94 -95 points,

James Suckling, jamessuckling.com, April 2012

A bit chewy but shows an impressive intensity of spice, sweet tobacco, and currant character. Full, dense and structured. Muscular for the vintage for Lafite. Tobacco box aftertaste. Some wet earth too.

95 points,

Jancis Robinson, April 2012

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot. Deep dark crimson with rich purple rim. Delicate, pure cassis dark fragrance, the merest hint of oak spice. Tannins are a conundrum, feeling dense and savoury at first and then gliding over the finish line. Polar opposite of Mouton style. 18.5/20 (JH)

John Sweeney, JJ Buckley, April 2012

80% cabernet sauvignon and 20% merlot from vines with an average age of 40 years. The early harvest at Lafite began with Cabernet Sauvignon on September 3rd and finished on September 21st (about a month earlier than 2010). Very dark ruby in color with a deep ruby rim. Classy and exquisite notes of Asian spices, dark chocolate, raspberry coulis, and hints of lead pencil and fresh roasted coffee. Medium bodied on the palate, with well-integrated tannins and balanced acidity. The oak is fairly apparent but not obtrusive. The wine's highlight is its long, complex, and silky finish. The most balanced of all the First Growths in this vintage, showing an alluring elegance, but certainly not the power of the 2010.

93 -95 points,

Neal Martin's Wine Journal, April 2012

The 2011 Lafite-Rothschild is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot with an alcohol level of 12.6%. It has wonderful purity on the nose with blackberry, cassis, raspberry, a touch of graphite and an attractive floral note. It is feminine and beguiling. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins on the entry, crisp acidity, very harmonious and alluring with blackberry, raspberry and a saline touch towards the long caressing finish. It is a more sensual Lafite that I was expecting, with great persistency and poise. Tasted April 2012.

90 -93 points,

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, April 2012

A blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot (harvested between September 3-21), the 2011 Lafite Rothschild came in at 12.6% natural alcohol (considerably lower than in 2010 and 2009). Exhibiting a deep ruby/purple color, lots of crushed rock, red and black currant, forest floor and underbrush characteristics, moderate tannin and medium body, it is built somewhat along the lines of the 1999 and 2001. It should be a 20- to 25-year wine, but it is not at the level of the 2008, 2009 and 2010. Fresh acids give the wine a somewhat more clipped feeling than most great Lafites have exhibited. Nevertheless, there is a lot of freshness and vibrancy to this vintage.

89 -92 points,

Stephen Tanzer's IWC, May 2012

Good dark red. Very closed nose hints at blackcurrant, licorice, mocha, graphite and spices. Slightly hard-edged in the mouth, with a peppery element to the dark fruit, mineral and spice flavors. Finishes a tad pinched, with palate-saturating tannins verging on dry. This will obviously need time in bottle to smooth out, but I fear that the tannins will always maintain at least a light green streak. Of course I hope I'm wrong, but this doesn't strike me as one of the most successful Lafites of the last ten years.

95 -97 points,

Wine Enthusiast, May 2012

A powerful wine with dark and dry tannins. It has a great depth of fruit flavor, with immense and concentrated weight, and a structure that is for long-term aging. - R.V.

93 -96 points,

Wine Spectator, April 2012

Still tightly wound and very restrained, but there's a serious well of black plum and macerated currant fruit in reserve, held behind substantial but well-ripened tannins and a strong chalk and iron note. There's a nice austerity to the very driven mineral finish. Tasted non-blind.-J.M.

About Winery

Undoubtedly the best-known Bordeaux wine...Château Lafite is one of the three undisputed greats of Pauillac...The vineyards of Chateau Lafite Rothschild sits on the highest knoll of the Pauillac area. (Appellation Pauillac Controlée)... The vineyard was at one time owned by Alexandre de Segur, proprietor of Chateaux Latour and Calon Segur. Lafite became public property in 1794, after the owner (the President of the Parliament of Guyenne) had been guillotined in the Revolution. After changing hands a few more times, the Rothschild family acquired the property when it was put up for auction in 1868 and remain the owners today.

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