2019 Château Smith Haut-Lafitte Grand Cru Classé de Graves

The blend for the 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte is 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, harvested from September 17 to October 10. The wine is aged in French oak barriques, 60% new. |in the glass, this Château Smith Haut-Lafitte Pessac-Léognan (Grand Cru Classé de Graves is deep garnet purple colored and is nothing short of spectacular on the nose, rolling sensually out of the glass with notes of warm cassis, chocolate covered cherries, chocolate cake and raspberries with nuances of cinnamon toast, lilacs, camphor and iron ore The palate is medium to full-bodied, combining remarkable energy and clarity with ripe black fruit, framed by wonderfully ripe, fine-grained tannins and fantastic invigorating freshness, long ending with mineral-tinged fireworks Parker ends his review with: "....Stunning!"

"It is difficult in Bordeaux to have both high acidity and good ripeness," said Fabien Teitgen, technical director of Château Smith Haut Lafitte. “But this year you have both. On cool nights, the acidity was nicely preserved. Overall, 2019 was cooler than 2018. We have the impression that 2019 was warm, but overall it was cooler. The wines are fresher and brighter. 2018 is powerful, but 2019 has intensity.” As an organic grower, Smith Haut Lafitte was one of the castles that was hit hard by the mildew in 2018. "In 2018 we lost half of the harvest," Teitgen confessed. “In 2019 we actually had no problems. The yields were normal for us.”

(97-998+)/100 Parker
99/100 James Suckling