Wine Advisor
Smith Haut Lafitte 2000
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at Bordeaux Index’s 2000 tasting in London. Taciturn on the nose at first, but coquettishly opening up with pure red-fruits, espresso, cedar and a touch of the old dusty antique bureau. Good definition. The palate is full-bodied, firm tannins, a touch of spice on the entry, a citric thread that counterbalanced the dense, ripe black fruit. This is nowhere near ready, but all the elements are here for a great wine, with notes of blackberry, cedar, graphite wild strawberry and freshly rolled tobacco. Persistent, grippy and utterly convincing. Drink now-2030. Tasted March 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A sensational effort, and undeniably the finest wine to ever emerge from this estate, the opaque purple-colored 2000 offers scents of tobacco, camphor, graphite, creme de cassis, and licorice. This full-bodied, concentrated effort possesses low acidity, a multi-layered texture, tremendous intensity of flavor, and a persistent finish with considerable ripe, well-integrated tannin. This is a brilliant example of equilibrium and finesse allied to considerable power and flavor. Kudos to the Cathiards. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2025.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The finest Smith-Haut-Lafitte I have ever tasted, the opaque purple-colored 2000 offers scents of camphor, graphite, creme de cassis, and licorice. This full-bodied, concentrated effort possesses low acidity and a persistent finish with considerable ripe, well-integrated tannin. It is an impressive tour de force for this estate. Kudos to the Cathiards. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2025.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
This never showed well in barrel but in November 2004 it was magnificent. Just an effortless nose of cedar, earth and super-ripe cherry. Very classy on the palate, a wine that Nature has made rather than man. Good weight, very vivacious and fresh. Notes of cedar, pencil-lead and black fruits, though quite spicy on the finish. Just a superb, regal Smith Haut-Lafitte. Tasted November 2004.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
One can’t say enough about this winery, which may still fly under the radar of most consumers. The fully mature 2000 displays gorgeous aromas of camphor, lead pencil shavings, unsmoked tobacco, plums, and black currants. With full body, a velvety texture, and beautiful weight, richness, and length, this superb wine should evolve, possibly improve for another 15 years. It’s a beauty!
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
2000 is the finest vintage yet produced during the nearly ten-year regime of the Cathiard family. As always, the wine displays considerable class, an intense flavor profile as well as nobility given its emphasis on balance and complexity with no heaviness. An opaque purple-colored effort, the 2000 exhibits beautifully-knit notes of black fruits intermixed with smoke, lead pencil, minerals, and charcoal. Deep and medium-bodied, with laser-like clarity, superb purity, sweet tannin, low acidity, and an intense, concentrated finish, this is a brilliant wine! Anticipated maturity: 2005-2025.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the chateau. A deep garnet core. The nose is tightly coiled, masculine with graphite and a touch of cigar box, but it is biding its time. Very good definition and freshness, but the wrong time to approach this now. The palate is medium-bodied, firm “grippy” tannins with tobacco, smoke, a touch of graphite. Broody, surly at the moment, but it has the focus and the depth to suggest it will blossom in 5-6 years. Classic in style, this is a fabulous millennial wine. Drink 2010-2030. Tasted September 2008.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good full ruby. Roasted red and black fruits, smoke and licorice on the nose. Powerful, even a bit aggressive, with less sweetness and subtlety than the subsequent vintages. Finishes with big, chewy, ripe tannins and lingering notes of tobacco and leather. Very Graves in style. This appears to be in the process of shutting down in the bottle.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Medium ruby. Exotic sappy ripeness on the nose, with notes of Cuban tobacco, licorice, Indian spices, camphor and vanillin oak. Pliant, opulent and seamless, and highly aromatic in the mouth, with sweet toasty oak, minerals and a note of cinders. A very rich, layered wine for Smith Haut Lafitte. Finishes with big, broad tannins and sweet fruit and oak notes.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good saturated ruby to the rim. Aromas of black raspberry, violet, and smoky, tarry oak. Very dense and sweet; really stuffed with black fruit and floral flavor. Chewy and powerful but with lovely purity and balance. Strong tannins seem successfully buffered by the wine depth of material.
About the Producer
Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte is located in the village of Martillac in the Pessac-Leognan appellation, south of Bordeaux, France, and is a Grand Cru of the Graves appellation. The Château Smith Haut Lafitte complex is quite large, with a château, winery and large underground cellars, as well as a sizeable resort hotel (Les Sources de Caudalie), the Caudalie Vinotherapie Spa, the Caudalie restaurant, and the gardens, water and wine garden. The courtyard also features gardens, flowing water and a number of artistic sculptures, including a sculpture by Barry Flanagan called "The Flying Rabbit", as well as wonderful works by Chinese sculptor Huang Yongping and Italian artist Mimmo Paladino, among others. The Smith Haut Lafitte winery Smithers Lafitte has 78 hectares of vineyards planted with 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, while the white varieties include 90% Sauvignon Blanc and 5% Petit Verdot. Sauvignon Blanc, 5% of Sauvignon Gris and 5% of Semillon. The average age of the red vines is 38 years and the average age of the white vines is 40 years. The wines are fermented in stainless steel tanks or in large oak barrels, depending on the variety and the plot. After fermentation, the red wines are aged for 18 months in 60% new barrels and the white wines for 12 months in 50% new barrels. The wines are not filtered before bottling and have a unique, slightly smoky aroma that fully reflects the true nature of the Graves origin. The winery is currently being upgraded and will be 100% gravity-fed when the renovation is complete. The grapes are harvested at perfect ripeness, gently broken and fermented to extract the smoothest and softest tannins and flavours, and the wine is then aged for several years to reveal its qualities: crisp and complex aromas, balanced and full-bodied, elegant and firm on the palate. Currently, Château Smith Lafitte produces six wines: one red and one white, one red and one white, two secondary wines called Le Petit Haut Lafitte, and one red and one white, two tertiary wines called "Les Hauts de Smith". Château Smith Lafitte has stabilised in recent years, receiving high ratings from critics and the press in several vintages, and has been well received by the market. The top vintages of the winery into the 20th century are 2005, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
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