Château Smith Haut Lafitte is located in Pessac-Léognan on the Left Bank of the Garonne River. During the 1959 Classification of the Graves it was rated as Grand Cru Classé for its red wine. Nowadays the estate is also considered to produce one of the foremost examples of white Bordeaux.
Cabernet Sauvignon usually accounts for 60-65 percent of the red grand vin. Merlot contributes around 30 percent, and small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot round out a typical blend. The wine is aged in barrel for around 18 months, with 60-65 percent new wood. The white grand vin is usually Sauvignon Blanc-dominant, with around five percent each of Sémillon and Sauvignon Gris. The wine is fermented and aged in barrel, resting on its lees for a year. Half of barrels are new in both stages.
Tasting notes:
The nose is fruity, fresh and offers a certain racy power, a nice intensity (with finesse). There are notes of pulpy boysenberry, strawberry and more slightly ripe red berries, racy minerality, a discreet hint of violet as well as fine nuances of nutmeg, vanilla, cherry blossom, an imperceptible hint of iodine, graphite and star anise. The palate is nicely juicy, fresh, mineral, balanced and reveals a nice juiciness, freshness, a crystalline side, a good definition, a certain tension. On the palate this wine expresses bright raspberry, cherry and slightly fresh blackberry notes combined with hints of fresh violet, cherry blossom as well as fine hints of toast, mocha, a discreet hint of coffee, varietal, fresh blond tobacco and a subtle hint of vanilla. A fine mellowness on the finish/persistence.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.