| La Gaffelière 2007 • March 2008 | LA GAFFELIERE
1st Great Classified Growth
2007 Vintage
History:
Count Malet Roquefort, the owner of Château La Gaffelière which is located at the entrance to Saint Emilion, was born of a very ancient family who had settled in Saint Emilion in the 17th century. The vines are grown on one of the most ancient parts of our jurisdiction dating back to the Gallo-Roman era. The proof is an ancient wine-producing villa (dating of the 4th century), with many mosaic rooms with wine motifs, discovered in 1969.
The vineyard covers an area of 22 hectares (54.34 acres). The vines have an average age of 36 years and are planted on clay-limestone soil; half of them stretch over slopes and the other half over the plain. The grape varieties are 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. The yield is no more than 40 hectolitres per hectare.
Vineyard management:
The vineyard is supervised by our agronomic engineer, Philippe Gard.
The vines are pruned with the double Guyot technique to provide better exposure to sunshine and ventilation for the bunches. The vineyard is maintained traditionally, combining ploughing the soil in some places and natural grass-growing between the rows in others, according to the plots and exposure. We also practise a mechanical weeding (50% of the vineyard in 2006) in order to manage the vines and their environment with greater care and respect and with the aim of enhancing quality.
In June, leaf thinning is carried out to optimise the ripening process; and in July, in order to maximise the quality of the crop, the bunches are thinned out. For the harvest, which we do by hand, we delay the picking for as long as possible, taking into account the year’s climatic conditions.
Weather conditions and harvesting:
After a warm spring, nature was ahead of schedule, which led us to predict a harvest on September 15. Unfortunately, July and August were quite rainy and lost this good advance to the extent that we only started the picking on September 25 and finished on October 19. Thanks to excellent work in the vineyard, the vines were perfectly protected from outbreaks of disease, and healthy, ripe grapes were brought in, promising a good 2007 vintage and dispelling fears felt earlier in the growing season.
Vinification and ageing:
The vinification took place under the supervision of Stéphane Derenoncourt. The wine-making methods are both modern and traditional with a gentle extraction carried out through pumping over and punching down. The malo-lactic fermentation was carried out in new barrels and in stainless steel vats. The wine is being aged in barrels for 14 to 16 months.
The proportion of the crop going into the second wine LE CLOS LA GAFFELIERE will be around 10%.
Tasting comments:
The colour is dark red with light purple glints. Black fruit aromas and liquorice on the nose with hints of violets coming through after swirling. There is a soft, silky entry on the palate, followed by an elegant, tight-knit tannic structure, whilst the finish is long and persistent with chalky-textured tannins.
Contact
Château La Gaffelière – 33330 Saint-Emilion
Tel: +33 (0) 557 247 215 – Fax: +33 (0) 557 246 906
E-mail: chateau-la-gaffeliere@chateau-la-gaffeliere.com
| |
|
Mirrors 
Previous
page
