chalky palma violets, good quality and texture, cloves and cassis. Austerity comes in pretty strongly through the mid palate, this is one to look out for after ageing, and is a potential upscore in bottle. Third vintage since they stepped back from the classification. Harvest 25 September to 7 October. 50% new oak. Tasted twice.

The 2024 La Gaffelière was picked from September 24 to October 8 at 42 hl/ha, aged in 60% new oak including 10% in 500-liter casks. This has a very seductive bouquet with black cherries, boysenberry and light Indian ink scents unfolding in the glass. The palate is very well balanced with succulent tannins, impressive mid-weight density and a crisp, mineral finish. La Gaffelière has been on a run of form recently and the 2024 overcomes the challenges of the vintage with style.

Unwinding in the glass with a gently oaky bouquet of dark berries, spices, mulberries and licorice, the 2024 La Gaffelière is medium to full-bodied, lively and tense. Its incisive mid-palate is framed by brittle tannins that assert themselves in a short, chalky finish. Time will likely tame its slight rusticity.