Chateau Lafite Rothschild

Château Lafite Rothschild, a First Growth château in Paulliac, was the second stop on the day’s schedule of visits. However, it was clearly the highlight of the day. Note: Tours are by appointment only. Our guide spoke excellent English and effectively provided insight on Lafite Rothschild’s unique terroir (a term that was discussed at every château we visited) and described in depth its winemaking process. While the winemaking operations and facilities were pretty comparable with other minor châteaux, its cavernous cellar was definitely an impressive sight to behold. The best part of the tour was its culmination, the tasting. We were offered a generous pour of the 2001 Lafite Rothshchild. To which I could only say, «Yes, please.»

Our private guided tour was very personal and informative.
As one of the largest vineyards in the Médoc, Château Lafite Rothschild is 110 hectares (260 acres) and spread across a very good slope. The name «Lafite» derives from the meaning «small hill» and the small hill is located in the rear of the beautiful château.
The different grape varietals are planted according to the condition of the soil: estates with heavy soils plant more Merlot and estates with gravelly, porous soils plant more Cabernet Sauvignon. The Ch. Lafite vineyard is cultivated with old vines of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 5% is Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. In Pauillac, Cabernet Sauvignon is king and the varietal gives the specificity and character to Pauillac wines.
Ch.Lafite utilises 29 wooden vats, 20 stainless steel vats and 18 little vats. Typically, pumping over is twice per day for ~17 days and there are 20 days of maceration. Wines are matured 18 months in new French oak barrels: 7 months in a natural cellar and 11 months in the second-​year chai, built under the supervision of architect Ricardo Bofill. The circular vault holds 2,200 barrels and is supported by 16 columns. The circular design is functional since racking, bottling and cleaning can be done with greater efficiency than a traditional, linear designed chai.
As has been the tradition at Ch. Lafite, 100% of the Domaine’s cooperage is done in-​house in Pauillac. Ch. Lafite employs 6 full-​time coopers to produce 2,000 barrels per year. This is adequate to supply Ch. Lafite and all the other estate-​owned properties with new French oak barrels each year. The French oak is selected from the Allier and Nivernais forests, then left to dry in the open air for two years at Ch. Lafite before being crafted.
Traditional racking is 5 – 6 weeks. 8,000 organic egg whites are used for fining. When asked why organic eggs were used, our host explained that it was for stability reasons in the fining process as opposed to any environmental concerns. Annual production is between 15,000 and 25,000 cases (or 180,000 and 300,000 bottles).
At the end of our visit, we tasted the 1995 Château Lafite — which was superb.

Buy at least two cases of Lafite each year, even if you cannot afford it. Your great grand children will love you.
Two world-​famous chateaux — Mouton Rothschild and Lafite Rothschild — share the same classification and owner family, yet there are important differences.
Mouton is open to visitors, Lafite is by invitation only (I am fortunate to befriend a Tastevin de Bordeaux). Mouton has a higher yield of wine per square area, Lafite ranks usually 3 to 5 Parker points higher than Mouton.
When buying, prefer Lafite to Mouton in terms of quantity but get both. Buy En Primeur if you’ve yet to celebrate 40^th birthday, otherwise buy the oldest outstanding vintages you can find. The last time a Christies expert tasted the 1865 vintage, he called it «amazingly youthful».
You have been warned!