Winemaker Notes
This wine does not include the blanket 10% tariff imposed in April 2025. When the wines are shippable in fall of 2027, customers will have the option to pay any tariff in place at the time or to keep their wines stored in a temperature-controlled facility free of charge in France.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
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.
Barrel Sample: 95 -
Jeb Dunnuck
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.
Barrel Sample: 93-95 -
James Suckling
Rose petals, some black cherries and red berries. A hint of coffee beans. Fleshier on the palate than many of its counterparts, showing medium body and bright acidity. Good length to close.
Barrel Sample: 93-94 -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
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.
Barrel Sample: 90-92
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.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.