You may have noticed that over the years I have mentioned my local wine shop/club that I visit quite often, well they also own a wine-centric restaurant Vertical Detroit in the historic Ashley Hotel in Downtown Detroit. The restaurant opened in September 2015, but closed during the mandated lockdown period which ruined many establishments.  They reopened and continue with their concept of over two-hundred-fifty different vintages by the bottle and nearly forty-five by the glass.  The word vertical in wine-talk refers to trying the same wine over the course of at least three years, and they even offer several selections of verticals there as well.  My Bride and I were invited to Vertical for a vertical tasting of wines by Chateau Gaby of Canon-Fronsac by Jim Lutfy, his wife Livvie, and their daughter Remy.  The tasting was conducted by the winemaker Damien Landouar

We were going to be tasting a vertical of six wines from Chateau Gaby.  The estate is an hour drive east from the city of Bordeaux, and the jewel of the Canon-Fronsac appellation.  The 18^th Century chateau is nestled on a hilltop overlook the vineyards.  The first vines were planted in the 1600’s, and the estate underwent a restoration in 2006; and is considered one of the finest panoramic views in all of Bordeaux.  At one time the wines of the Dukes of Richelieu. The soils are more sandstone and limestone, instead of clay, and this aids the vines resistance to hotter weather. We started with Chateau Gaby Canon Fronsac 2002.  The early fall prior to harvest was a blessing for this wine.  The wine is a blend of eighty percent Merlot, ten percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and ten percent Cabernet Franc. The fruit is harvested by hand, traditionally in the second week of October.  The wine is aged for twenty-four months in French Oak, of which half is new.  A pretty ruby color that offered notes of red fruit, and fresh tobacco.  On the palate the wine offered tones of cherry and cassis, balanced with a medium count offering fruit and terroir. 

The second wine of the vertical tasting was Chateau Gaby Canon Fronsac 2004.  Another vintage where the early fall was a boon for this wine, according to the winemaker.  The wine is a blend of eighty percent Merlot, ten percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and ten percent Cabernet Franc.  Hand-harvested in the second week of October.  The wine is aged for twenty-four months in French Oak, of which half is new.  The wine was a deeper ruby color and offered great notes of black fruits, tobacco, and cedar.  On the palate, the tones of the black fruits were more intense, very well balanced, with a big and creamy feel and good finish of terroir.  I thought I liked the 2002, until I tasted the 2004.