Ch. Lafite Rothschild
1st Growth Grand Cru Classe
Pauillac
2000

The producer

Records mention Lafite as far back as 1234 giving it one of the longest recorded histories in Bordeaux. Owned by famous names throughout its history the Rothschilds arrived in 1868 – only 13 years after it had been classified a First Growth – and have remained the owners till this day. Today Lafite is headed up by Saskia de Rothschild, daughter of Baron Eric de Rothschild.

Perfectly situated with 110 hectares of vineyards in some of the deepest gravels of the Medoc peninsula at the very northern sector of the Pauillac commune. Separated by the commune St Estephe only by the Jalle de Breuil stream, Lafite even has 4.5 hectares in St Estephe, and usually use this fruit to make up around 10 percent of the main wine.

Although its proximity, and incursion, into St Estephe would suggest a powerful structure, Lafite is perhaps the most elegant of the First Growths. Even a blend that includes 80% to 90% Cabernet Sauvignon does nothing to restrain the aromatic beauty of Lafite. Despite proudly boasting less power and structure than its Pauillac First Growth peers, Lafite achieves extraordinary longevity as its broad spectrum of aromatic complexity develops for decades.

The wine

Fruit for Lafite’s Grand Vin is sourced from some of the deepest gravels of the Medoc peninsula at the very north of the Pauillac commune. Frequently the blend has up to 80-90% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the remainder a combination of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Fermentation is in wooden vats, sometimes also in stainless steel and cement vats – depending on vintage conditions and fruit ripeness. Ageing takes place in up to 100% new oak barrels from Lafite’s own cooperage and using oak from the Allier and Nivernais forests. A wine of extraordinary aromatic beauty, Lafite proudly boasts less power and structure than its Pauillac First Growth peers and can achieve astonishing longevity as its broad spectrum of aromatic complexity develops for decades.

We choose our wines based on a range of criteria (see how we choose our wines) of which critic scores is just one. Rather than simply highlight the best score to promote a wine, our average critic score is calculated from the scores provided by several respected wine critics, who we follow for specific regions. They do not represent all critic scores and, wherever possible, we try and give more weight to more recent reviews. Where appropriate we consider market-based scores like Global Wine Score or Wine Searcher Average scores.

As a rule, we look to offer wines that achieve a 92/100 average critic score or better and frankly a lot of very good wines simply don’t make the cut. As a high-end provider we want to reflect that positioning in the quality of wines we offer. Such wines are only a tiny fraction of those generally on offer in the market. We believe that an average score is a more conservative and representative approach, but it is still subjective and only offered as a guide to our customers, who will (and should) do their own research. We will add individual critic scores to our website in the future.