1985 is a date worth knowing at this address. It is the vintage in which Stephan von Neipperg took charge of his family's Saint-Émilion estate. His father had bought Canon-la-Gaffelière in 1971; the son spent the following decades rebuilding it into a Premier Grand Cru Classé, which it became in 2012. This bottle sits right at the beginning of that.
The vineyard is unusual for a leading Saint-Émilion. Rather than sitting on the limestone plateau, it lies at the foot of the slope on sand and gravel just below the town, and it carries a very high proportion of Cabernet Franc alongside the Merlot. The result is more aromatic and less broad than plateau wines from the same appellation.
The 1985 growing season stayed warm and dry into the autumn and gave ripe, immediately likeable wines. Four decades on, expect something mellow and savoury rather than fruit-driven, and a bottle whose interest is as much biographical as it is liquid.
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Producer: Château Canon-La-Gaffelière
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Vintage: 1985
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Appellation: Saint-Émilion Grand Cru AOC
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Format: 75cl
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Region: Bordeaux, France
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Style: Red
Where it is likely to be now. Cabernet Franc ages into a fragrant, savoury register rather than fading outright, so this is likely mature and gentle rather than gone, but it will not stand up to hours in a decanter.
Who it suits. For a forty-first birthday or forty-one years of marriage, with the neat coincidence that 1985 marked the estate's own new beginning as well as the recipient's.
Condition. Barely any cellar marking on the label, and the fill sits between very top shoulder and base of neck, which is normal and healthy ullage for a wine of this age.
Provenance. Bought to order from a professional European merchant. We check fill, label and capsule when the bottle reaches us and photograph it before it ships.
Delivered in 7 to 10 working days, tracked. Transit cover can be added at checkout.
Sold as a collectible item, as seen. No guarantee is given on drinkability.
