The evening was just beginning at Vertical Detroit, with a vertical tasting of Chateau Gaby, hosted by The Fine Wine Source of Livonia, Michigan.  The evening also featured the winemaker Damien Landouar and there was quite a crowd.  Chateau Gaby is an estate located in the Canon-Fronsac appellation on the right bank of Bordeaux, and produces some extremely fine wines and some consider it, a well-kept secret.  The wines for Chateau Gaby and Chateau Gaby Cuvee wines are produced from older vines grown on the limestone rich hills of the estate.  The estate is flanked by the Dordogne River, and the hill estates are likened to the Saint-Emilion appellation.

The penultimate wine of the vertical tasting was Chateau Gaby Canon-Fronsac 2008.  This was from a balanced year for the seasons.  The spring was fairly wet, but still a sunny spring.  The summer was consistently moderate and sunny, and followed by a mild and dry autumn before harvest. The wine is a blend of eighty percent Merlot, ten percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and ten percent Cabernet Franc.  The fruit is hand-harvested in the second week of October.  Then the wine is aged for twenty-four months in French Oak, of which half is new.  A nice ruby color, the wine offered notes of red fruit and truffles.  On the palate the wine offered tones of cherry, and cassis, very fresh with silk tannins.  I think it needs more time in the cellar. 

The last wine from the vertical tasting was Chateau Gaby Canon-Fronsac 2010.  It was one of the best vintages in Bordeaux across the board.  The climate was a perfect blend of precipitation, temperatures, and sun.  As always, this wine was a blend of eighty percent Merlot, ten percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and ten percent Cabernet Franc.  The fruit was hand-harvested on the second week of October and was aged for twenty-four months in French Oak of which half was new.  The wine was a deep ruby color and it offered notes of red fruits and black fruits and spices.  On the palate, the tones of the red and black fruits offered a rich, complexity, followed by full tannins, spices and finishing off with a good medium count of fruit and terroir.  After the vertical tasting we had several discussions and naturally with wine, there is not always a consensus, while they all were well made, I really enjoyed the 2004, 2006, 2007 and the 2010.  There was more to come.