Julie Gonet-Medeville (above) runs the family business with her husband, Xavier.
Julie Gonet-Medeville had run Gilette and sister property Les Justices with her husband, Xavier Gonet (who comes from a famous family in Champagne, Gonet), since 2004, when they took over from Julie's parents, Christian & Andrée Medeville. I've known Christian and Andrée Medeville since 1987 when I first visited Gilette, and both wines hit me so hard with their excellence that I haven't recovered yet. Both are fantastic wines at their level.
Julie takes care of marketing and travels abroad to spread the fame of both estates, while Xavier takes care of vinification. And both do an excellent job. Julie is a thoroughly educated lawyer who left that path and decided to continue the family tradition.
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Château Gilette
The Medeville family has owned this property since 1710. It's situated in the Preignac commune; the soil is sandy, with stones embedded in clay subsoil. 4.5 ha of vines are planted with 90% Semillon, 8% Sauvignon Blanc, and 2% Muscadelle. The average age of the vines is 40 years, and yield per ha varies between 9 and 15 hl, depending on the vintage.
Only sugar content corresponding to at least 20% alcohol must be processed further. Vinification is classic and traditional, but Gilette is a total break with winemaking traditions in the district regarding the aging of wine. It ages 15-20 years (!) – and only in small sealed concrete vats, where all air is removed. No oak barrels here!
This aging aims to ensure the wine doesn't get any other taste from barrels and keeps its freshness and vigor. If you are a Sauternes freak, then Gilette is a must, even if not everybody will like its "heavy" style (rich in alcohol) with fresh sweetness and energy, because some got used through the years to the "old" (in wines with quite some age) sweetness, which is to be found in traditionally made wines.
For me, Gilette is often among the best wines in the district, challenging the "king" d'Yquem. A superbly concentrated wine with freshness and fantastic botrytized flavors like almonds (imho the typical taste for Gilette), acacia honey, mandarine/mandarine peel, orange confit, peach, and honey melon.
Gilette is quite expensive, but one must understand that the product's cost returns to Gilette earliest 20 years after the harvest (16 years aging + 4 years in bottle before release) because of its specific production method.
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2001 Gilette 98-99p
Tasted in April 2024. It has a very intense nose of walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts. It is unctuous on the palate, with plenty of nuts dipped in honey, and the remarkable acidity matches these perfectly. It will be fun to taste this wine against Yquem 2001! It is a wonderful effort!
1999 Gilette 94p
Tasted in April 2024. Mango, orange peel, and mandarine peel flavors on the nose and palate. Fine palate with grilled almonds, richness, and bright acidity. Terrific stuff.
1997 Gilette 95p
Tasted in April 2017. This wine is the newest release from Julie and Xavier Gonet-Medeville. Twenty years in concrete vats. It tasted like honey essence, fresh and very intense, with the hallmark flavor of the property (grilled almonds), mango, and great acidity. Simply excellent!
1996 Gilette 94-95p
Tasted twice - last time in April 2019. Consistent notes. In this vintage, grapes were dried by wind (passerilage), not by a widespread botrytis attack. It had perfect sweetness, almond flavor, intensity, concentration, acidity, and length.
1990 Gilette 96-97p
Tasted twice - last time in April 2017. Consistent notes. It showed great acidity, sweetness, concentration, complexity, acacia honey, a strong taste of almonds, and a long finish. Very classy and refined wine!
1989 Gilette 96-97p
Tasted twice - last time in April 2013. Consistent notes. Heavy style with alcohol is very present but not dominating. Extremely intense, botrytized creme brulée, pineapple, and molasses flavors, great interplay between sweetness and acidity, stunning concentration and depth, strong structure, and long finish. Typical of the vintage.
1988 Gilette 98p
Tasted in April 2010. Tighter, richer, and more concentrated than in 1986. A stunning example of Sauternes wine, 22 years old, with extraordinary freshness and vitality.
1986 Gilette 96p
Tasted three times - last time in December 2016. Consistent notes. More open than 1988, almonds again, fresh, incredibly scented on the nose and palate, sophisticated, great depth and backbone, long and velvety on the palate, with a fat and robust finish. It is a heavenly treat and a great wine. In December 2016, it gave 1986 Yquem run for the money!
1985 Gilette 94p
Tasted three times - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. The honeyed and almondy flavors on the nose and palate, candied mandarine/orange/lemon peel, and excellent acidity with a slight bitterness keep this wine fresh and alive.
1983 Gilette 97p
Tasted four times - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. This wine gives a 1986 run for the money and is close to 1988 regarding botrytized flavors' depth, concentration, and intensity. There are fantastic flavors of acacia honey, almonds, apricots, candied peaches, mandarins, and mango fragrances. An astonishing piece of winemaking.
1982 Gilette 90p
Tasted in April 2010. In this challenging vintage, it was a straightforward wine, significantly lighter and less rich than in 1983. It is a delicious wine with a lovely intensity of botrytized flavors like peach, honey melon, and apricot mixed with brown sugar.
1981 Gilette 92p
Tasted twice - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. Botrytized toffée and créme brulée flavors, intense, delicate balance between acidity and sweetness, fine length, and a fine caressing finish.
1979 Gilette 93p
Tasted three times - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. It's the same style as 1981, but I find 1979 more powerful, richer, and longer on the palate.
1975 Gilette 94p
Tasted in November 2021. It was still fresh, with great sweetness and matching acidity. Almonds, orange peel, dried apricots, candied peach, and heather honey. It's just a terrific stickie to enjoy!
1970 Gilette 91p
Tasted in April 2003. Spicy acacia honey, quite alcoholic, créme brulée, elegant, well-balanced. It is lighter than usual but has immediate appeal due to its roundness and soft texture.
1967 Gilette 96p
Tasted twice - last time in December 2006. Consistent notes. This vintage is one of the most famous in Sauternes, and Gilette is among the top wines but less phenomenal than d'Yquem and Climens. Almonds marinated in Grand Marnier, fresh, incredibly scented on the nose and palate, sophisticated, with great depth and backbone, and long and velvety on the palate with a fat and robust finish. Great intensity and structure. It was first tasted in June 1990 - it has stayed the same for 16 years. What a proof of aging potential!
1937 Gilette 100p
Tasted in June 1990. It's one of the best sweet wines I've tasted. It was the true nectar of Gods, with everything sensational in this wine. I am running out of superlatives!!
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Château Les Justices
Sister property of Gilette. The vineyard covers 8.5 ha of vines. planted with 88% Sémillon, 8% Sauvignon Blanc and 4% Muscadelle. Vines are 25 years old on average. Some decades ago, Les Justices was vinified in the same way as Gilette, but with only four years' stay in concrete vats. Nowadays, it's vinified traditionally, and aging takes place in concrete vats for 18 months.
Les Justices is excellent value for the money and is often better in quality and consistency than several highly-priced classified growths in Sauternes & Barsac. It's 1/6 of Gilette's price.
2016 Les Justices (barrel sample) 91p
Tasted in April 2017. It's on the light side, elegant, and with much finesse. Tasty sweetness and nice acidity on the palate.
2014 Les Justices (barrel sample) 92p
Tasted in March 2015. Strong acidity, pineapple, petrol, candied orange peel, Long finish. Splendid.
2012 Les Justices (barrel sample) 88-89p
Tasted in April 2013. Dried apricot, pineapple, almonds, lovely fruit, botrytised flavors, nice acidity, lighter than usual.
2011 Les Justices (barrel sample) 92p
Tasted in April 2013. Incredibly intense, lush, fabulous sweetness and acidity. The nose of orange/mandarin, candied pineapple. It is a very, very long finish. Excellent.
2010 Les Justices (barrel sample) 92-93p
Tasted in September 2011. Even more intense flavors here, more concentration, and a bigger length. Excellent for the vintage as well.
2009 Les Justices (barrel sample) 92p
Tasted twice - last time in October 2010. Consistent notes. Wonderfully botrytized flavors like acacia honey, pineapple, and pear, great intensity, finesse, and elegance. It has great depth and length and is excellent for the vintage.
2008 Les Justices 91p
Tasted in October 2010. It resembles much of the 2006 vintage, but maybe 2008 has more botrytized flavors and expresses more intensity.
2007 Les Justices 93p
Tasted in April 2010. More intense here than in 2009, with beautiful acidity and sweetness, long on the palate, and a lingering honeyed aftertaste. Excellent balance and richness. Formidable work in the cellar.
2006 Les Justices 91p
Tasted in April 2010. Relatively less intense and less rich on the nose and palate than in 2007. Still, it's a fine-quality wine.
2005 Les Justices 93p
Tasted three times - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. Hugely intense nose of acacia honey, mango, and apricot, honeyed on the palate, with beautiful balance and acidity. Exceptional value for the money and, again, a stunning effort from this property.
2004 Les Justices 91p
Tasted in April 2010. A downscaled version of 2005 and like 2006, it's a fine value for the money.
2003 Les Justices 92+p
Tasted in April 2010. It was unusual for the property to produce thick and heavy wine, but no complaints from me! Brown sugar, tropical flavors (mango, guava, sweet pineapple, and candied mandarine peel). Acidity is just splendid and doesn't allow the sweetness to take command here. Very intense. Long and with a long, fat, and honeyed aftertaste. It will go excellently with heavy-spiced Asian food due to its high residual sugar content.
2002 Les Justices 91p
Tasted in April 2010. It represents excellent value for the money, créme brulée, complex, rich, and well-crafted. This wine makes the 2002 vintage proud!
2001 Les Justices 94p
Tasted four times - last time in April 2010. Consistent notes. It has a fantastic nose of botrytized flavors like molasses, brown sugar, peach, acacia flower/honey, and melon. Stunning richness, depth, acidity, concentration, and length. The finish goes on and on. It is an angelic treat for the money and mind-blowing effort from this unclassified growth.
2000 Les Justices 89p
Tasted in April 2003. Not precisely pure botrytized flavors - the sweetness comes from wind-dried grapes. It is elegant, charming, quite intense, and well-structured. It is a lovely wine to be enjoyed while you wait for the famous vintages.