Chateau Lafite-Rothschild - Pauillac 1er Cru Classe 2022 (Pre-arrival) (750ml)
Price: $999.99
| Producer | Chateau Lafite-Rothschild |
| Country | France |
| Region | Bordeaux |
| Subregion | Pauillac |
| Varietal | Bordeaux Blend |
| Vintage | 2022 |
| Sku | 7788 |
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A wine that provides extreme sensations, everything seems perfectly in place. The nose, still discrete, reveals the balance of the bouquet, carried by fresh leather, violet, and cherry. On the palate, almost shy at first, it gradually unveils its incredible power, perfectly tamed by remarkably silky tannins. It is so complex that you know it is still hiding much more, even though everything is already there: power, elegance, balance. The finish is long and ends with perfect precision. It’s like lacework, a future masterpiece!
94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot
Chateau Lafite-Rothschild Description
For Lafite's terroir to produce its magic, the vinification process must be carried out with extreme precision. The distribution of the grapes between wooden, stainless steel and concrete vats is determined on the basis of the characteristics of each plot and the grapes’ degree of maturity. Alcoholic fermentation takes place at a controlled temperature with regular pumping over to gently extract all the phenolic compounds. The maceration period is around 22 days. After malolactic fermentation, the wines are transferred to French oak barrels. Lafite has its own cooperage in Pauillac, the Tonnellerie des Domaines, a factor that contributes to its unique style. Every barrel is tasted and only the best are selected for the final blend. The wine is then aged in new oak barrels for 15 months.
James Suckling: 100 Points
A benchmark modern Lafite showing tobacco, orange peel, cedar, pencil shavings, violets and cigar box—so perfumed. Medium-bodied with lots of graphite, stone and hints of redcurrants on the palate. It goes on for minutes. Reminds me of Lafites that I love made decades ago. Could be the great 1986. A blend of 94% cabernet sauvignon, 5% merlot and 1% petit verdot. Best after 2030 but already fascinating.
Vinous: 98 Points
The 2022 Lafite-Rothschild bides its time in the glass. Head winemaker Eric Kohler told me that this contains the highest proportion of vin de presse ever at 17%, and the alcohol is 13.6%. The 2022 is initially quite reticent, but after four or five minutes, it unfolds with scents of blackberry, cedar, graphite and a touch of inkwell. Like a few other wines in this vintage, the mineralite only reveals itself later. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins, the signature trait of a first-rate Lafite. It is adorned with unerring purity and elegance, very focused with a beguiling symmetry. Quintessentially Lafite-Rothschild, this is as precise as a Swiss watch with just the right degree of salinity to keep the saliva flowing on the finish. Just a magnificent First Growth destined to give immense pleasure.
Wine Advocate: 97 Points
A blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2022 Lafite Rothschild unwinds in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cassis, sweet soils tones, cigar box and lilac. Medium to full-bodied, it's the most tensile of the first growths this year, with a layered, concentrated but youthfully introverted mid-palate, lively acids and a long, saline finish. It checks in at a rather high pH of 3.85, which belies its incisive profile, from a harvest that extended from August 31 to September 24.
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