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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2023 and 2029 (based on 72 user opinions) |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.4 pts. and median of 90 pts. in 5 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Nickdevlinnapa on 1/31/2024 & rated 90 points: Drunk with pan seared duck breast.
Good classic Bordeaux, getting into drinking window in my view
Pleasing acidity, classic dark fruits and some well integrated oak. Not showy, but good. (161 views) | | | Tasted by IV+ on 9/24/2023 & rated 91 points: Blackcurrant, blackberry jam, a hint of vanilla and some smoke on the nose. Likewise on the palate with quite good acidity, medium body, modest tannins and medium length. (275 views) | | | Tasted by super007 on 6/30/2023 & rated 90 points: France Trip; 6/29/2023-7/10/2023 (France (Paris, Burgundy, & Champagne)): Great wine. Lot of fresh fruit. Clearly a high quality second production from a top wine maker (411 views) | | | Tasted by winemanintheden on 1/7/2023 & rated 91 points: Beautifully crafted with nose of dark cherries, black fruit, some light tar and black pepper. Elegant and retrained. On the palette it’s nicely balanced with more classic finish. We love this kind of wine. Still very young and primary but approachable. Will just get better. We paired it with Southern Rhône regional cheeses and enjoyed it the middle of the night. Half bottle. (428 views) | | | Tasted by Jeff Leve on 4/26/2018 & rated 90 points: Dark red fruits, espresso, plums and smoke on the nose. The wine is elegant, fresh, forward and easy to taste, finishing with sweet, ripe, red fruits and a hint of oak in the soft textured, bright, endnotes. The wine was made from a blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon. (2842 views) |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, 2017 Bordeaux – Mirror, Mirror on The Wall… (Mar 2020) (3/1/2020)
(Smith Haut Lafitte Les Hauts De Smith Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, 2017 Bordeaux From Bottle (2/26/2020)
(Les Hauts De Smith) Login and sign up and see review text. | By James Suckling
JamesSuckling.com (12/11/2019)
(Les Hauts de Smith Pessac-Léognan, Red, France) Subscribe to see review text. | By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, 2017 Bordeaux: The Heart of the Matter (May 2018) (5/18/2018)
(Smith Haut Lafitte Les Hauts De Smith Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Neal Martin
Vinous, The F-Word: Bordeaux 2017 (May 2018) (5/18/2018)
(Smith Haut Lafitte Les Hauts De Smith Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, 2017 Bordeaux: A Good Yet Irregular Vintage (4/23/2018)
(Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte Les Hautes de Smith) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Jane Anson
Decanter, Bordeaux En Primeur 2017 Pessac-Léognan (4/8/2018)
(Château Smith Haut Lafitte, Les Hauts de Smith, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By James Suckling
JamesSuckling.com (4/5/2018)
(Les Hauts de Smith Pessac-Léognan, Red, France) Subscribe to see review text. | By Chris Kissack
Winedoctor, April 2018 (4/1/2018)
(Château Smith-Haut-Lafitte Les Hauts de Smith Pessac-Léognan Red) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and JebDunnuck.com and JamesSuckling.com and Decanter and Winedoctor. (manage subscription channels) |
| Château Smith Haut Lafitte Producer website – Read more about Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte
Producers > Château Smith Haut Lafitte See map
Château Smith-Haut-Lafite has been transformed during the last decade from being a perennial underachiever to being one of the leading estates in the Graves region.
For many years it was owned by the Bordeaux négociant Eschenauer - in 1990 it was bought by former Olympic skiing champion, Daniel Cathiard. He cut down on the amount of chemicals and herbicides used in the vineyards, and fully modernised the winemaking facilities. The proportion of new oak barrels used in the maturation process was increased and a trio of eminent oenologists (including the ubiquitous Michel Rolland) were hired as consultants.
The 55 hectares of vineyards are located on a gravel ridge to the east of Château Haut-Bailly. The red wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (55%), Merlot (35%) and Cabernet Franc (10%). The grapes are fermented in stainless steel vats and the wine is then matured in oak barrels (50% new) for 15-18 months. The wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered.
BACKGROUND: The noble Bosq family started growing grapes as early as 1365. The property was purchased in the 18th century by Scotsman George Smith, who gave the estate its present name. He also built the manor house and exported his – by now famous – wine to England on his own ships. In 1842, Mr. Duffour-Dubergier, Mayor of Bordeaux and an enthusiastic winegrower, inherited Château Smith Haut Lafitte from his mother and brought the wine up to great growth status. Impressed by Smith Haut Lafitte's excellent quality, the Louis Eschenauer company distributed the wine all over the world starting in the early 20th century, deciding to buy the estate in 1958. After the Eschenaueur period came to an end, a great deal of money has been invested in the estate, particularly on the construction of a superb underground cellar holding over 1,000 barrels. In 1990, Daniel Cathiard fell in love with the property and joined the list of prestigious owners, firmly intending to further enhance Smith Haut Lafitte's tradition of excellence. He combined the most modern winemaking techniques and age-old methods: organic compost, small wooden vats, ageing on the lees in barrel, etc. Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comBordeaux Bordeaux Wine Guide
Vins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux)
History of Bordeaux
History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification
"2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson
"2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman
"The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson
"2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson
"In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon RimmermanGraves Vins de Graves (Conseil des Vins de Graves) - Read more about Pessac Leogan Graves and its winesPessac-Léognan Pessac-Leognan reds:
Grape Varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot
Soil: Predominantly gravel and sandy rock, with varying proportions of clay and sandstone
Surface Area: 1,491 ha
Pessac-Leognan whites:
Grape Varieties: Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon
Soil: Gravel and rocks covered with sand, sandstone, and clay
Surface Area: 275 ha |
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