Canon la Gaffelière (BIO-ORGANIC) - Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2023

Vinous

92

byNeal Martinthe2/1/2026

The 2023 Canon-La-Gaffelière showed well from barrel. Now in bottle, this has an elegant bouquet with brambly red berry fruit, sous-bois, touches of tobacco and a light cedar scent. The palate is medium-bodied with a little chewiness on the entry though that should be remedied with bottle age. What it needs to conjure is more complexity in the middle. The 2023 does not kick on like a delicious 2009 had done the previous week. Perhaps I was expecting a little more from this fine address?

Jamessuckling.com

97

byJames Sucklingthe1/27/2026

Complex aromas and flavors with so much perfume, showing dark cherries and raspberries with cedar and sandalwood character. Stony, salty undertones. Very refined tannins lead to a bright, vivid finish with dried mushrooms. Such class. A blend of 45% cabernet franc, 35% merlot and 20% cabernet sauvignon. Drinkable now but better in 2028.

My Bettane + Desseauve

95

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/15/2024

L’un des vins les plus raffinés du millésime, avec un toucher vibrant, une bouche soyeuse, étirée par un trame minérale calcaire qui construit la fin de bouche. Vin d’émotion qui évoluera parfaitement.

Yvesbeck.wine

95-96

byYves Beckthe5/14/2024

Die Leidenschaft für Präzision, Frucht und Frische, die Stéphane und Ludovic Neipperg in den letzten Jahren entwickelt haben, wird bestens durch das Bouquet des CLG 2023 verkörpert! Subtil und präzise offenbart sich der Wein in einem Crescendo, dessen treibende Kraft sehr feine Tannine sind, die zusammen mit der Säurestruktur das Rückgrat bilden. Der Wein hat eine gute Dichte und vereint Kraft und Temperament.

Jeb DUNNUCK

92-94

byJeb Dunnuckthe5/13/2024

The 2023 Château Canon-La-Gaffelière checks in as a blend 45% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon raised in 40% new oak. It has a pretty, perfumed, elegant, mineral-driven profile of red and blue fruits as well as tons of floral and spicy nuances. Medium-bodied, finesse-driven, and elegant, with fine tannins on the palate, it has the vintage's pure, elegant style, and while it will offer pleasure in its youth, it's going to benefit from time.

The Wine Independent

95-97

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe5/7/2024

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Canon la Gaffeliere pops from the glass with exuberant notes of fresh black and red currants, kirsch, and wild blueberries followed by hints of pencil shavings, violets, and mossy tree bark. The elegantly styled, medium-bodied palate is tightly wound and refreshing, with firm fine-grained tannins and bright crunchy red and black berry flavors, finishing long and minerally. The blend is 45% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Drinks Business

93-95

byColin Haythe5/7/2024

Canon La Gaffelière (Saint Émilion; 35% Merlot; 45% Cabernet Franc; 20% Cabernet Sauvignon; a final yield of 35 hl/ha; aging in oak barrels, just 40 % of which are new; 13% alcohol; tasted with Stephane and Ludovic von Neipperg at the property on the Saturday following en primeur week just before a substantial hail storm was broken up by Saint Émilion’s new canon defence system, rather impressively unleashed from Ludovic’s mobile phone!). The most beautiful nose. Cedar. Graphite. Violet and Parma violets. Crushed rose petals over dark black cherry and damson. Green tea and macha. Quite enticing and yet actually quite opulent for the vintage. A radiant cedar note too, that builds in the glass. Quite open-textured and with a little less depth and density than the nose leads you to anticipate. Fluid and sinuous. I love this style – a delicate balancing act between the breadth of frame to give to the Cabernet the space to express itself and the extraction to give this substance and ageability. A wine that really open and builds in the glass. Very fresh, vivid, energetic and stylish. 

The Wine Cellar Insider

95-97

byJeff Levethe5/6/2024

The perfume is similar to walking into a flower shop, carrying a basket of black raspberries, peppery cherries, and plums. Silky, refined, long, pure, and elegant, the fruit lingers on your palate, as well as in the finish, with touches of spice, mint, cigar wrappers, and licorice. The success of the vintage is due to finding phenolic ripeness in each parcel, coupled with gentle extractions. The wine blends 45% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. 13% ABV. The harvest took place September 20-29. Drink from 2028-2050. 95-97 Pts.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

94

byJane Ansonthe5/6/2024

Intense ruby colour, satiny texture with a reassuring correction of salted cracker to give balance to the exuberant raspberry fruits. Lifts not just on the finish but from the first moments, stretching out with a kick of slate and crushed rocks. Sleek and burnished. 75% in oak barrels for ageing (40% new) on the lees. 25% in vats. 35hl/ha.

Vinous

94-97

byAntonio Gallonithe4/30/2024

The 2023 Canon La Gaffelière is a powerful, dense wine. In recent years Canon La Gaffelière has been on the more perfumed side, but the 2023 moves in a direction of textural intensity. On the other hand, its balance is compelling. Dark red-toned fruit, pomegranate, spice, blood orange, mint and dried herbs open, but only with great reluctance. Tannins are present but also buried by the fruit.

Vinous

92-94

byNeal Martinthe4/29/2024

The 2023 Canon La Gaffelière saw harvest between September 20 and 29, cropped at 35hL/ha with slightly more Cabernet Franc (45%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) than usual. Matured in 40% new oak, this sports an unashamedly floral bouquet with pressed iris and violet flowers that are integrated with the black fruit—incredibly precise. The palate is very well balanced with slightly chalky tannins (a leitmotif of von Neipperg's 2023s). It fans out gently on the finish, yet it maintains a sense of verticality that you don't usually see in this Saint-Émilion. This is excellent, but a bit more Left Bank in style this year.

Falstaff

94

byPeter Moserthe4/29/2024

Dark ruby, purple reflections, subtle brightening on the rim. Delicately spicy, black forest berries, a hint of cherries, floral nuances, candied zest, inviting bouquet. Juicy, good complexity, fine fruit expression, balanced and finely structured, ripe cherries in the aftertaste, a delicate style, already accessible.

Alexandre Ma

93-95

byAlexandre Mathe4/28/2024

Wine Advocate

90-92

byWilliam Kelleythe4/26/2024

The 2023 Canon la Gaffelière offers up aromas of minty berries, plums, pencil shavings, dried herbs and bay leaf, followed by a medium to full-bodied, bright and crunchy palate underpinned by tangy acids and chalky tannins. It's a blend of 35% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Jamessuckling.com

96-97

byJames Sucklingthe4/25/2024

Showing al-dente fruit with raspberries, orange peel and other hints of bitter citrus. Medium-bodied with creamy and medium, round tannins leading to a salty finish. Cabernet franc really showing through. A blend of 45% cabernet franc, 35% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon. May be better than 2022.

Vertdevin

94

byJonathan Chicheportichethe4/24/2024