Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc 2017

Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider

The Wine Independent

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

A blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc with 5% Sauvignon Gris and 5% Sémillon, the Smith Haut Lafitte 2017 Blanc offers up gorgeous, super-intense scents of pink grapefruit, white peaches, kumquats and ginger with wafts of under-ripe pineapple, lime blossoms and crushed rocks. Medium-bodied, it's very polished, sophisticated and wonderfully electric in the mouth, with sparks of citrus fruits, tropical notions and floral perfume exploding on the palate, finishing with epic persistence.

A few low-lying vines and a small section near the trees were lost to frost this year at Château Smith Haut Lafitte, but this vineyard got off lightly compared to other estates in Pessac-Léognan. The frosted areas were those that would have gone into the second labels: Les Hauts de Smith and Le Petit Haut Lafitte. However, the Cathiards' other estate in this commune, Château Cantelys, lost 60% of the crop to the frosts. “The seeds were not totally ripe this year, so extraction was more about maceration with very gentle extraction, so as not to pull out the bitter seed tannins,” commented winemaker Fabien Teitgen. He managed to use a small proportion of whole bunch—about 25%—for the Merlot component this year, while the other 75% was produced with whole berries.

James Suckling

This is fabulous white with sliced apples, pears, stones, flint and light cream. Really incredible. Full-bodied, yet so tight and polished with superb finesse and density at the same time. A fantastic Smith white. A blend of 90% sauvignon blanc, 5% sauvignon gris and 5% semillon. Drink or hold.