Wine Advisor
Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1998
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Description
Within the five rarefied first growths, Lafite is perhaps the wine with the best reputation for quality and longevity, commanding correspondingly high prices. It is considered by some to be the best wine to come out of Bordeaux. In 1815, Guillaume Lawton said of Château Lafite, “I consider it to be the the most elegant and delicate, with the finest substance of the three (Premier Crus). The location of its vines is one of the finest in the Médoc”. In 1855 the Château was ranked as a Premier Grand Cru in the famous classification that was prepared for the Universal Exhibition of that year. Lafite is also known as the ‘King’s wine’, after being introduced to the Court at Versailles by Maréchal Richelieu.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Kudos to Charles Chevalier who has fashioned this brilliant Lafite. The 1998 (40% of the crop made it into the grand vin) is a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot. It is a great success for the vintage, and one of the superstars of the Medoc. The 1998 Lafite-Rothschild offers extraordinary nobility and accessibility. It already reveals a remarkably complex nose of black currants, lead pencil, minerals, and subtle new oak. Rich, with a gorgeous symmetry, sweet tannin, and a concentrated, profoundly long finish, it possesses a sense of surreal elegance. In spite of its richness and intensity, it has retained the finesse for which Lafite is renowned. This should develop into an aromatic Lafite that will surprise people by its richness and harmony. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2030.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
A deep, limpid garnet core with ruby rim. The nose is quintessential Lafite with cedar, blackberry, a hint of damp moss and black tea. Very good delineation with a certain languid nature. The palate is medium-bodied, very good acidity and balance, more cohesion than the Chateau Margaux with a certain sensuality that Lafite can develop (but Latour rarely does.) Blackberry, pencil lead, just a hint of tar and cooked meats coming towards the finish, very good length with grippy tannins towards the finish. Excellent. Tasted March 2008.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Thirty-four percent of the harvest made it into this wine, which is one of the best balanced wines in this difficult vintage in the Medoc. An exquisite effort, it exhibits an opaque purple color, as well as generous quantities of complex, smoky, lead pencil, mineral, and red and black fruit aromas. Rich, with remarkable levels of sweet tannin, this layered, super-concentrated 1998 reveals supple tannin for the vintage. It is an amazing effort! The final blend was 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2035.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted three or four time in its infancy when it displayed an very Cabernet dominated nose with a tinge of dark chocolate. The tannins were firm from the beginning with a cigar box note on the finish. Completely outshone Mouton-Rothschild 1998 a couple of weeks later. Then at the Lafite vertical in November 2005. A similar colour to the 1999. But here the nose has a degree more ripeness, but not quite the nervosity of the 1999. Blackberry, violets, touch of prune. The palate has quite silky in texture, superb ripeness with layers of blackberry, black coffee and minerals. Great length and style with a gorgeous cassis finish. This is a top-quality wine for the vintage. The "dark horse" of the vertical tasting.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at Hermitage Wines’ seminar in Hong Kong. I must admit that this was a rather underwhelming bottle of one of the finest Lafites in recent years, principally because the fruit seems very subdued. Perhaps this is going through a dumb stage of adolescence: bolshie and introverted. I like the weight and persistency towards the finish, suggesting that bottles should not be approached into the real Lafite 1998 comes back in ten year’s time. Tasted November 2011.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, this wine represents only 34% of Lafite's total harvest. In a less than perfect Medoc vintage, it has been spectacular since birth, putting on more weight and flesh over the last year. This opaque purple-colored 1998 is close to perfection. The spectacular nose of lead pencil, smoky, mineral, and black currant fruit soars majestically from the glass. The wine is elegant yet profoundly rich, revealing the essence of Lafite's character. The tannin is sweet, and the wine is spectacularly layered yet never heavy. The finish is sweet, super-rich, yet impeccably balanced and long (50+ seconds). Anticipated maturity: 2007-2035.
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, the 1998 Lafite Rothschild is deep garnet with a hint of brick and gorgeous notions of sandalwood, crème de cassis, smoked meats, black pepper and garrigue with touches of chargrill, dried herbs and mincemeat pie. Medium-bodied, soft and plush on the palate, it has tons of mouth-filling savory and plum preserves flavors and a very long, savory finish. Delicious now, it should keep for 15-20 more years.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 1998 Lafite-Rothschild is served from double magnum directly from the château reserves, in fact with the man who made it sitting opposite me – Charles Chevalier. I must admit to being quite amazed how well this shows at 20-years of age, trouncing all the other First Growths except Haut-Brion. Lucid in colour, it has a vivid bouquet of pure blackberry, blueberry, vanilla and graphite, perhaps just a little uncharacteristically showy in style, but beautifully defined and intense. The palate is perfectly balanced with layers of ripe black fruit, perfectly pitched acidity and a silky smooth texture that renders this utterly seductive. It is almost too good for me to recommend cellaring longer. Whatever...it is a sublime Lafite-Rothschild that on this showing, may well challenge the supremacy of the 1996. Tasted at the Académie du Vin dinner in Bordeaux.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Saturated bright ruby. Noble aromas of blackcurrant, cedar, lead pencil, licorice and nutty oak. Very intensely flavored and penetrating, with great class and grip. Impressively concentrated and juicy, but still rather imploded in the middle palate. This showed terrific subtle sweetness as it opened in the glass. Offers quintessential Lafite elegance as well as the strong backbone to support long aging. The finish features firm but ripe tannins and uncanny persistence of flavor. A candidate for the Medoc wine of the vintage.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Purple-ruby. Penetrating, complex nose combines blackberry, cassis, myrtille, lead pencil, mint and pungent minerality; aromas are far less advanced than those of the '97 at a similar stage. Almost painful on the attack, then strong, dense and backward; based on this sample, the '98 Lafite possesses a level of intensity beyond virtually anything else from the Medoc in this vintage. Mineral-edged black fruits framed by pungent oak spice and supported by a firm spine. Very long on the finish, with strong, tongue-coating tannins. Completely dominated by its structure today, but a wine with significant potential.
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