The 2020 La Gaffelière is superb. Rich, dense and explosive. Black cherry, gravel, licorice, grilled herbs and menthol race out of the glass. Deep, pliant and explosive, the 2020 is magnificent. At this stage, the 2020 is an infant, but that won't be a problem in a few years. This vivid, statuesque Saint-Émilion is nothing short of thrilling. -- Antonio Galloni

Deep and intense notes of plums and blackberries with dark chocolate, toasted spices, walnut, crushed graphite and wet stones. Full-bodied with layers of ripe, velvety tannins that flow in a firm stream throughout the palate. Very structured. Delicious chocolate-wrapped black and blue fruit with spiced character and a really long finish. 60% merlot and 40% cabernet franc. Drink from 2028.

Perfumed, delicate, generous and evocative all in equal measure. The fruit quality is excellent, so vibrant and lifted, shining out of the glass. Really bright with energy and dynamism. Lovely lifted expression full of rose petals, herbal-tinged raspberries, blackcurrants and plums. Chalky, creamy and salty, with a cooling freshness. Lots to like with classic elements as well as touches of the hot vintage. It’s not showing it’s best right now but this is delicious.

Limestone dominance from the first moment, with saffron and oyster shell along with juicy and well-controlled blueberry and raspberry fruit, and white pepper spice. Cabernet Franc dominant in the aromatics of savoury tomato leaf, peony and heather, this is sleek, silky and excelllent quality. First vintage without the Grand Cru Classé on the label, as it withdrew from the ranking, and a clear loss to the classification. 42hl/ha yield.

A worthy follow up to the excellent 2019, the 2020 La Gaffelière bursts with aromas of plums, sweet berries, licorice, mint and loamy soil. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and concentrated, with lively acids and vibrant fruit flavors, it's built around powdery, fine-grained tannins. Cabernet Franc represents fully 40% of the blend. As I wrote last year, this estate, in many respects Saint-Émilion's sleeping giant, is awakening. - William Kelley

Here's a winner in this heat-influenced vintage, showing remarkable purity and focus, with a gorgeous beam of cassis, cherry paste and violet cruising through, inlaid with subtle chalky minerality and backed by a broad stroke of mouthwatering tobacco on the finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2028 through 2040. — J.M.

The 2020 Château La Gaffelière checks in as a 60/40 split of Merlot and Cabernet Franc that saw 50% new barrels. This medium to full-bodied, pure, elegant, seamless Saint-Emilion has lots of cassis and darker raspberry-like fruits, good mid-palate depth, ripe tannins, and solid complexity in its notes of graphite, sandalwood, and Asian spices. It doesn't bring the depth and richness of the top wines in the vintage, but it certainly shines for its complexity and balance.