2023 Carruades de Lafite
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Tasting Notes
We’ve been particularly impressed by Carruades in recent vintages – and it’s proved itself again this year, as much more than just a Second Wine. The nose is open and inviting, yet refined and delicate, with high-toned red and dark berry fruit. The palate shows beautiful balance (and just 13.1% alcohol), echoing the elegance of the Grand Vin. It has true Cabernet credentials (indeed, the 2023 has the highest proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon to date), with many layers of flavour and a long, fresh finish. Really excellent this year. Blend: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot
Critic Scores
Average Score
James Suckling
William Kelley, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
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.
Spicy, floral, and fruity in the nose, with its red, black, and blue aromatics, you quickly move to the soft, silky, elegant, fragrant, medium-bodied palate. This is a bright, fresh, charming wine that even though it does not feel weighty, it is sneaky in its length, as it lingers on the palate, with fruit, as well as freshness. The wine is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 40% Merlot. It is interesting to note this is the first vintage in ages, if not ever, with only 2 vintages in the blend. 13.2% ABV, 3.7 pH. The wine consists of roughly 35% of the harvest. 15% press wine.
A savory and juicy Carruades with softness and notes of ripe berry, cedar and dried tobacco. Like Lafite from the 1980s but more precise. Round and pretty. It really grows on the finish with such sweetness of fruit and length. Pointed, fine tannins at the end. Very long. A blend of 60% cabernet sauvignon and 40% merlot.
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About the producer
Ch. Lafite Rothschild is one of the most famous wine estates in Bordeaux and the world. One of the Left Bank’s five First Growths, the Pauillac property is renowned for producing wines of finesse and elegance that age beautifully.