Carruades de Lafite 2023

Baron Eric de Rothschild, chairman of Domaines Barons de Rothschild (DBR), described Château Lafite Rothschild and its terroir as a viticultural tour de force with the power to, “turn bare earth into heaven.” This is no exception for the Second Wine of this property, Carruades de Lafite.  Carruades de Lafite is a formidable wine that allows lovers of the incredible terroir and winemaking prowess of Château Lafite Rothschild to experience the treasures of this estate while waiting for their bottle of grand vin to blossom.

The property is currently headed by Saskia de Rothschild, who took over management responsibilities from her father in 2017.  Prior to that, the property was run by Baron Eric de Rothschild, the chairman of Domaines Barons de Rothschild for 42 years. This holding company has vineyards all over the globe, including China, Argentina and Chile.  The château has been owned by the same branch of the Rothschild family since 1868.  The wine from this estate has continued to captivate the minds of wine drinkers around the globe. The late American president Thomas Jefferson was reported to have been a lifelong consumer of its great wines.  He had a penchant for the finer things and spent $10,000 on his wines one year -- that's the equivalent of 1 million dollars today.  A hefty amount of that purchase consisted of wines from Château Lafite Rothschild and the other great First Growth, Château Haut Brion.  Naturally, his extravagant lifestyle led him into debt and towards the end of his life he was practically penniless.  His biggest regret? That he couldn't drink wine from Château Lafite Rothschild anymore.

Lafite Rothschild has an illustrious past, with references to its exalted wines that date back to as early as 1234.  The chateau rose to prominence in the 17th century, largely due to contributions of Marquis Nicolas Alexandre de Ségur.  Known as, “The Wine Prince,” the Marquis de Ségur improved the viticultural techniques at Lafite and introduced the wines to royalty at the court of Versailles.  The excellence of the wine was undeniable, and soon Lafite Rothschild’s Grand Vin became known as the wine of kings.  Lafite Rothschild cemented its reputation when it was recognized as one of the First Growths of the 1855 Classification, earning it much-deserved prestige on a global scale.  As the years progressed, new innovations improved the viticultural process on the estate.  Dairy cows were introduced to organically fertilize the property, and the estate built its own cooperage for making barrels to age the wines to perfection.  At Lafite Rothschild, tradition marries artistic innovation, and the result is great wine for generations.

Carruades de Lafite has similar characteristics to the grand vin of Château Lafite Rothschild.  Its name derives from the Carruades plateau, a group of plots that were acquired in 1845 near the vines on the Château hilltop.  The wine has a softer feel, largely due to the higher percentages of Merlot.  Yet make no mistake, Carruades de Lafite is a formidable Second Wine with plenty of ageing power. 

''Medium intensity ruby, fairly austere right now, structured, with the same mint leaf and ink quality as Lafite. The sweet brambled black fruits only come in through the mid palate, this is well paced, unrolls slowly, a serious and concentrated Carruades that has its eye on the future. 12% pres wine, harvest September 7 to 29, unusually only using Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend.'' - Jane Anson, Best Pomerol 2020 Wines Tasted En Primeur, (04/15/2024), Ratings: 94, Drink: 2029-2044

''A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, the 2023 Carruades de Lafite is lovely, bursting with aromas of minty blackberries, cassis and cigar box, followed by a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and layered palate that's creamy and textural, its generous core of fruit largely concealing its powdery structuring tannins, concluding with a long, resonant finish.

"The second wine of this reference point château, the 2023 Carruades De Lafite is based on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, resting in 50% new French oak. Crème de cassis, graphite, wildflowers, spicy wood, and lead pencil notes all define the aromatics, and it's medium-bodied, with a focused, classic Lafite elegance, ample mid-palate depth, and ripe tannins. I love its overall purity, balance, and length." - Jeb Dunnuck, Bordeaux 2023 En Primeur, (05/08/2024), Ratings: 92-94 

"The 2023 Carruades de Lafite is a very pretty, sensual wine that very much captures the personality of the Grand Vin, naturally in a more approachable style. The blend is 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, with no Franc or Petit Verdot. I have to say, there is something very direct about the 2023—something frank that is really evident. I admire its purity. Succulent red plum, spice, cedar, tobacco and a lifting touch of white pepper open first, while beautifully persistent saline undertones extend the finish." - Antonio Galloni, Vinous, (04/30/2024), Ratings: 92-94 

"Today, Château Lafite Rothschild amounts to some 110 hectares planted to some 900,000 vines (including 4.5 hectares of Cabernet Sauvignon in Saint-Estèphe). If that figure strikes readers as smaller than it used to be, that's because Lafite has ripped up some less optimally situated plots that never tended to produce wine fit for inclusion in the grand vin. As of 2021, what's more, organic conversion is underway (15 hectares are already farmed biodynamically); and hedges and flowering borders, planted with native species, now begin to break up the monoculture of the vine. Cover crops, too, have been added to the viticultural team's agronomic arsenal and are delivering good results in parcels with more humid or clay-rich soils. In the winery, Lafite is meticulously traditional—the grapes are sorted twice, once optically, and see a classical maceration in wooden and cement tanks with pump-overs and some use of the "air pulse" system that disrupts the cap and oxygenates the ferment without the need for a full pump-over. Malolactic fermentation, as ever, is in tank, and the wine matures in barrels that are mostly produced in-house, with a light toast, favoring the forests of Allier and Nevers. Each vintage is racked three times, traditionally, with one egg white fining (which requires up to 8,000 eggs). As is the case almost everywhere in the Médoc, the tendency is for less and less Merlot in the assemblage.'' - William Kelley, The Wine Advocate, (04/26/2024), Ratings: 91-93