France · Bordeaux

Chateau La Fleur de Gay

Château La Fleur de Gay is a micro-négociant creation from Pomerol, produced by Dr. Alain Raynaud of Château Le Gay and Château La Croix de Gay fame. The wine is produced from a selection of old-vine Merlot aged in 100% new oak, a format that attracted substantial attention during the Parker era when the wine regularly scored in the mid-to-high 90s. First produced in 1982, La Fleur de Gay became one of Pomerol's most talked-about micro-wines in the late 1980s and 1990s, rivaling nearby garage wines. With 179 lots exclusively in the Pomerol appellation averaging $187, the estate's auction record spans an impressive breadth: the 1992 vintage—widely considered a weak Bordeaux year—is the most frequently traded, suggesting collector depth across difficult vintages. The price ceiling of $1,076 represents exceptional back-vintage lots from critical successes such as 1989 and 1990. The wine is produced in tiny quantities from a less-than-1-hectare parcel, making each bottle genuinely scarce. Current ownership and production status following restructuring of the Raynaud family estates has created some uncertainty about future releases, which may support sustained demand for existing auction inventory.