Château Canon-La-Gaffeliére producerer uden tvivl en af de mest berømte og beundrede Saint-Emilion-vine. Slottet blev i 1971 erhvervet af jarlen Joseph-Hubert Von Neipperg, der kan dokumentere at familien har været forbundet med vindyrkning i 800 år. I 1985 overlod han administrationen til sin sønnen Stephan, som med al respekt for Joseph-Hubert, engagerede sig anderledes seriøst i ejendommen. Massive investeringer, et lykkebringende samarbejde med en berømte ønolog Stephane Derenoncourt og ikke mindst en satsnings på bæredygtig produktion har således ledt frem til, at ledende vinskribenter ligefrem taler om "genfødslen" af Château Canon-La-Gaffeliére, som i tilgift blev certificeret økologisk i 2014.
Lidt specielt for Saint-Emilion er ejendommen for tiden tilplantet med 55% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc og 5% Cabernet Sauvignon (de fleste andre slotte flager med 70% Merlot eller mere) og på grund af ny tilplantninger på parcellerne med Merlot er Merlot andelen i vinen de senere år faldet ned under de 50%.
Gæring parcel for parcel i egefade med "pneumatic pigeage" i 35 dage i den ultramoderne kælder og herefter 16 måneders modning (60% nye fade) frem mod aftapningen på flaske.
Stephan Von Neipperg profilerer 2019-årgangen således:
"The 2019 vintage got off to a mixed start: January was the only really cold month of a particularly dry winter, followed by unusually mild weather in February and March with exceptional sunshine, leading to The arrival of spring saw cool temperatures accompanied by frequent rainfall, slowing down vine growth. Flowering was nevertheless quick and even throughout our terroirs. The first day of summer, on 21 June, marked the beginning of an exce average temperatures. July was also one of the three hottest months of the past 30 years… ptionally hot period with aboveHowever, excessive water stress did not occur thanks to water reserves that had been reconstituted in early spring. Furthermore, our vineyards benefit from deeply management.rooted vines and excellent soil covering Scattered showers in the last week of July brought about moderate hydric stress conducive to even véraison Several (colour change), as was the case in 2018. showers in early September enabled the grape skins to finish ripening with very good homogeneity. 2019 Primeurs June 2020 1 2 www.neipperg.com /The month of September was exceptional, with alternating warm days and cool nights, favouring rich aromas and tannins. The low PH of our terroirs helped obta in perfect balance between sugar and acidity. The harvest began on 12 September and ended on 7 October, with no stress whatsoever! Our Merlots were particularly successful, marked by fruity notes and the minerality of our clay limestone terroir, enhanced b y the incredibly expressive and spicy Cabernet Franc."