Le Gay 2008

One of the top successes of the vintage, the 2008 Le Gay, a blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc (13.5% alcohol) was produced from tiny yields of 25 hectoliters per hectare. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, it exhibits a dense purple color as well as a sweet nose of spring flowers intermixed with blueberries, blackberries, dark raspberries, crushed rocks and white chocolate. Full-bodied, super intense and extremely promising (although it is unusually backward for a 2008), it will benefit from 5-7 years of cellaring and may merit an even higher score in a decade or so. It should last for 30+ years, making it one of the longest-lived wines of the vintage.

The 2008 Le Gay has a very refined bouquet with intense, quite pure blackberry, briary and black truffle scents, an engaging sense of mineralité and terroir. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, very good density, a sinewy Le Gay that is bold and structured. My only quibble? It just lacks the complexity and finesse on the finish. 2018 - 2030

There is a lot happening on the nose, first blackberry and bilberry then fleshier black plum. The fruit on the palate is concentrated and lush the richness of the flavours well balanced by raspberry freshness all adding to the complexity.

Is this the greatest Le Gay since the 1950 and 1947? Maybe. Certainly it is the most awesome wine made by the new administration of Catherine Pere-Verge. The renowned Michel Rolland consults here. Yields in 2008 were frightfully small, and the grapes were harvested in mid-October. The result is a black/purple-colored wine revealing a bouquet of graphite, incense, ink, and stunningly pure, rich dark red and black fruits. Massive in the mouth, with surprisingly good acidity, a boatload of sweet, supple tannin, a multilayered mouthfeel, and a finish that lasts nearly a minute, this phenomenal effort should be drinkable between 2015-2040.