Chateau Lafite Rothschild Tasting Back to 1975 Friday, December 5th 7:30pm and all the Chateau Lafite Rothschild in the store on SALE!!
The Wines of Bordeaux give tone to the stomach, while leaving the mouth fresh and the head clear. More than one invalid abandoned by the doctors has been seen to drink the good old wine of Bordeaux and return to health.
--Comments by members of the Jury judging Bordeaux wines submitted under the new 1855 classification at the 1855 World's Fair in Paris, as noted in 1855: A History of the Bordeaux Classification
I have been preaching the health benefits of wine for a long time and what better way to get healthy that a vertical selection of Chateau Latife Rothschild. This is part of our "Once in a lifetime" series of wine tastings and this is the last of the scientific work that we will be doing here at the Wine Bar until after the Christmas holiday!
Chateau Lafite Rothschild has become the hottest Bordeaux on the market today because of the demand for this product in the Asian market. But this "first" of first growths has been in the limelight for several hundred years now which is one of the reasons that they have a world-wide demand for this classic claret.
The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $1500 + tax and this includes dinner! For reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.
Chateau Lafite Rothschild Tasting Back to 1975
Friday, December 5th
7:30pm
1975 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1982 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1983 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1983 Carruades de Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1985 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1986 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
1994 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
2000 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
2003 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
2009 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Menu
Selection of Cheese and Charcuterie
Mushroom Carpaccio with Heirloom Tomato Tartar, Fontodi Olive Oil and Aged Balsamic
Duck and Smoked Mozzarella Ravioli with Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette
Sliced NY with Sweet Potato Mash and Bordeaux Demi Glaze
Chocolate Cherry Charlotte
The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $1500 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com
A bit about Chateau Lafite Rothschild:
In the opinion of many wine lovers and certainly in the opinion of the public at large, Chateau Lafite-Rothschild is the greatest red Bordeaux as well as the greatest red wine vineyard in the world. The history of the property is certainly as interesting as the wine itself and is too long and complicated to recount in the short space at hand.
Nevertheless, the high points bear repeating. As with most wines of the Médoc, the fame of Lafite first dates from the eighteenth century. During the reign of Louis XV, Lafite was owned by the very powerful and wealthy Marquis de Ségur, who also owned Latour, Mouton, and Calon Ségur. Upon Ségur's death in 1755, the estate became embroiled in a long and complex battle among the heirs. Over the course of the next one hundred years, it was auctioned twice - the second time in 1868 to the scion of a famous Paris banking family, Baron James de Rothschild. The selling price was an astounding 4,400,000 francs. To properly appreciate the significance of this sum, the equally prestigious Mouton-Rothschild had sold a little more than a decade earlier for one quarter of that sum. The lofty price paid for Lafite was due in no small part to the enormous prestige the property enjoyed as a result of the famous 1855 Grand Cru Classification. At the Paris Exposition in that year, Bordeaux brokers and merchants compiled a list of the top sixty Médoc chateaux and ranked them in five groups. Lafite was placed at the very top of the first group - first of the firsts. Also shortly after the sale to the Rothschilds in 1868, a famous auction of some of the chateau's wonderful old vintages was held. This was a remarkable event, for the wines fetched hitherto unheard of prices - with the 1811, the great Comet vintage, commanding the highest price of all. It was without doubt the greatest wine auction that had ever been seen up to that time. Over the years to the Second World War various Rothschilds ran the chateau, but after the war it seemed that Lafite was just one of many jewels owned by the family - an interest and concern to be visited and supervised when necessary. The period after 1945 was not one of neglect, but the property certainly did not get the care and attention that cousin Baron Philippe fostered on his beloved Mouton-Rothschild. As a result many felt that Lafite gradually began to lose its place of preeminence during the postwar years and that the last great Lafite was produced in the 1959 vintage. In fact, another vintage the equal of the 1959 was not seen for nearly two decades. That was in 1975, the same year that year that the chateau hired a new winemaker, Jean Crete, formerly of Leoville Las Cases and also engaged the consulting services of Emile Peynaud, the famed University of Bordeaux enologist. In 1977 a new generation Rothschild, Eric de Rothschild, arrived to oversee the property and become a hands-on proprietor. The stage was set for Lafite's return to greatness, and the 1975 vintage proved that Lafite still had the stuff.
With nearly 200 acres under vines and an average annual production of 20,000 cases, Lafite is the largest of the first growths both in terms of area and production. The vineyards lie on slopes in the northern end of the commune of Pauillac. Across a meadow on its northern border lies the commune of St. Estèphe and the imposing Chinese Gothic architecture of Chateau Cos D'Estournel. On the Pauillac side, Lafite adjoins Mouton at many points. The chateau itself is a pleasing compendium of medieval turrets and seventeenth and eighteenth century buildings standing among a row of trees on a hill above the famous Routes des Chateaux. The chaise (the cellars where the new wine is aged in barrels) are quite impressive, but even more awesome is the magnificent underground cellar where Lafite's unique collection of old wines goes back to the 1797 vintage. If any one spot on earth is Mecca to the winelover, it is here at Lafite - the one place that connoisseurs the world over must visit once in their lifetime.
And what is one to say of the wines of Lafite that has not already been expressed with all the gloriously extravagant rhetorical fantasies of bygone days? Without attempting to outdo the embellishments of some of the greatest writers of wine lore, we will say only that, at its best, Lafite is the quintessential claret - a wine that combines finesse, breed, depth, and longevity. It certainly is a softer wine than Mouton and Latour, the other two great Pauillacs. This is due no doubt to the high percentage of Merlot used in the blend. And what about recent vintages of Lafite? It is true that Lafite went through spotty times. Although 1961, 1966, and 1970 were remarkable vintages for Bordeaux, we were never impressed with the Lafites of those years. However, Lafite has recently made great wines in 1975, 1976 (the best wine in Bordeaux in that vintage), 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 (a monumental year for Lafite), 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2016 and 2018.
1978 Chateau Lafite Rothschild 'Carruades de Lafite', Pauillac, France
Price: $395.00 Sale Price: $330.00 Quantity in Stock: 6
"This wine is distinctively herbaceous and cedary, with surprisingly high acidity, and aggressive tannin in the finish. Its medium garnet color and smoky, roasted herb-scented nose are followed by a wine with good fruit on the attack, but an angular, sharp finish. The wine appears to be closer to full maturity than its younger sibling, the 1979." Wine Advocate
1983 Chateau Lafite Rothschild 'Carruades de Lafite', Pauillac, France
Price: $425.00 Sale Price: $350.00 Quantity in Stock: 14
(93 points) "The 1983 vintage was a little more difficult in Pauillac than down in Margaux, but the evolution has been extremely slow and it still tastes hugely enticing, with cigar box and touches of underripe tea leaf notes balanced by some lovely soft cassis and brambly autumnal fruits edged with cold ash. Drinking Window 2018 - 2030." Wine Advocate.
1975 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (mid shoulder fill)
Price: $1450.00 Sale Price: $1050.00 Quantity in Stock: 13
1975 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (top shoulder fill)
Price: $1450.00 Sale Price: $1050.00 Quantity in Stock: 9
(93 Points) Three late-released bottles of the 1975 Lafite Rothschild were drinking beautifully, soaring from the glass with scents of sweet red berries, camphor, cigar box and loamy soil. Medium to full-bodied, ample and enveloping, with a generous core of fruit, melting tannins and succulent acids, this is a soft, seamless wine despite the inherently firm style of the vintage, and it's at its peak today. (WK) Review Date: 02/2022 Wine Advocate
1982 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $3700.00 Sale Price: $2995.00 Quantity in Stock: 7
(100 Points) The 1982 Lafite possesses a dark, dense ruby/purple color with only a subtle lightening at the rim. Spectacular aromatics offer jammy cherry and black fruits intertwined with lead pencil, mineral, and smoky wood scents. Powerful for a Lafite, this wine unfolds to reveal extraordinary richness, purity, and overall symmetry in addition to stunning flavor depth and persistence. The finish lasts for nearly a minute. Plenty of tannin remains, and the wine displays a vibrancy and youthfulness that belie its 18 years of age. The modern day equivalent of Lafite-Rothschild's immortal 1959, the 1982 will enjoy another 30-70 years of life! An amazing achievement! Anticipated maturity: 2007-2070. Wine Advocate # 129 June 2000
1983 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $999.00 Sale Price: $750.00 Quantity in Stock: 85
(94 Points) The 1983 Lafite-Rothschild is one of my favorite vintages of the decade, and this bottle, served blind, replicates its showing at their 150th anniversary vertical. However, at first, it feels a little disjointed on the nose, but it coheres in the glass, offering lovely blackberry fruit, hints of pain d'épices, black truffle and meat juices. The palate is beautifully balanced with fine-boned tannins, tobacco and morels. There's a bit more white pepper on the finish of this bottle, though persistent as ever. What a wonderful Lafite-Rothschild that, at 40 years, continues to go strong. (NM) Review Date: 08/2023, Vinous
1986 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1800.00 Sale Price: $1395.00 Quantity in Stock: 6
(100 points) The 1986 possesses outstanding richness, a deep color, medium body, a graceful, harmonious texture, and superb length. The penetrating fragrance of cedar, chestnuts, minerals, and rich fruit is a hallmark of this wine. Powerful, dense, rich, and tannic, as well as medium to full-bodied, with awesome extraction of fruit, this Lafite has immense potential. Patience is required. Anticipated maturity: 2000-2030. Last tasted 11/94 Bordeaux Book, 3rd Edition Jan 1998 wine advocate
1999 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1450.00 Sale Price: $1150.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(95 Points) The 1999 Lafite Rothschild sports an engraved "1999" on the bottle along with an eclipse to mark that significant historical event of August, 1999. It is a quintessential offering from Lafite Rothschild. This prodigious wine is both elegant and intensely flavored, and almost diaphanous in its layers that unfold with no heaviness. An opaque ruby/purple color is accompanied by a complex bouquet of lead pencil, graphite, cedar, creme de cassis, toast, and vanilla. It is medium-bodied, with extravagant layers of richness yet little weight, and a finish that is all sweetness, ripeness, and harmony. This extraordinary Lafite increasingly appears to be a modern day clone of the majestic 1953. A mere one-third of the crop made it into the grand vin! Anticipated maturity: 2007-2030. Wine Advocate # 140
2000 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1800.00 Sale Price: $1500.00 Quantity in Stock: 6
(100 Points) Well, well, well - Lafite Rothschild does it again. Ever since manager Charles Chevalier was transferred from his beloved Sauternes property of Rieussec (also owned by the Rothschilds) to Lafite in 1994, there has been a succession of profound wines to emerge from this noble estate. The 2000 Lafite Rothschild, a blend of 93.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6.7% Merlot (only 36% of the crop made the grade) has an opaque ruby/purple color, followed by an extraordinary aromatic expression of liquid minerals/stones interwoven with the tell-tale graphite notes, mulberry, black currants, caramel, and tobacco. In the mouth, it is remarkably light on its feet, but somehow seems to pack intense flavors into layer upon layer of fruit and richness that cascade over the palate. A compelling wine, with extraordinary precision, great intensity, and a seamlessness in spite of what are obviously elevated levels of tannin, this wine was provocatively open and beautiful when tasted in January and February, but I am sure it will soon close down. The finish lasted a whopping 72 seconds! This is utterly fascinating stuff. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2050. Wine Advocate # 146 Apr 2003
2003 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $2250.00 Sale Price: $1450.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(100 Points) A modern day version of the 1959 Lafite, the 2003 Lafite Rothschild was bottled in mid-May, 2005 after achieving 12.9% natural alcohol – hardly an astonishing figure given the vintage’s weather conditions. A combination of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot, it represents a ripe version of the essence of Lafite-Rothschild. Dense purple-colored, with classic notes of graphite intertwined with melted licorice, creme de cassis, smoke, and flowers, it reveals extraordinary richness, opulence, power, purity, intensity, and viscosity. Whether this wine will close down or not is questionable as it is somewhat atypical given its sweetness and softness. Analytically, there are extremely high tannins, which I suspect will assert themselves in the future. Production in 2003 was less than half of normal. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2050. Wine Advocate #164, Apr 2006
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