2021 Ch La Gaffelière 1er Cru Grand Classé, St-Émilion

Medium-deep crimson. Redcurrant, red cherry vanilla aromas with sesame/ ginger notes. Well balanced with plentiful redcurrant red plum flavours, fine chalky/ gravelly textures, toasty vanilla oak notes and underlying linear acidity. Finishes firm and crispy with juicy fruit notes. Exuberant wine with medium-term potential. 58% merlot, 42% cabernet franc. 14–16 months in new and seasoned oak. 13.7% alc

88-89 points Andrew Caillard MW

Succulent and supple, sugary, ripe, jammy tannins hit the palate with such a buzz and energy. It's not so complex at this point but I like the upfront nature: it's bright and bold, with bitter, salty minerality also coming through at the end - liquorice sticks, cedar, graphite. Clean, crisp and very enjoyable. Tannins are so smooth just perfectly integrated. Will be great in time and I love the cool mint aspect on the finish.

Drinking Window 2025 - 2045

93 points Georgina Hindle decanter.com

A notable success in this vintage, the 2021 La Gaffelière offers up aromas of sweet cherries and berries mingled with notions of licorice, loamy soil and spices. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and enveloping, it's supple and charming, with a fleshy core of fruit, lively acids and ripe, powdery tannins, concluding with impressive persistence. Tasted four times, twice at the château.

92-94 points William Kelley robertparker.com

A very precise and curated wine with ultra-fine tannins that run the length of the wine. Medium body. Dark berry and dark chocolate flavors and a creamy finish. Classy.

94-95 points jamessuckling.com May2022

The 2021 La Gaffeliere is a wine of extraordinary finesse and class. Time the glass brings out striking depth and complexity. The aromatics alone are beguiling but everything about the 2021 speaks to elegance. Crushed red berry fruit rose petals blood orange mint and saline notes punctuate the finish.

95-97 points AG vinous.com