The 2018 Château Lafleur-Gazin is all Merlot and comes from a tiny parcel of gravelly, clay, and silty soils in Pomerol. Sweet red and black cherries, incense, and spicy oak as well as earth all emerge from this medium to full-bodied, polished, ripe, beautifully balanced red. With silky yet present tannins, good purity and freshness, and a great finish, it's another terrific 2018 to drink over the coming 10-15 years. Producer Information Château Lafleur-Gazin is an estate in the Pomerol appellation on Bordeaux's Right Bank. Its grand vin, like many others in the appellation, is made from a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. As the name suggests, the 8.5-hectare (21-acre) vineyard is located between Château Lafleur and Château Gazin. Most of the vineyard has the gravel soils that are typical of the top of the Pomerol plateau, and sandier soils on the slopes down towards the Barbanne stream. Lafleur-Gazin's vineyard is planted 80 percent to Merlot with the remainder made up of Cabernet Franc. The proportions in the final wine may vary by some distance from this – the 2015 vintage contained just two percent Cabernet Franc. Grapes are sorted in the winery using two laser sorting tables, and fermented in a combination of concrete and stainless steel tanks, all thermoregulated. Lafleur-Gazin uses vertical basket presses, with press wines added back to the blend during maturation. The wine is aged for 18-20 months in French oak barrels, with 25 percent new wood. It is racked three or four times during maturation and fined with egg whites before bottling. Château Lafleur-Gazin is owned by the Borderie family, but since 1976 has been under a long term rental agreement with Jean-Pierre Moueix Vins, which farms the property and produces and markets the wines.