Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2003

robert_parker100

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

The 2003 Lafite Rothschild comes as close to perfection as any of the great Lafites made over the past three decades (1982, 1986, 1996, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010). This sensational effort came in at 12.7% natural alcohol, it is made in the style of one of this estate’s great classics, the 1959. Composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it exhibits a dense ruby/purple color to the rim along with a luxurious bouquet of cedarwood, lead pencil shaving, white chocolate, cocoa and cassis. Fat, rich, opulent and full-bodied with low acidity and stunning seductiveness and complexity, this noble wine possesses a bountiful, generous, heady style. It is just coming into its plateau of maturity where it should hold for 20-25 years. This is one of the candidates for the wine of the vintage – make no mistake about that. These are two great successes in this vintage that have aged well and surprised me by their intensity and overall complexity.

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Tasted at the IMW Lafite seminar in London. Comparing the Lafite Rothschild ’03 directly with the Duhart Milon ’03, there is patently more freshness and vitality on the nose. In fact, you would be hard pressed to nail it as a 2003. There are notes of blackberry, brambly red fruit, graphite and a touch of wild heather. Leaving the wine to open in my glass over thirty minutes, it develops a hint of orange rind. The palate is medium-bodied with a ferrous entry. It is well balanced but not as complex as other recent vintages. It is a sedate, refined Lafite that seems to be maturing with some alacrity. The finish is soft with hints of oxtail and dried herbs on the finish. Tasted February 2012.

robert_parker96

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

This has a wonderful nose: very expressive with ripe cherry, blackberry, wild hedgerow and cedar with beautifully interwoven new oak. The palate has an irresistible fleshy entry belying the structure that lies underneath. Black cherries, raspberry, pencil lead, with a touch of spice on the utterly harmonious with a faint hint of dark chocolate on the finish. With time in glass, it begins to firm up, becoming more masculine, the tannins more prominent. A great wine. Drink 2015-2030. Tasted January 2007.

robert_parker99

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Delicious! A nose that urges you to make love. Sweet black cherry, a touch of mocha and violets. Very sexy and seductive. The palate is pure, decadent and harmonious. Seamless texture. Could I detect just a hint of astringency on the finish? Picking at straws - a stunning wine that will be adorning many a romantic table in about 2025 (hopefully mine if I win the lottery.) Tasted Marhc 2004.

robert_parker100

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

Revealing enormous richness, flesh, and succulence, the 2003 Lafite Rothschild is one of the candidates for “wine of the vintage.” A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot (the Merlot was harvested between September 8 - 12, and the Cabernet Sauvignon between September 15 - 24), it possesses ethereal richness as well as perfume. Yields were a low 34 hectoliters per hectare, there is just under 13% natural alcohol, and the pH level is frightfully high at 3.9 with a total acidity of only 2.9. These figures are nearly identical to such ripe, concentrated vintages as 1982 and 1959. Inky/ruby/purple-colored with a spectacular, ripe perfume of black fruits, cedar, Asian soy, and balsamic vinegar, it exhibits massive richness yet is remarkably fresh and lively on the palate for such an unctuous effort (amazing levels of glycerin). In that sense, it is atypical, but like the 1982, I suspect the 2003 will become more delineated as the tannin emerges over the next 1-2 years. An amazing textural impression left me scratching my head as I have never tasted a Lafite Rothschild quite like this. This is one first-growth worth mortgaging the house for! Anticipated maturity: 2010-2035.

robert_parker100

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

A modern day version of the 1959 Lafite, the 2003 Lafite Rothschild was bottled in mid-May, 2005 after achieving 12.9% natural alcohol – hardly an astonishing figure given the vintage’s weather conditions. A combination of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot, it represents a ripe version of the essence of Lafite-Rothschild. Dense purple-colored, with classic notes of graphite intertwined with melted licorice, creme de cassis, smoke, and flowers, it reveals extraordinary richness, opulence, power, purity, intensity, and viscosity. Whether this wine will close down or not is questionable as it is somewhat atypical given its sweetness and softness. Analytically, there are extremely high tannins, which I suspect will assert themselves in the future. Production in 2003 was less than half of normal. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2050.

robert_parker95

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Tasted blind at Farr Vintner’s Left Bank tasting, the Lafite ’03 has a deep garnet core. A very fragrant bouquet with warm summer fruits, hot roof tiles and sous-bois: fresh and natural. The palate is medium-bodied, not a particularly complex 2003 where the vintage makes more of an impression than the wine. A little attenuated on the fleshy, plush finish as soft as a feather-down pillow. Tasted October 2010.

robert_parker100

Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

One of the vintage’s most prodigious wines, the 2003 may be a modern day clone of the1959 Lafite Rothschild. Unusually opulent and viscous, with a dense purple color and an amazingly complex nose of scorched earth, Asian soy, balsamic vinegar, black currants, plums, and even some figs, Lafite tips the scales at 12.75% alcohol (less than they expected). The final blend is 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot. A wine of great intensity, tremendous viscosity and density with low acidity (the pH is pushing 4), and a magnificent finish, but all with great precision, purity, and freshness, this is a tour de force in winemaking and something that simply has to be tasted to be believed. I have never had another Lafite Rothschild anything like it, and those who would argue that the 1982 or 1959 are cut from the same mold may have some supportive evidence. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2050+.

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Tasted at Bordeaux Index's "10-Year On" tasting in London. Comparing the wines side by side, the Lafite Rothschild '03 has a similar bouquet to the Latour but perhaps it retains just a little more delineation. It is more understated than Latour but offers lifted pencil shaving scents and hints of sous-bois. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy, sensual entry - layers of red berry fruit, mint, vanilla and white pepper. It is very composed towards the finish, nicely focused and stretches long in the mouth. I appreciate the refinement here, the composure and finesse. Tasted March 2013.

vinous96

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

The 2003 Lafite-Rothschild famously shrugged off the merciless heat of that infamous summer when the temperature at the estate nudge 42° Celsius. It has a lovely bouquet of black plum, pressed iris, a touch of glycerin and (for Lafite) exotic scents of blood orange. The palate is powerful and intense as you would expect. There is great depth and volume with glossy black fruit laced with orange zest, smoke and melted tar. You can almost feel the summer in this Lafite-Rothschild but unlike many of its peers, it has requisite acidity to maintain freshness and avoid cloyingness on the finish. Whilst not my pick of modern-day Lafites, I have to doff my cap because it was and still is, one of the finest Left Banks of the vintage. Tasted at the Lafite-Rothschild 150th anniversary dinner at the estate.

vinous93

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Full red-ruby color. Captivating aromas of cassis, cherry, tobacco, mocha, coffee and leather, with a complicating element of dried oregano and thyme. At once silky and penetrating in the mouth, with very firm acids for the vintage giving shape and thrust to the dense flavors of currant, tobacco and iodine. Finishes with broad, dusty tannins and superb persistence. Although this appears to be built for two or three decades of life in bottle, I miss the primary fruit character and the mineral and floral high notes of the more classic vintages of this wine.

vinous97

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

(86% cabernet sauvignon, 9% merlot, 3% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot) Bright ruby-red. Blueberry, licorice, fresh herbs, flowers and a whiff of coconut on the rather medicinal nose. Sweet, dense and pure, with superb inner-mouth energy, especially for a wine so ripe. But this is also wonderfully round and atypically lush, without any rough edges. Expressive flavors of redcurrant, minerals and tobacco. Broadens out impressively toward the back and finishes with an explosion of fruits and dark chocolate. Hard to assess today with confidence (and I may well be underrating this wine): does this have the classic Lafite grip under the impressive baby fat?