Château La Gaffelière 2025

Characteristics and tasting notes of Château La Gaffelière 2025

Tasting

Appearance
This vintage reveals a particularly deep garnet red hue.

Nose
The bouquet is very open and expressive, unveiling intense aromas of blackcurrant and dark fruits. With aeration, this lively, fruit-driven profile is enhanced by delicate floral notes.

Palate
With a medium to full body, this wine offers a texture of great finesse. Elegance prevails, with flavours of perfectly ripe dark fruits and cocoa, supported by rich, powdery tannins. The remarkably long finish stands out for its beautiful chalky minerality and great freshness.

Food and wine pairings
This great wine pairs wonderfully with noble red meats such as beef tenderloin or a roast rack of lamb. Its lovely tension also allows it to be matched with flavourful dishes such as duck breast, wild mushroom risotto or tournedos Rossini. As for cheeses, opt for pressed varieties such as an aged Comté or Etivaz.

Serving and cellaring
The 2025 vintage has exceptional ageing potential. It can be kept in the cellar and enjoyed from 2035 until around 2060.

The timeless elegance of a great Saint-Émilion by Château La Gaffelière

The estate
Established in Bordeaux, Château La Gaffelière was officially founded in 1705 by the Malet Roquefort family. Today, the estate is run by Count Léo de Malet Roquefort, the eighth generation at the helm of this historic vineyard. Located in the prestigious Golden Triangle between the hillsides of Châteaux Pavie and Ausone, this property is renowned for its precise and timeless style, embodying the excellence of its appellation while preserving a strong family identity and a fiercely guarded independence over the decades.

The vineyard
Ideally located at the southern entrance to the village of Saint-Émilion, the vineyard extends over 22 hectares. Facing due south, the plots benefit from optimal sunshine on a mosaic of soils: a limestone plateau, clay-limestone hillsides, and more siliceous footslopes. Certified High Environmental Value (HVE), the estate applies agroecological methods with inter-row grass cover, Guyot pruning, as well as leaf removal and green harvesting. The vines, averaging 35 years of age, are harvested by hand into small crates.

The vintage
The year was marked by an early budburst followed by a swift and even flowering. During the summer months, intense heat caused significant water stress. Fortunately, much-needed rainfall at the end of August helped restart ripening and restore volume to the berries, leading to an early harvest.

Winemaking and ageing
Hand harvesting. To craft this wine, the grapes are first kept for 12 hours in a cold room at 7°C before undergoing rigorous optical sorting. Vinification is carried out plot by plot and by gravity in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats. After a cold pre-fermentation maceration (10°C) and a warm post-fermentation maceration (28°C), alcoholic fermentation is punctuated by pump-overs and punch-downs. Maceration lasts between 28 and 30 days, with 5% of the harvest vinified with the stems. Malolactic fermentation takes place 80% in vats and 20% in barrels. Finally, ageing is conducted with 50% new barrels (including 10% 400- and 500-litre vessels) and 2% TAVA amphorae. ABV: 13.8% vol.

Grape varieties
This wine is made from a blend of 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Franc.