Château Lafite-Rothschild 2017

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

Composed of 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.5% Merlot and 0.5% Petit Verdot, the 2017 Lafite Rothschild is deep garnet-purple colored. It opens slowly, cautiously with restrained notes of chocolate-covered cherries, mulberries, warm blackcurrants and wild blueberries, followed by emerging notions of smoked meats, fragrant earth, crushed rocks and lilacs with touches of cast-iron pan and Marmite toast. Medium-bodied, the palate is deceptively light and quite ethereal on entry, growing in the mouth to reveal elegant layers of energetic red and black fruits with tons of savory accents. Framed by exquisitely ripe, wonderfully fine-grained tannins, it has exhilarating freshness and a very long, hypnotically perfumed finish. On a final note, the alcohol here is a jaw-dropping 12.5%, which is something of a miracle considering the ripeness of the Cabernet. A total head-turner, I cannot wait to follow the development of this wine!

James Suckling

Deep and typical on the nose with blackcurrants, black tea, leather and graphite. The aromas draw you down to the palate. Full-bodied, creamy and beautiful with extremely polished, refined tannins. Yet, it’s powerful and long. Highest percent of cabernet sauvignon ever. Juicy and almost exotic, but very tidy with ripe tannins. Try after 2025 and onwards.

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider

VertdeVin

The nose is elegant, fine, racy, complex and offers a fine freshness as well as a beautiful grain. It reveals notes of cassis and ripe wild red berries associated with small notes of wild blackberry, wild strawberry, minerality, subtle/discreet touches of spices, Cuben pepper as well as a very discreet hint of flowers and nutmeg. The palate is fruity, well-balanced, slightly tight, slightly close and offers a beautiful definition, a fine tension, a fine acid frame, a beautiful racy minerality, a good freshness, a beautiful finesse, delicacy, tension, vivacity as well as a beautiful harmony. On the palate this wine expresses notes of cassis, blackberry and more slightly ripe berries associated with fine touches of flowers/bulb/lily, spices, zan, sweet spices/vanilla as well as discreet touches of tonka bean (in the background). Good length. Beautiful acidulous and gourmand persistence. There is a hint of toasted almond on the finish/persistence. Very fine chews on the finish and firmness on the persistence.

Falstaff

Wine Enthusiast

This wine is poised, gathering freshness and good acidity in the same structured container as the pure black-currant fruits. With 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine has a classicism about it: fruity and structured at the same time.