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Smith Haut Lafitte Rouge 2012 75cl

Grand Cru Classé | Graves, Pessac-Léognan | Bordeaux | France
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Critics scores
95 Robert Parker
The opaque bluish-purple 2012 Smith Haut Lafite offers up notes of licorice, graphite, blueberry and blackberry fruit, a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel, stunningly ripe, velvety tannins and a long, long finish. This is another sensational effort from the Cathiards that is perfectly balanced, complex, super-rich and pure. Drink it over the next 20-25 years. This is another great turn-around effort that dated from the acquisition of this once moribund estate in 1990, by Daniel and Florence Cathiard. They continue to do an exemplary job with both white and red.
18 Rene Gabriel
55 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 40 % Merlot, 4 % Cabernet Franc, 1 % Petit Verdot. Die Erntemenge liegt mit 118'000 Flaschen etwa 10 % unter dem Schnitt. Tiefes Purpur, satt in der Mitte, Granatschimmer am Rand. Bereits in der Nase spürt man deutlich den Cabernet-Druck, Heidelbeeren, dunkle Pralinen, tintige Spuren, die Nase ist homogen und gebunden. Im Gaumen elegant, die Tannine sind bereits eingebunden, die Aromatik tanzt zwischen blauen und schwarzen Beeren, im Finish eine leicht kernig-pfeffrige Tanninnote. Die gibt Rasse, verlangt aber auch nach gut 10 Jahren Reife. Hat seine Balance bereits gefunden. Mehrere Male verkostet.
94 Wine Spectator
Layered fig, boysenberry and blackberry pâte de fruit notes are buttressed by ample, yet polished and integrated, ganache-coated tannins, while accents of black tea, ganache and tar course underneath. A really gorgeous display of fruit, showing terroir and cut on the finish. Best from 2018 through 2027. 10,000 cases made.
Producer
Château Smith Haut Lafitte
Graves’ most characteristic estate, Château Smith Haut Lafitte sits along the most renowned gravelly ridge of the Pessac-Léognan appellation. After years under the ownership of the Bordeaux négociant Eschenauer, a former Olympic skiing champion, Daniel Cathiard and his wife, Florence bought the château in 1990. Since then, the Grand Cru Classé estate has made several improvements that continue to accrue. The Cathiards opted for a more organic viticulture method, and modernized their vinification technologies. With 78-hectares under vine, the vineyards devote 67-hectares to red varieties, and the remaining 11-hectares are planted to white. Smith Haut Lafitte Rouge remains at the pinnacle of their production. It is a lighter style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that still packs an impressive depth. The white, Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is also unfiltered and barrel fermented, however this wine stays true to the floral, and herbal core found at the base of this unique terroir’s production.