PRE-ORDER
2000 | JS 100
The nose is fresh, bright, and dense. With aromas of violets, minerals, spices, cool stones, mint, dark fruits, and plum skins, this is beautiful. Very much still a baby right now, it needs much more time. This is a wine for the next generation. Finesse and elegance, truly a wine that makes you contemplate life.
2002 | WS 95
Cedar, black currant, tobacco, lead pencil shavings, and earthy notes.
2003 | WA 100
Full-bodied with very firm tannins that have softened with age but ensure longevity.
2005 | JS 100
It is built for long-term aging, with experts advising it still requires time to reach its full potential, despite entering its drinking window.
2007 | WE 94
Savory, classic, and elegant. It is noted for being less powerful than typical Lafite vintages but very sophisticated.
2008 | WA 96
Critics describe it as refined, focused, and intense, with "textbook" Lafite cedar and lead pencil notes, alongside savory black fruits.
2011 | WE 96
Known for a delicate yet structured style with fresh acidity and subtle cedar, graphite, and spice notes.
2012 | WE 97
Medium-bodied, soft, and spicy with notes of blackcurrant and graphite.
2014 | JS 98
The 2014 vintage is characterized by a "tight and dense" structure with "solid, compact balance," notes Wine.com. It is often described as having a floral nose with strong graphite, violet, and dark fruit flavors, making it a very polished and elegant, rather than overly powerful, wine.
2015 | JS 99
Rich, powerful, and textured with a strong graphite backbone.
2016 | JS 100
Full-bodied, dense, and structured, with intense tannins that are perfectly ripe and polished.
2017 | JS 98
Elegant, medium-bodied, and highly aromatic with savory accents, vibrant red/black fruits, and a long, perfumed finish.
2018 | WA 100
Deep purple-black in color, it needs a fair bit of swirling to unlock intoxicating scents of blackcurrant cordial, baked plums and black cherry compote with an undercurrent of dark chocolate, licorice, cast-iron pan, cedar chest and fertile loam, plus a waft of pencil lead.
2019 | WA 100
The 2019 vintage is described as having a "sensual bouquet" with aromas of dark fruit, pencil box, sous-bois (underbrush), and white pepper. It is characterized by a "femme fatale" texture—power disguised by silky, polished tannins.
2020 | WE 100
Dense and structured yet incredibly elegant, with notes of cigar box, cedar, and crushed stones.
2021 | JS 97
Savory, elegant, and "old-school" rather than powerful, Dark berries, cedar pencil, black truffle, violets, and graphite.
About Winery
Chateau Lafite Rothschild is one of only four classified first growths and thus the designation as 1st er Cru. The vintage rankings of the Universal Paris Exposition in 1855 officially gave Lafite the rating as “Leader among fine wines.”
While the first known reference to Lafite dates to 1234 with a certain Gombaud de Lafite, abbot of the Vertheuil Monastery north of Pauillac, Lafite’s mention as a medieval fief dates to the 14th century. The name Lafite comes from the Gascon language term “la hite”, which means “hillock”.
There were probably already vineyards on the property at the time when the Ségur family organised the vineyard in the 17th century, and Lafite began to earn its reputation as a great winemaking estate.
Jacques de Ségur was credited with the planting of the Lafite vineyard in the 1670s and in the early 1680s. The estate achieved wide popularity in the 1750s when it became the favorite wine of King Louis XV. Thomas Jefferson was also a steadfast customer and even visited the estate.
After the 1973-1976 mini-crisis that hit Bordeaux, Baron Eric’s management of the estate made strides forward with a search for excellence and the gradual addition of a new technical team. In 1985 Baron Eric began a tradition of inviting fine-arts photographers to photograph Chateau Lafite.
Today, his daughter Saskia de Rothschild represents the 6th generation of the family at the head of the winemaking properties.
