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Lafite vertical - 1989 is a superstar - 1st March 2012
When a sip of Lafite is said to cost £85 on average, I thought it was well worthwhile paying £75 to attend a vertical tasting of Chateau Lafite, tutored by the Director of the Lafite estates, Charles Chevallier. Held in a lovely room at Trinity House overlooking the Tower of London, 80 Masters of Wine and MW students gathered on Tuesday for a 10am start. There was said to be £32,000 worth of wine in the room... A not inconsiderable sum!
Overall, these wines show incredible depth, power and elegance. Truly great Pauillac. Within that, of course I had my personal favourites (Lafite 1989 and 2003 and Duhart 2003)...
The wines tasted were (with indicative in bond prices per dozen as a guide):
Carruades de Lafite 2006 - Very classic Pauillac. Tannins are still firm and this needs another four years plus. Great Sunday lunch wine (mind you, it would have to be a special lunch at these prices!). **++ £3,500
Ch Duhart-Milon 2006 - Toasty, harmonious fruit with soft texture. Very attractive but still needs time. **++ £975
Ch Duhart-Milon 2003 - Sexy, intriguing nose of soft red fruits. Sweet, round, lovely length. Evolving quickly but absolutely gorgeous to drink now. (At a tenth of the price of Lafite 03, this is a 'relative' bargain!) **** £900
Then the Lafite vertical (photos show 03, 00, 99, 90, 89, 88):
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 2003 - Soft, strong, toasty, silky fruit with a creamy nugget behind, this is sexy stuff. Black fruits, very long, fine flavours. Will evolve comparatively quickly in relation to other vintages of Lafite. ****+ £9,900
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 2000 - Perhaps I was expecting too much but I found this a bit underwhelming. The colour is still very youthful and the style leans more towards red fruits in a classic, elegant style with less density than the 2003. Charles Chevallier says this will be very long-lived and 'impossible to destroy'. **** £18,300
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 1999 - Some exotic spice, greater percentage of Merlot used shows through. Has length and strength but not quite the excitement. Soft, chocolaty finish. **** £6,300
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 1990 - Sweet, maturing, saddle-leather-Merlot nose (30% used compared to 9% in 03 for example). Opulent, mouthwatering. Very very good but maturing more quickly than either 89 or 88. ***** £7,500
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 1989 - A superstar. Striking silky texture, wonderful mouthwatering flavour with an extra dimension on both the nose and the palate. Never-ending finish. Harmonious and truly a great wine. This will age superbly well and Charles Chevallier said he thought it would age the longest of the 88/89/90 trio. *****+ (rarely given!) £6,300
Ch Lafite-Rothschild 1988 - Bright colour (due to the higher acidity no doubt). Closed, still youthful bright red fruits yet softness and elegance too. More austere in style, even a touch herbaceous. **** £7,750
Ch Rieussec 2001 - Wonderful orange, barley-sugar, lime and blossom nose - heady aroma. The texture is like single cream but the toffee-apple and floral honey sweetness is perfectly balanced by the zesty acidity. This will age 30-40 years or more. **** £1500
Susan McCraith MW
