Carruades de Lafite Pauillac 2025 - Second Vin (Primeurs)

A premier cru of Pauillac, Lafite owes its unparalleled finesse to its gravel soils in the northern part of the appellation, set on a limestone base, along with extremely rigorous selections that eliminate more than half of the harvest. Strongly dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon—often accounting for more than 90% of the blend—Lafite shines with notes of cedar and graphite that take more than fifteen years to fully develop. The new team in charge of the estate (Saskia de Rothschild and Éric Kohler) is committed to adding more depth to both the first wine and the second wine.

Right from the start, it comes across as welcoming, approachable, and lively; crisp and vibrant, it opens with intense acidity that highlights the purity of the fruit. A salty note in the background offers an incredible contrast to the ripe strawberry fruit. But it doesn’t lack richness either: it has body, power, concentration, and tremendous aging potential. Fabulous. 2% Petit Verdot rounds out the blend. 2032–2045

A former seigneury, whose jurisdiction extended north of Pauillac, the estate owes its château and its winemaking tradition—established as early as the 17th century—to the Ségur family—Bordeaux parliamentarians and major vineyard owners—a tradition that earned it the status of a First Growth in 1855. But it owes its survival—having remained untouched by the divisions and sales that weakened so many prestigious estates—to the Rothschilds, who acquired it in 1868. It also owes its modernization and state-of-the-art facilities—such as its famous circular wine cellar designed by Ricardo Bofill—to the team led by Éric de Rothschild, who has been at the helm since 1974, and Charles Chevallier, its technical director until 2016. These facilities allow the estate to fully reveal the character of an exceptional terroir planted with 112 hectares of vines: a superb hilltop of fine, deep gravel over a limestone subsoil. In 2016, Éric Kohler took over as Lafite’s technical director, while Charles Chevallier remains a consultant and ambassador for the château.

Masterful, Lafite stands out as the most refined of the Médoc wines when, after a few years of aging, it unleashes its captivating aromas of graphite and pencil lead. Tasting it is like discovering a unique texture and vitality. A vast estate spanning 178 hectares, 105 of which are planted with vines, Lafite has been owned by the Rothschild family since 1868. The château can also boast one of the richest collections of (very) old vintages, which demonstrates just how consistently exemplary the estate has been (with the exception of a few vintages). Saskia, daughter of Éric de Rothschild, took over as head of the group’s estates in 2018, while Éric Kholer has overseen winemaking since 2016. Of note in recent vintages is the progress made by the second wine, Les Carruades.

A tight, linear red wine with aromas and flavors of red currant, sweet tobacco, and cedar. Medium-bodied, with fine, velvety tannins. A lively finish. An extremely refined texture for Lafite’s second wine. Characteristic of Les Carruades. A blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot.

The finesse with which the Carruades’ bouquet unfolds immediately evokes the emphasis placed on high-resolution definition. Notes of blackcurrant and mint explicitly symbolize freshness, while the details and finesse highlight its depth. The attack only serves to confirm the finesse hinted at by the bouquet. The wine is precise and elegant, which obviously does not prevent it from highlighting its power without overemphasizing it. It employs this power with admirable precision, pairing it with a sharp structure that beautifully delineates the many details contributing to this wine, which is as harmonious as it is invigorating. A superb achievement that heralds a great wine with breathtaking nonchalance. It loves its big brother, but doesn’t hesitate for a second to challenge him! 2030–2055