1999 produced 79,962 bottles of wine made with 85% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc.

Neglected for a long time due to interest for 2000, 1999 is now revealing itself to be an excellent vintage for Gazin.

The wine’s colour is still intense with dark hints of ink. The nose offers fine notes of red and black fruit, with blackberries, Morello cherries, blackcurrants, and stone fruit, supplemented by aromas of undergrowth, leather, fur, and truffles, with hints of spices (cinnamon).

On the palate, the structure is both fresh and complex. The tannins are well-integrated and harmonious, producing a superb silky finish. However, this wine should always be decanted two to three hours before drinking at ambient temperature. It should be drunk, in 2014, over the next ten years.

67,427 bottles of Château Gazin were produced in 2000. This vintage was made with 85% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc.

This wine has enjoyed a special reputation on account of its being the new millennium vintage, and while it is a perfectly good, well-crafted wine, it does not really deserve legendary status. As indicated above, in Pomerol 2001 is often considered to be superior. The wine has a bordeaux colour that is beginning to evolve notes of dark chestnut, which is normal for its age. The nose offers aromas of undergrowth, leather and truffles, with animal notes, tar and soot. In the mouth the wine is well-rounded and silky. It presents moderate body, but is balanced with a long, refined finish. The 2000 can be drunk now without decanting, provided that it is brought slowly to an ambient temperature of around 18°C. It should be drunk over the next six to eight years.

In 2001 the vineyard produced 70,667 bottles of wine made with 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

2001 has always been somewhat overshadowed by 2000. In fact 2001 is often considered to be superior to 2000 in Pomerol, and certainly at Gazin. The wine has an elegant bordeaux colour. The nose now has the classic, powerful notes of Pomerols that have evolved a little with age: notes of undergrowth, meat, leather, truffles and spices that eclipse the traditional red and black fruit that dominate our wines during their first flush of youth. On the palate the wood is well-integrated. The tannins have become supple and the wine has a pleasant smoothness, good length and a silky finish that will make this vintage very pleasant to drink over the next six to eight years.

In 2002 Château Gazin produced 37,200 bottles of wine made with 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

The colour is still a fairly young looking dark garnet. The nose and palate present a less powerful version of all the characteristics of the Pomerol family. 2002 was not a particularly good year. It is nevertheless balanced and good to drink now. It is one of those vintages that enable us to wait for the wines that deserve to age. It can be drunk without decanting, provided it is gradually brought to the right temperature, of around 17 or 18°C. It should be drunk over the next five to six years.

Château Gazin produced 44,000 bottles in 2003. The vintage was a blend of 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

The vines suffered from the heat wave that had devastating effect during the summer of 2003. Contrary to what has been written, this was not a great vintage, in any case it is not a vintage for laying down. Most 2003s are good to drink now – before they start to decline. This is not entirely true for Gazin, where the wine was made very gently, with careful control of the extractions, and then moderate maturing in new barrels (not more than 40% new wood).

Wines that were not made in this way are now dry, alcoholic, and overly woody… The 2003 Gazin won the Hachette Guide’s “Golden Grape” award and remains, according to commentators, the best in its category for 2003. The 2003 Gazin has a colour of medium intensity. Its olfactory notes are dominated by red fruit. The acidity is noticeable, all the more so because the tannic structure is average and slightly lacking in maturity. But the wine is balanced and can be drunk now after being softened by decanting two or three hours beforehand. It should be drunk over the next six to eight years.

93,000 bottles of Château Gazin were produced in 2004. The wine consists of 85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

This vintage has a dark bordeaux colour. On the palate there are notes of plums, and buttery red and black fruit. There are already some of the Pomerol tertiary notes of truffles, undergrowth and pâté. The 2004 is full-bodied with integrated tannins. Balanced and fairly long on the palate, the finish is soft and already silky. Not having the structure of the 2005 or 2009, it is ready to drink now after light decanting. It should be drunk over the next ten years.

2005 produced 65,000 bottles of wine made with 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

This was a great vintage, with a solid structure that will allow the wine to age for 30 years or more. The colour is an intense almost black bordeaux. In the mouth it offers notes of ripe black and red fruit, with Morello cherries, blackcurrants and redcurrants, these are supplemented by hints of liquorice, plums and spices. The woodiness from being matured in barrels is subtle and well-integrated. This wine has already developed flavours of truffles, leather and undergrowth, with the meaty notes that are typical of Pomerols. Sumptuous, long and full-bodied on the palate with supple, blended tannins, that are nevertheless noticeable in the finish, and will continue to mature for another ten to fifteen years. A vintage to be laid down.

Château Gazin produced 64,000 bottles in 2006. The vintage consisted of a blend in the following proportions: 90% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc.

The colour is an intense, deep bordeaux. The nose is slightly toasted, with notes of ripe blackberries and black cherries. It has a slightly floral character with touches of milk and caramel. The wood is well-integrated. In the mouth the wine is silky, smooth and well balanced with a moderately long finish. There is no astringency or bitterness. This wine can be drunk now, in 2014, if decanted ¾ hour beforehand, but can also be kept for another ten to fifteen years.

Production for this vintage was 72,000 bottles of wine made with 83% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Generally speaking, this vintage has turned out to be substantially better than it was announced to be, notably by the press, after the initial tastings. With a little hindsight, we can say that Gazin produced a wine of excellent quality for the vintage, which did not benefit from the exceptional ripening conditions of 2010, 2009 and 2008.

It has a deep bordeaux colour. There are classic notes of red and fruit black. In the mouth the tannins are powerful and supple, this is a perfectly balanced, rich, sleek wine with lots of freshnesses and good length. This wine can be drunk now and over the next ten to fifteen years. Decanting a few hours beforehand will allow it to breathe and open up.

The 2008 vintage of Château Gazin only produced 51,000 bottles of wine made with 92% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc.

It has a dark bordeaux colour. Still quite closed, the wine presents a bouquet of blackcurrants and blackberries. It is long and smooth on the palate with a beautiful finish which ends with notes of cocoa. To develop all its flavours, the 2008 will need about ten years. It will certainly keep for 20 to 30 years. Earlier consumption is possible provided it is decanted (and left in the decanter) two or three hours before drinking.

2009 produced 66,500 bottles of wine made with 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc.

This is a powerful, well-structured vintage with a dark, intense bordeaux colour. There are notes of toast, black fruit, cherries, liquorice and spices. The tannins are supple and soft, but with a definite presence. The wine is rich, sumptuous, with a lot of substance and a long finish. It should be aged for eight to twelve years in the cellar and can easily be kept for 25 to 30 years.

Château Gazin’s 2010 vintage is undoubtedly a great wine, like almost all Bordeaux 2010 wines. It will easily age 30 years or more, and it will age more like Bordeaux wines than will the 2009s, which were also quite successful, though in a different register more reliant upon power.

In fact, 2010 is all about smoothness and finesse, offering excellent but not excessive volume to the taste, with a soft and still slightly tannic finish. The alcohol level is 14.5°, but you wouldn’t know it because the ripe, finely-textured tannins are abundant enough to balance out the wine. The woodiness is already perfectly melded and accompanies a complex bouquet of black and red berry, tobacco, almond, vanilla and chocolate…The taste is lingering and silky. This is a heady, fresh wine without heaviness.

The Cabernet francs and Sauvignons (14%) wonderfully balance the merlots (86%) of this wine. After 9 or 10 years of aging (2020), this 2010 will also offer the traditional notes of Pomerol wines: truffle, humus, fur, leather, and will beautifully pair with red meat and any type of game, including fowl. The Château Gazin produced 78,000 bottles of vintage 2010 (and 34,000 bottles of its second wine, the Hospitalet de Gazin), with a yield of 39 hl per hectare.

With the vintage 2011, we return toward the more classic wines and we turn away from the exceptional vintages of the years 2005, 2009, and 2010. Nevertheless, the 2011 is not without its merit. Harvest were early. The merlots came in from September 5th to the 20th, and the Cabernet francs and Sauvignons came in on September 26th and 27th; we brought in a mature and heavy harvest with a yield of 43 hl per hectare.

74,000 bottles of Château Gazin 2011 and 47,000 bottles of the Hospitalet de Gazin second wine are composed of a blend of 90% merlot, 5% Cabernet franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. A very careful selection allowed us to produce a very full-bodied wine that is rather meaty, tannic, raised for 15 months in new barrels (45%), with the rest in one wine barrels. The alcohol level of this vintage is 13.45°. The wine’s appearance is dark, brilliant bordeaux. 2011 features strong tannic notes, with red and black berry aromas: sour cherry, blackberry and black currant, a slightly toasted smell, winy, peppery, with a hint of caramel. The taste is silky, rather full, with a nice lingering effect, and a clearly tannic finish that doesn’t overpower and will soften with age.

You can enjoy this wine today, after an hour or two of decantation, but the wine will improve with another five years (2018). It should not be kept longer than fifteen years.

The 2012 vintage represents a 25% reduction in grape production as compared to 2011. With 31.9 hl per hectare (as opposed to 43 hl in 2011), the vineyard was still able to produce 54,000 bottles produced with 100% merlot blend. Indeed, the merlot harvest that began on September 20th and concluded on October 4th brought in perfectly ripe grapes of excellent quality after the first rains of September refreshed the clusters, lowered the temperature, and slightly raised production by plumping up the berries. Truth be told, other than the familiar old maladies that all vintners contended with in the spring and in early July, the year 2012 was dry, too dry, and that’s never good for grapes.

On the other hand, the cabernets were gathered on October 10, before they were perfectly mature, because of the very abundant rains (with a temperature of 19°) that very quickly threatened to provoke rot that in a matter of days could have irreversibly degraded the quality of the grapes. So the harvest was a little sudden and the grapes were not quite mature, which explains why there are no cabernets in the main 2012 wine, but only in the second wine, the Hospitalet de Gazin, which yielded 23,000 bottles.

This 2012 vintage is promising to be a bit like the 2009s and 2010s: alcohol level of 14.5 degrees that you don’t even notice either in the aroma or in the taste because of a high, yet silky, presence of tannins that balance the wine. Also, this “pure merlot” (which is by no means a betrayal of the Pomerol style since merlot traditionally dominated the label) has produced a wine that is of course full-bodied, well-rounded, and supple without being heavy, and features a fresh aroma and taste. This is nothing like those merlots you sometimes find where heaviness and power rhyme with lack of finesse and absence of complexity.

The bordeaux appearance is quite complete and features black reflections. Fresh aroma, full of red and black berry: raspberry, cherry, and currant, finished with a subtle woody note (50% new barrels). To the taste, the wine is ample, elegant, smooth, lingering, and refined, leaving a fresh and light after-effect, with a lingering finish, lacking in high acidity, but offering supple tannins because of how well they are aged.

You can enjoy the 2012 vintage right away, even without decantation, but it will be better after aging 5 or 6 years (2018), during which time it will develop a complement of classic Pomerol notes: humus, truffle, leather…It should not be stored longer than 15/18 years, even in good storage conditions.

The 2013 vintage is undoubtedly a winemaker’s vintage. This means that the success of the vintage (and they are many more good wines than expected) is due to the know-how of the cellar masters.

We all suffered from rainy weather conditions during the flowering of the vines, in May. Grains abortion and uneven ripening were the results of it.

These poor conditions led the grapes ripening three weeks later than “normal”. The harvest therefore started at the end of September (on the 27th) instead of  mid’ September  and ended on October 11th, with rains. This involved some rot in the grapes. Rot is not really problematic as we harvest by hand. Therefore, we could clean the crop in the vineyard and sort out the remaining rotten bunches, if any, with our two sorting tables, in the cellar.  The yield was only 27th hl per hectare.

This small crop allowed us to produce only 47 500 bottles of a reasonably good wine. It is a 100% merlot wine (like the 2012) because of the lower quality of the cabernets. These latter ones have been included into the second label:  Hospitalet de Gazin (anyway still very merlot wine: 73,5%), which produced 32,000 bottles.

The alcohol level of Château Gazin is 13%. We did not use more than 49% of new barrels to raise up the grand vin, no longer than 15 months, in casks including malo-lactic fermentation in new casks.

The wine is supple, has no traces of acidity nor lack of maturity. It shows the traditional notes of Pomerol: red fruit, then undergrowth and meaty fragrances, some smoky and roasted notes, but not having the same intensity as in greater vintages. However this 2013 vintage will offer a good wine, easy to drink young, developing more complexity after few years of ageing, but probably not worth cellaring more than 10/12 years. (Incidentally, on the occasion of a first tasting, in 2014, the wine was rated 90/92 by Robert Parker, which we consider as a great compliment taking into account the difficulties of the vintage).

The 2014 vintage at Château Gazin is fully in keeping with the proud tradition of the wines of Bordeaux and Pomerol. It is a classic year that is different from previous ones. 2012 and 2013 were both made with 100% Merlot. This is rather unusual at Gazin, even if Pomerol consists primarily of this grape variety. The 2012 and 2013 vintages are pleasant to drink either today or within the next few years. However, they do not have enough structure to warrant long ageing.

With the vintage 2015 the Château Gazin has the pleasure to propose to its amateurs a great wine. (But we already know that the 2016 vintage will also be excellent!). 82 000 bottles of this vintage 2015 were produced for Château Gazin and 22 000 bottles for the second wine of the estate: l’Hospitalet de Gazin. Or a yield of 36hl per hectare.

The grape harvest took place between 10 and 24 September (10, 11, 15, 18, then 21, 22, 23 and 24) for Merlots and 7 October for Cabernet Francs and Sauvignon. This spreading of the grapes by hand reflects our desire to harvest perfectly ripe grapes, but carefully avoiding the maturity in order to preserve freshness and complexity.

The great wine is 14.5 degrees /% and consists of 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. The Cabernet Sauvignon were not retained for the assembly of the great wine and were integrated into the second wine. The Hospitalet de Gazin blends 82% Merlot and 18% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Château Gazin 2015 has a total acidity of 3.16 (in grams of sulfuric acid / liter), a pH (hydrogen potential) of 3.85 and a total polyphenol index of 84. The 18-month Made with 50% new barrels and 50% barrels of a wine. The second fermentation, malo-lactic, was carried out for half of the great wine in new barrels, the rest of the harvest traditionally making this second fermentation in concrete vats.

This Gazin castle bottled in June 2017 will have to finish its aging by an aging of some 8/10 years in your cellar to reach its full maturity. The wine will then have a lifespan of 15/20 years. Certainly you will be able to consume it without waiting for these 8/10 years of aging but it will then be necessary to decant it and leave it three or four hours in its decanter before consumption so that it develops its aromas and further enhances the elegance and finesse Of its tannins. It will then offer a nose of undergrowth, truffle, leather that will complement the notes of black and red fruits (raspberry, cherry cherry, blackcurrant, blackberry), incense, cedar, violet … emanating from a Wine silky, ample and round, very long in the mouth.

2016 is undoubtedly one of the best vintages of the last years, in line with 2009 and 2010. The summer brought to the vines their quotas of sun and rain, especially 20mm of rain, on September 13, which allowed to perfect the maturity of the grapes. The harvest was made in very good weather, spread over three weeks, from September 22 to October 17. Our Merlots were picked between September 22nd and October 10th with many stops to wait for the optimal maturity of each piece of vines. The Cabernets Francs and Sauvignon were harvested on October 17th.

This vintage produced 85,000 bottles of great wine. It consists of 87% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Its alcoholic degree is 14%. Aging 18 months, with malolactic fermentation in new barrels for 45% of the great wine and in vats for 55%, then in barrels of a wine for this last batch, brought a bottling, in June 2018, without collage with egg whites. The second wine from the vineyard, Hospitalet de Gazin, produced 22,100 bottles of the same vintage.

2016 is in the same style as 2015, but more powerful and fleshy, and already very silky in the mouth thanks to the maturity of its tannins. The wine offers a nice freshness, a round and ample attack with a lot of length. The nose always in this early youth of the wine is fruity (notes of red and black fruits: cherry cherry and blackcurrant). Like all pomerols, this wine will evolve towards notes of undergrowth, leather, truffle after a few years of aging in your cellar, which will bring all its complexity and finesse. To wait preferably 8/10 years. But consumable today after a little rest in your storeroom thanks to the finesse of its merlots and the freshness of its cabernets.

Contrary to popular belief in Bordeaux – that years that end with a seven, with the exception of 1947, are poor – 2017 should refute this and provide a pleasant surprise for wine lovers.

The April frost that, unfortunately, affected the yield in many vineyards, did not touch the Pomerol plateau. For the lucky ones, which include Gazin, both quality and quantity are there: 89,000 bottles produced.

The wine harvest took place from September 5 to 21 for merlot grapes, to September 29 for cabernet franc grapes and to October 2 for the cabernet sauvignon grapes. The 2017 vintage is made up of 95 % merlot and 5 % cabernet franc, the cabernet sauvignon not being considered good enough to be associated with great wine.

With its dark red color, the Château Gazin 2017 presents black and red fruit aromas (cherry and blueberry) on the nose, mixed with discrete hints of vanilla and spice (nutmeg). In the background, there is also a touch of menthol, which is characteristic of cabernet franc. It brings a little freshness. On the palette, following a rounded and silky attack, we rediscover the berry flavors found on the nose associated with floral notes. The wine has a pleasant sweetness and good density without becoming heavy.

The Château Gazin 2017, although not as powerful nor complex as the 2015 and 2016 vintages, offers good balance, combining roundness and freshness. It has been aged for 15 months in 40 % new barrels and 60 % barrels that have been used once.

Its alcohol level is 13.6 % with a total acidity of 3.4g and a pH of 3.68. The cellaring potential of the 2017 vintage is estimated at 15 years.

Each vintage has its own personality. Château Gazin 2017 will not disappoint the wine lovers who know how to wait for it.

The second wine from the domain, Hospitalet de Gazin, produced 36,400 bottles made up of 90 % merlot, 8 % cabernet sauvignon and 2 % cabernet franc.

2018 marked the 100th vintage for our family in Pomerol.

The harvest took place between the 10th of September and the 8th of October. With successive pickings depending on the ripeness of the grapes. 63,000 bottles of the first wine were produced alongside 22,000 bottles of Hospitalet de Gazin, the Estate’s second wine.

The summer heat ensured perfectly ripe grapes for both wines, while spring showers, combined with the blue clay subsoil of the Pomerol plateau, protected against drought. Major mildew attacks in early June were perfectly controlled, enabling 34hl per hectare to be harvested out of the 21.28 hectares currently in production. The 2018 vintage contains an alcoholic degree of 14.5 alongside a blend of 93% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc. The wine was aged for 18 months, following malolactic fermentation in barrels, using 50% new barrels and 50% barrels used from one previous vintage Meanwhile, Hospitalet de Gazin has an alcoholic degree of 14 and a blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon.

The 2018 vintage is undeniably one of the greatest produced from our Estate in the past 30 years.

In terms of finesse it outweighs the very good 2016. This wine is incredibly fresh, with a long aftertaste thanks to its smooth texture and aromatic complexity. For now, subtle aromas of red and black fruit (morello and blackcurrant ) and flower fragrances characterize it. After ageing for several years, classic Pomerol notes shall come to the fore subtly: truffle, undergrowth, game. At the same time, the very concentrated and silky tannins perfectly balance the alcohol level which does not dominate the discreet and well-integrated oaky overtones. This wine should reach its peak in ten years or so.

The 2018 vintage was bottled in June 2020 as Château Gazin received the HVE level 3 certification (High Environmental Value).

2019

With the 2019 vintage, the Pomerol winegrowing region – and that of Chateau Gazin in particular – has had another great year. (We already know that the 2020 vintage will also be an excellent year, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves and concentrate on our 2019).

This vintage was harvested on 12-25 September for the merlot and 3-7 October for the cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon grapes. A dry winter. No freezing on the clay and gravel plateau of Pomerol where the vines grow. A cool and rainy spring caused a few issues in controlling mildew with organic phytosanitary products and organic controls. Even flowering of the vine, ending on 2 June. A very dry, hot summer. Removal of bunches on young vines affected by excessive heat (to avoid prune flavours and dry, rustic tannins). The clay also performed its role in preserving the freshness of the harvest and avoiding ripeness blockages caused by the heat. Only 11 days of rain between mid-June and the end of September! Manual harvesting was carried out once the grapes were ripe on each plot to avoid an increase in alcohol levels and preserve the freshness of the grapes.

Our 2019 vintage, for which vinification was carried out without sulphur, produced 90,000 bottles with a yield of 43hl per hectare. The wine is made up of 88.5% merlot, 7% cabernet sauvignon and 4.5% cabernet franc with

14.8 ABV. The alcohol does not dominate and the wood from the maturing casks blends in perfectly (50% new barrels used for the grand vin).

This vintage is full-bodied and smooth with a long finish. Its supple, rounded tannins give it elegance and good complexity, which will be enhanced over time. The wine will reach maturity in around ten years. Kept in the right conditions, it will then be able to be enjoyed

for around twenty years. To see some organoleptic comments on Chateau Gazin wines, the taster can read the corresponding paragraph in the description of Pomerols at the beginning of the “Vintage Wines”

chapter.

To illustrate the back label of this 2019 vintage, Chateau Gazin

has chosen “Autumn” by the artist and engraver Bernard Boutet de Monvel (1881-1949).

The 2020 Chateau Gazin is the last vintage of a very successful trilogy, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Could it be the best of the three, even better than the 2019? Only time will tell.

The frost of 27 March forced us to us employ anti-freezing techniques such as wind towers and heaters with no damage noted.

In 2020, we saw very early budding (16 March) and mid-flowering on 20 May, which led to a very early manual harvest. This was followed by very warm weather in July and August with a welcome addition of moisture due to storms in mid August. The merlot grapes were harvested from 8 to 11 September, then 15 to 18 September and the cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc were collected on 29 September.
Alcoholic fermentation was achieved without sulphur under bio-control but the maturing stage – 16 months in casks – naturally required a little sulphur.
The 2020 assemblage, which produced 82,000 bottles of first wine is 91.6% merlot and
8.4% cabernet sauvignon. The cabernet franc grapes were used in the assemblage of our second wine: L’Hospitalet de Gazin, which produced 12,000 bottles.

Despite the lack of moisture and high summer temperatures, choosing the right dates for harvesting helped produce a wine that offers freshness and good energy. Even with an alcohol content of 14.5 degrees.
This vintage presents all the characteristics and smoothness of a complex and flavoursome Pomerol while retaining the balance and finesse of a grand vin. We believe that its ageing potential is around thirty years. We recommend letting the wine age in the bottle for ten years or so before drinking.
The attentive enthusiast will discover a small animal hidden in the bunch of grapes on the back label designed by Otilia Fournier. It is the smiling face of a little rat, a nod to our Chinese fans as 2020 is the year of the rat in China.

With its 2021 vintage, Château Gazin has had a difficult year. A serious attack of mildew caused a reduction of almost 60% in our grand vin taking into account the production of Hospitalet de Gazin, the domain’s second wine, which contributed to limiting the share of the grand vin even more.
All of our Bordeaux traders saw their allocations decrease in proportion. Gazin’s total harvest represented around 36,000 bottles.
Heavy rain in May and June, combined with lower temperatures in spring and summer, in contrast to recent years, made this vintage a more “traditional”, less sunny Pomerol, providing a 100% merlot wine with an alcohol content of 13.4°.
The merlot harvest took place from 21 to 30 September (the cabernet franc grapes were picked on 1 October and the cabernet sauvignon on 7 October. They make up a significant proportion of the Hospitalet de Gazin).
The 2021 was matured in barrels for 14 months: 50% in new barrels and 50% in one-year barrels with light fining with egg whites.
Our 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.
While this vintage may not have the power of the 2020 or the body of the 2022, it will probably make a good Pomerol after being aged for a few years (8-10 years), and its pure merlot structure means it can be appreciated when younger.
Everyone can easily decipher the little partition on the back label. It will remind you of a traditional French drinking song.

The 2022 vintage of Château Gazin has just been bottled. It is now June 2024. This is once again a good vintage that our vineyard offers to enthusiasts. 2022: a vintage to wait for reasonably, with patience, until 2032/34 for optimal tasting. But it may be possible to drink it a little earlier – after decanting, to achieve a slight oxidation – like all Pomerol wines that showcase merlot.

This vintage is a blend of 94% merlot, 3% cabernet sauvignon, and 3% cabernet franc.
2022 did not experience easy weather conditions: high to very high temperatures from February until the harvest, early flowering comparable to the 2020 vintage, lack of water: from June 30 to August 14, only one storm with 16 mm of rainfall, then some rain at the end of August which helped avoid maturity blockages. Early harvest starting on September 2 for the merlots, finished on September 19 with the cabernets. A 30% loss in harvest volume with very small berries, for a production of 67,000 bottles.

Pleasant surprise: the wine shows good acidity and a reasonable alcohol level (14°). During vinification, the well-ripened tannins of the grapes required gentle and measured extraction to obtain a balanced wine, which was then aged for 16 months in new barrels (50%) and in one-wine barrels (50%). Exceptionally, the estate did not produce Hospitalet de Gazin, its second wine. This indicates that the fine quality of the vintage was achieved.

2022 presents a dark garnet color. The nose offers notes of red and black fruits, aromas of blackberry and peony, interspersed with hints of brioche, vanilla, and blond tobacco brought by barrel aging. The palate is round, supported by silky tannins and pleasant freshness. Moderately fleshy, this refined wine is very long on the palate and well-balanced. We are in line with our 2019 vintage with great aging potential.
On the back label, it is written “Donec totum impleat”: in more explicit French: “the glass must be filled to the brim… but beware a Bordeaux glass should never be filled to the brim, but only halfway to allow it to aerate in the glass and release its aromas for a good start to the tasting.”