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  • Country ranking ?

    258
  • Producer ranking ?

    10
  • Decanting time

    4h
  • When to drink

    from 2025
  • Food Pairing

    roasted Beets with Goat Cheese

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The Story

Each Château has its own style.  / What would be, according to you, the specificities of Château Smith Haut Lafitte Red?

The style of our red wine is very classic, with a beautiful expression of our terroir of Günzian Gravel which gives unique smoky notes. We pursue elegance and structure, freshness and complexity, balance and richness.
Our majority of Cabernet Sauvignon, harvested at full maturity and softly vinified to extract only the s...

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Wine Information

The mild, rainy winter favoured early bud break in early March. The rise in temperatures in April allowed the vines to grow. A rainy episode in early May triggered mildew pressure, which was subdued by the work of the vineyard teams. The development of the vine (flowering, veraison) was rapid and homogeneous. The summer conditions, marked by heat and drought, caused water stress at the end of July. The harvest, which began on August 20 for the...

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Vintage 2020

In Bordeaux, the heat led to early flowering. Additionally, this led to an early harvest after a very hot summer. As a starting point, there is great maturity in the grapes, and we can expect a more opulent vintage than in recent years.

This year's summer was the hottest since 1959, but the rain fell at just the right time during the growing season. The harvest took place two weeks before the norm and will produce grapes with high alcohol p...

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Tasting note

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Written Notes

Bright yellow colour with green hue. Aromatic nose with fine aroma reminiscent of grapefruit, grapefruit peel, kiwi and physalis, on the palate well-balanced with creamy texture, fine acidity, quoting the flavour of the nose. Hints of vanilla in the finish and excellent length. 

  • 98p

The color of the wine is dark red, almost black with blueish hues. Very expressive on the nose with red fruits and black fruits flavors. A good swirl in the glass releases a large range of flavors and spices. Star anis, liquorice as well as empyreumatic notes and flint stones from the günzien gravels. It goes very wide and powerful on the palate at first, then the well-defined structure and smoothness of the wine gives it all its balance, fresh and full body.

Cask sample. After a reasonably restrained nose, there is beautifully pure cassis fruit that really lingers on the palate. Rarely for 2020, this is a wine that clearly needs time to bring more expression to the nose. It's all there on the palate, but entirely nascent. A long-haul wine. (RH)

  • 90.5p

So much blackcurrant, graphite and iodine character. Full-bodied. Incredible quality to the tannins. They are polished yet powerful. It’s so long and complete with such depth and toned muscles. Vertical. Very fresh and energetic. Will it be better than the famous 2015? Maybe the best ever. From organically grown grapes. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot.

  • 100p

Possibly ranking with the top two or three wines of the vintage, the 2020 Smith Haut Lafitte is a blockbuster that reminds me of a hypothetical mix of the 2009 and 2010. Based on a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, its dense purple hue is followed by a monster bouquet of ripe black fruits, scorched earth, charcoal, and graphite. All of these carry to a full-bodied Pessac-Léognan with flawless balance, loads of ripe, polished tannins, a dense mid-palate, and a great, great finish. It’s one of the gems in the vintage and should be snatched up by readers. Give bottles just 4-6 years in the cellar, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following 20-30 years.
Barrel Sample: 97-100

  • 100p

Smith Haut Lafitte - lots of aromatic blackcurrants and black cherries on the nose, powerful on the palate with a strong backbone, big concentration, multilayered and with great length. Long, long finish. Impressive effort. 96-97p.

  • 97p

Full bottle 1,355 g. Cask sample taken 22 April. Harvest started as early as 9 September until 30 September. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. 60% new barriques. Pioneer of biodynamics and sustainability in Bordeaux.
Mid crimson. Nuanced, complex nose suggests masses of ripeness and intense aromas. Interesting dried-bay-leaves note on the nose followed by some slight leafiness. Rich, polished palate – structured juiciness. Then pretty dry on the finish – not quite as luscious on the palate as the nose suggests. Masses of sandy-textured tannins on the finish. Will need lots of time.

  • 90.5p
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Information

Origin

Martillac, Bordeaux

Other wines from this producer

Château Cantelys

Château Cantelys blanc

Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc

Château Smith Haut Lafitte, Casher

Hauts de Smith Blanc

Le Petit Haut Lafitte

Le Petit Haut Lafitte Blanc

Les Hauts de Smith

Les Hauts de Smith rouge

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