Winemaker Notes
The 2021 vintage, pure Merlot, presents red fruit (morello cherry) notes and also floral, airier notes that evoke violets and irises. The wine, build on balance and elegance, is rounded but not overpowering. It opens with a smooth attack and continues with a beautiful mid-palate, all carried by a freshness and energy that provide good length.
Blend: 100% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2021 Gazin is a dark, ample wine. Layers of dark fruit, leather, licorice, smoke, tobacco and spice unfurl in the glass. Broad and powerful, the 2021 is super-impressive in this tasting. If there is a name to watch in Pomerol, it is Gazin. –Antonio Galloni
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James Suckling
Black berries and black plums on the nose with some tobacco leaf, graphite and bitter chocolate. It’s focused on the palate, with firm tannins that melt and relax into the black fruit. Medium-bodied and well-structured. Mineral at the end.
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Decanter
This is lifted, bright and high toned. There's some energy here with tannins that are fine but have bite and tang and support the expression and coat the mouth in grippy saltiness. A good effort this year, not trying too hard. Mouthwatering but cool and crisp with a lovely weight and frame and flavours of blueberry, liquorice, flint and dried herbs.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Juicy red and black fruits, gravelly earth, crushed stone, and chocolate notes all emerge from the 2021 Château Gazin, a nicely concentrated, slightly foursquare effort that has ripe yet building tannins, good mid-palate depth, and outstanding length. Give it 2-3 years to gain some elegance, and it should drink nicely over the following decade.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
A source of exceptionally sensual and glamorous red wines, Pomerol is actually a rather small appellation in an unassuming countryside. It sits on a plateau immediately northeast of the city of Libourne on the right bank of the Dordogne River. Pomerol and St-Émilion are the stars of what is referred to as Right Bank Bordeaux: Merlot-dominant red blends completed by various amounts of Cabernet Franc or Cabernet Sauvignon. While Pomerol has no official classification system, its best wines are some of the world’s most sought after.
Historically Pomerol attached itself to the larger and more picturesque neighboring region of St-Émilion until the late 1800s when discerning French consumers began to recognize the quality and distinction of Pomerol on its own. Its popularity spread to northern Europe in the early 1900s.
After some notable vintages of the 1940s, the Pomerol producer, Petrus, began to achieve great international attention and brought widespread recognition to the appellation. Its subsequent distribution by the successful Libourne merchant, Jean-Pierre Mouiex, magnified Pomerol's fame after the Second World War.
Perfect for Merlot, the soils of Pomerol—clay on top of well-drained subsoil—help to create wines capable of displaying an unprecedented concentration of color and flavor.
The best Pomerol wines will be intensely hued, with qualities of fresh wild berries, dried fig or concentrated black plum preserves. Aromas may be of forest floor, sifted cocoa powder, anise, exotic spice or toasted sugar and will have a silky, smooth but intense texture.