Chateau Gazin

The history of Chateau Gazin started in the early 18^th century, with the proprietor Antoine Feuilhade acquiring the property in 1772. Antoine was a lawyer and politician of considerable wealth, who was also the Mayor of Libourne in 1735. The estate did not remain with his family long, however, with his heir Jean died just two years after his father.

Hence the estate was passed to Antoine’s brother Arnaud who later sold it to a shipbuilder named Capitan-Bayonne, who also acquired the nearby Chateau Rouget. He and his family expanded the vineyard and developed the reputation for the wines. Subsequently it was passed to his nephew Fabre, and the estate remained in Fabre’s family until the later quarter of the 19^th century, when Gazin was acquired by Cabanes and later Leon Quenedey, a negociant.

Unfortunately during the tenure the reputation began to fade, with the sequence of phylloxera, oidium, war and depression hitting hard. In 1917 the estate was passed to Louis Soualle, who also acquired La Dominique, and his daughter later inherited the property, who was wed to Edouard de Bailliencourt.

The quality further deteriorated and after Edouard’s death, only one of his four children, Etienne, wished to continue with Chateau Gazin, and purchased the shares from his siblings, by selling 5 hectares to Jean-Pierre Moueix who absorbed those into the neighboring Petrus. The turnaround only happened in 1988 when his son Nicolas de Bailliencourt assumed responsibility, replacing machine harvest by hand, reducing yield, rebuilding the chai and installing new equipment.

In 1986 a second wine Hospitalet de Gazin was also introduced. Jean-Pierre Moueix was engaged to consult on vinification, as well as marketing, and the wines reflected the renewed vigor. Today Nicolas and Christophe de Billiencourt run the estate together, with winemaker Mickael Obert and consulted by Gilles Pauquet.

The estate covers 26.5 hectares, with 24 hectares of vines, of which 17 hectares are on clay and gravel of the Pomerol plateau, famous for producing the best wines in Pomerol. The remaining vines are more destined for the second wine. The vines are neighboring the prestigious Petrus and L’Evangile, predominantly Merlot at 90%, with 3% Cabernet Franc and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, at a density of 5500 vines per hectare.

Average vine age is 35 years with an ongoing program to replant. The chateau is located at the centre of the vineyards. The vines are harvested by hand, with typical yields of 35-45 hl/ha, with the fermentation done in temperature controlled cement and stainless steel vats. Maceration is between 20 to 30 days depending on vintage, with the wine going into oak which is 50% new for up to 18 months, where it undergoes malolactic fermentation with a little pigeage.

Some racking would be done before the wine is fined using egg white prior to bottling, with a light filtering if required. The blend is dominated by Merlot, typically between 85-95%, and an annual output of 8000 cases of the grand vin and 2000 cases of the second wine.

I have recently tasted the 2002 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Appearance
Bright and clear, the wine has deep intensity ruby color, with garnet rims and legs.

Nose

Clean, it has medium intensity aromas of black fruit such as black cherry, red fruit of plum, kernel notes of cocoa, pungent spice of licorice, sweet spice of nutmeg, mineral notes of earth, maturity notes of forest floor. The wine is developing.

Palate

Dry, it has medium acidity, medium (+) tannin of ripe but still grippy in texture. Medium level in alcohol, the wine has medium (+) body and medium intensity flavors of black fruit such as black cherry and plum, sweet spice of cloves, herbal notes of dill, oak notes of toast. The wine has a medium finish.

Conclusion

Good quality Pomerol with reasonable concentration on the nose, showing good complexity but on the palate the tannin is still gripping despite the age of the wine, showing also a bit herbal and under ripeness, showing the difficult vintage of 2002. The wine has a fair length on the finish, ready to drink now and not meant for further ageing but can keep for another 1-2 years.