Château Le Gay 2020

The substance is there; you can sense an interesting base, but the overly dominant oak currently leads to a dry, bitter finish. The score is given in the hope that bottle ageing will bring more harmony.

A ripe and direct style, with a core of kirsch and cherry preserves laced with light licorice and sweet toast notes. The gentle finish lets the toast take the lead as the fruit loses energy. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2027.

Coiled with tension and focus. The elements feel well worked with an appealing, grainy grip to the tannins, dark fruit and perfumed nuances. Feels really quite glamorous and heady. Structured and concentrated no doubt, but with a nice blackcurrant juiciness and well integrated wood. Long finish.

So much black mushroom to the dark fruit, such as blackberries and brambleberries. Extremely aromatic. Full-bodied, yet refined and polished, with lovely tannins and fantastic typicity and complexity. It’s so multidimensional and structured, yet there’s a weightless character and personality to it. Thought-provoking and sophisticated. Real Pomerol. Drink after 2028, but a great experience already.

90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. Bright red-fruit aromas with a minty inflection. Sumptuous texture; the palate is velvety, round, and full. Then it tightens and focuses to a long, persistent finish. Plentiful but finely honed tannins. Crunchy and dry at the end. A slight glow of alcohol but clearly has potential. (JL)

The 2020 Le Gay was an impressive Pomerol when tasted from barrel. Now, in bottle, it has a wonderful, exquisitely defined bouquet with perfumed blackberry and briary notes, incense and light pencil-lead aromas. It’s quite understated for Le Gay, yet it blossoms in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fairly grainy tannins. Well balanced, fresh, with hints of licorice and brine leading to a very saline finish. There’s an edginess to this wine that I like, but it needs several years in bottle.

Full-bodied, concentrated, powerful, and rich, this beauty pops with licorice, smoke, flowers, roses, espresso, plums, and chocolate on the nose. The wine is bold, intense, and, at the moment, slightly reticent, so give it a few years before pulling a cork and you will be amply rewarded with layers of ripe, sweet, earthy plums, blackberries, black cherries, truffle, and chocolate. Drink from 2027–2055.

Somewhat open on the nose. Undergrowth, fir resin, ripe cherry. On the palate, a slightly oily texture overlaid with grainy, dry tannins, restrained acidity but good juiciness, a tight grip on the finish, with medium fruit. A punchy wine with potential.

A surprisingly up-front, soft, almost mid-weight effort from this château, the 2020 Château Le Gay offers a pretty perfume of both red and black fruits as well as loads of flowers, spice, leafy herbs, and incense. Medium-bodied, balanced, and elegant on the palate, it has polished tannins, terrific balance, sweet oak, and outstanding length. This exceedingly elegant, seamless beauty lacks the density and concentration of the top wines in the vintage but is nevertheless a gorgeous, classic Pomerol that will evolve for two decades.

Kunz barrel sample 2021: finely concentrated, complex, delicately opulent bouquet, strawberry jelly, dark chocolates, coconut, licorice, vanilla, fine mocha, cinnamon. Concentrated, multi-layered, creamy palate with powerful, sweet fruit, plenty of fine tannins, a densely interwoven, delicately muscular structure, diverse, powerful aromatics, and a very long, velvety, powerful finish with lots of lingering flavors.

Finely concentrated, complex, delicately opulent bouquet: strawberry jelly, dark chocolate pralines, coconut, licorice, vanilla, fine mocha, cinnamon. Concentrated, multi-layered, creamy palate with powerful, sweet fruit, plenty of fine tannins, a densely interwoven, subtly muscular structure, diverse and intense aromatics, a very long, velvety, powerful finish with many lingering flavors. 19/20 2027 - 2050

Coffee bean, blackberry and cocoa powder, with grip, confidence and powerful slate crushed rock. A yield of 35 hl/ha, vinified in new oak barrels. Henri Parent owner (he also, by the way, bought an organic truffle orchard in the Dordogne in this vintage), Michel Rolland consultant. Expect levels of Cabernet Franc to rise over the next few years.

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2020 Le Gay is closed to begin, needing a fair bit of swirling to unlock notes of crushed black and red berries, stewed plums, and fruitcake, plus hints of underbrush, sautéed herbs, and graphite. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with black fruit preserves, framed by firm, grainy tannins and soft acidity, finishing long and decadent.

95-96

The bouquet is highly expressive from the outset, showcasing classic representatives of Pomerol and the vintage, with shades of dark berries such as blueberry and blackcurrant, followed by a touch of licorice and black pepper. So much silkiness and elegance on the palate; the wine is creamy, compact, harmonious, and carried by silky tannins that keep the course of elegance through to the finish.

The nose is fresh and fruity, with elegance and an intensity of freshness. It shows a fine grain and plenty of volume. There are striking notes of cassis pulp, graphite, fresh violets and, more subtly, wild blackberries, along with hints of Timut pepper and a subtle touch of spice. The palate is fruity, with a fresh, mineral-driven backbone. There is delicacy within the density, tension, and a slightly airy feel. We find notes of juicy, pulpy blackberries, pulpy cassis and, more lightly, small pulpy red berries, combined with touches of cherry blossom, violet, cardamom, and fine hints of sweet spices. The tannins are precise and finely firm. This wine offers lovely freshness and subtlety, with good length.

Beautiful deep red. Moderately intense nose, fruity, oaky, spicy. Precise on the attack, delicately rich mid-palate, with a melting texture; the wine unfolds on nuances of ripe fruit accompanied by subtle oak lingering on the finish. Lovely, seamless finish. Give it time.

Crushed red-fruit intensity, with a hint of jamminess. There’s a very Pomerol-like generosity. The palate is dense, energetic, vinous, built on full, vigorous substance, clad in firm tannins and tightened by a lovely acidic spine. It falls within the sunny, rich character of the vintage, yet maintains a beautiful overall balance.

A fine, fruity wine that has a light touch of acidity to boost the black-currant fruits. It has a fresh character along with gentle tannins. Drink from 2024.